Behavioural and Experimental Economics Research

Standard economic models assume people make rational decisions that prioritise their own needs and interests. Our research in behavioural and experimental economics extends this view by looking at how psychological, emotional and social factors affect economic decision making.

Some of the issues we explore include whether people decide differently for others than for themselves, if gender biases influence the labour market and how to improve performance measures. Our research results stem mostly from laboratory research but can help legislators improve regulations and policies.

We collaborate with researchers from more than 30 institutions in 12 countries, and our research has been funded by the British Academy, the German Science Foundation and the Central Bank of the Netherlands.

Partnerships and collaborations

We collaborated with the University of Rosario, Colombia to increase public support for projects such as waste incinerators by raising people’s awareness of environmental benefits.

We're working on several externally funded joint projects with researchers from Radboud University in the Netherlands, to develop a new theoretical framework for decisions taken on behalf of others which is backed up by empirical evidence. The findings are likely to have a positive impact in areas such as financial investment, brokerage, and political decisions.

Project highlights

We collaborated with the University of Rosario, Colombia to increase public support for projects such as waste incinerators by raising people’s awareness of environmental benefits.

We're working on a joint project with researchers from Radboud University in the Netherlands, funded by the British Academy, to develop a new theoretical framework that improves decision making when decision makers can lie to gain a profit for themselves or others. The findings are likely to have a positive impact in areas such as financial investment, brokerage, tax advice and accountancy.

We're researching how gender bias in teaching evaluations can affect academics’ careers and prevent higher education institutions from making fair hiring decisions.

Recent publication highlights

Confidence snowballing and relative performance feedback
Murad, Z., & Starmer, C. (Accepted/In press). Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization.
Lying for others: the impact of agency on misreporting
Buckle, G. E., Füllbrunn, S., & Luhan, W. (2021). Economics Letters, volume 198.
Money or morality: fairness ideals in unstructured bargaining
Luhan, W., Poulsen, O., & Roos, M. W. M. (2019). Social Choice and Welfare, volume 53, issue 4, pages 655–675.
Concession bargaining: an experimental comparison of protocols and time horizons
Alberti, F., Fischer, S., Güth, W., & Tsutsui, K. (2018). Journal of Conflict Resolution: Research on War and Peace between and within Nations, volume 62, issue 9, pages 2017–2039.
Experimental effects of institutionalizing co-determination by a procedurally fair bidding rule
Alberti, F., Guth, W. & Tsutsui, K., 18 May 2022, (Early online) In: Journal of Business Ethics. 14 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Investing other people's money
Füllbrunn, S., Kvaloy, O. & Luhan, W., 1 Oct 2022, Handbook of Experimental Finance. Füllbrunn, S. & Haruvy, E. (eds.). Edward Elgar Publishing, (Research Handbooks in Money and Finance). Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (peer-reviewed) › peer-review

Discover our areas of expertise

Behavioural and experimental economics is 1 of our 4 areas of expertise in our Economics research area – explore the others below.

Resource Economics and Environmental Policy

We examine how economics influences the preservation and sustainability of natural resources such as aquatic ecosystems.

Efficiency and Productivity

Through our research in this area, we're identifying inefficiency and its causes in specific sectors.

Man working with a colleague at a laptop

Monetary Policy

We explore how central banks can keep inflation low and stable by influencing how much money there is in the economy and the cost of borrowing.

Research groups

Economics Research Group

We're undertaking cutting-edge research ranging from microeconomic level analysis of individual decision making, to global macroeconomic and monetary interactions.