Bryan, Kevin and Gans, Joshua S., A Theory of Multihoming in Rideshare Competition (July 27, 2018). SSRN: http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3208616
Abstract: We examine competition amongst ridesharing platforms, where firms compete on both price and the wait time induced with idled drivers. We show that when consumers are the only agents who multihome, idleness is lower in duopoly than when consumers face a monopoly ridesharing platform. When drivers and consumers multihome, idleness further falls to zero as it involves costs for each platform that are appropriated, in part, by their rival. Interestingly, socially superior outcomes may involve monopoly or competition under various multihoming regimes, depending on the density of the city, and the relative costs of idleness versus consumer disutility of waiting.
Keywords: platform, ridesharing, idleness
JEL Classification: L13, L51
Friday, September 13, 2019
The cooperative sex: Sexual interactions among female bonobos are linked to increases in oxytocin, proximity and coalitions
The cooperative sex: Sexual interactions among female bonobos are
linked to increases in oxytocin, proximity and coalitions. Liza R.
Moscovice, Martin Surbeck, Barbara Fruth, Gottfried Hohmann, Adrian
Jaeggi, Tobias Deschner. Hormones and Behavior, September 10 2019,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yhbeh.2019.104581
Highlights
• Female bonobos have more frequent sex with female than male partners in feeding contexts.
• Female dyads are more likely than inter-sexual dyads to remain close after sex.
• Female urinary oxytocin levels increase following sex with females, but not with males.
• Dyads that have more sex engage in more joint coalitionary aggression.
• Sex among female bonobos may facilitate cooperation via oxytocinergic effects.
Abstract: In some species habitual same-sex sexual behavior co-occurs with high levels of intra-sexual alliance formation, suggesting that these behaviors may be linked. We tested for such a link by comparing behavioral and physiological outcomes of sex with unrelated same- and opposite-sex partners in female bonobos (Pan paniscus). We analyzed behavioral outcomes following 971 sexual events involving n = 19 female and n = 8 male adult and sub-adult members of a wild, habituated bonobo community. We additionally collected n = 143 urine samples before and after sexual interactions to non-invasively measure oxytocin (OT), which modulates female sexual behavior and facilitates cooperation in other species. The majority of sexual events (65%) consisted of female same-sex genito-genital rubbing (or GG-rubbing). Female dyads engaged in significantly more sexual interactions than did inter-sexual dyads, and females were more likely to remain within close proximity to their partners following GG-rubbing. Females also exhibited greater increases in urinary OT following GG-rubbing compared with copulations, indicating a physiological basis for increased motivation to cooperate among females. The frequency of coalitionary support among non-kin was positively predicted by the frequency of sexual interactions for female as well opposite-sex dyads, although coalitionary support tended to be more frequent among females. The emergence of habitual same-sex sexual behavior may have been an important step in the evolution of cooperation outside of kinship and pair-bonds in one of our closest phylogenetic relatives
Highlights
• Female bonobos have more frequent sex with female than male partners in feeding contexts.
• Female dyads are more likely than inter-sexual dyads to remain close after sex.
• Female urinary oxytocin levels increase following sex with females, but not with males.
• Dyads that have more sex engage in more joint coalitionary aggression.
• Sex among female bonobos may facilitate cooperation via oxytocinergic effects.
Abstract: In some species habitual same-sex sexual behavior co-occurs with high levels of intra-sexual alliance formation, suggesting that these behaviors may be linked. We tested for such a link by comparing behavioral and physiological outcomes of sex with unrelated same- and opposite-sex partners in female bonobos (Pan paniscus). We analyzed behavioral outcomes following 971 sexual events involving n = 19 female and n = 8 male adult and sub-adult members of a wild, habituated bonobo community. We additionally collected n = 143 urine samples before and after sexual interactions to non-invasively measure oxytocin (OT), which modulates female sexual behavior and facilitates cooperation in other species. The majority of sexual events (65%) consisted of female same-sex genito-genital rubbing (or GG-rubbing). Female dyads engaged in significantly more sexual interactions than did inter-sexual dyads, and females were more likely to remain within close proximity to their partners following GG-rubbing. Females also exhibited greater increases in urinary OT following GG-rubbing compared with copulations, indicating a physiological basis for increased motivation to cooperate among females. The frequency of coalitionary support among non-kin was positively predicted by the frequency of sexual interactions for female as well opposite-sex dyads, although coalitionary support tended to be more frequent among females. The emergence of habitual same-sex sexual behavior may have been an important step in the evolution of cooperation outside of kinship and pair-bonds in one of our closest phylogenetic relatives
Those who are interested in politics, who feel that they have a moral duty to vote in elections, and who feel close to a party are more prone to be satisfied with their decision to vote and to be dissatisfied if they chose to abstain
From 2017... Was my decision to vote (or abstain) the right one? André Blais, Fernando Feitosa, Semra Sevi. Party Politics, July 20, 2017. https://doi.org/10.1177/1354068817722058
Abstract: This article examines people’s assessments, ex post, of whether their decision to vote or to abstain in a given election was the right one. We use 22 surveys conducted in 5 different countries (Canada, France, Germany, Spain and Switzerland) in national, supra-national and sub-national elections between 2011 and 2015. We find that the great majority of those who voted were satisfied with their decision to vote while non-voters were more doubtful about the wisdom of their decision to abstain. We also find that those who are interested in politics, who feel that they have a moral duty to vote in elections, and who feel close to a party are more prone to be satisfied with their decision to vote and to be dissatisfied if they chose to abstain.
Keywords: abstain, elections, right decision, turnout, vote
Abstract: This article examines people’s assessments, ex post, of whether their decision to vote or to abstain in a given election was the right one. We use 22 surveys conducted in 5 different countries (Canada, France, Germany, Spain and Switzerland) in national, supra-national and sub-national elections between 2011 and 2015. We find that the great majority of those who voted were satisfied with their decision to vote while non-voters were more doubtful about the wisdom of their decision to abstain. We also find that those who are interested in politics, who feel that they have a moral duty to vote in elections, and who feel close to a party are more prone to be satisfied with their decision to vote and to be dissatisfied if they chose to abstain.
Keywords: abstain, elections, right decision, turnout, vote
Search Advertising and Information Discovery: Are Consumers Averse to Sponsored Messages? Seems not so much.
Sahni, Navdeep S. and Zhang, Charles, Search Advertising and Information Discovery: Are Consumers Averse to Sponsored Messages? (August 23, 2019). SSRN: http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3441786
Abstract
We analyze a large-scale field experiment conducted on a US search engine in which 3.3 million users were randomized into seeing more, or less advertising. Our data rejects that users are, overall, averse to search advertising targeted to them. At the margin, users prefer the search engine with higher level of advertising. The usage of the search engine (in terms of number of searches, and number of search sessions) is higher among users who see higher levels of advertising, relative to the control group. This difference in usage persists even after the experimental treatment ends. The increase in usage is higher for users on the margin who, in the past, typed a competing search engine's name in the search query and navigated away from our focal search engine. On the supply side, higher level of advertising increases traffic to newer websites. Consumer response to search advertising is also more positive when more businesses located in the consumer's state create new websites. Quantitatively, the experimental treatment of a higher level of advertising increases ad clicks which leads to between 4.3% to 14.6% increase in search engine revenue.
Overall, patterns in our data are consistent with an equilibrium in which advertising conveys relevant “local” information, which is unknown to the search engine, and therefore missed by the organic listings algorithm. Hence, search advertising makes consumers better off on average. On the margin, the search engine does not face a trade-off between advertising revenue and search engine usage.
Keywords: search advertising, search engine, marketing, economics
JEL Classification: M37, D83, L10
Abstract
We analyze a large-scale field experiment conducted on a US search engine in which 3.3 million users were randomized into seeing more, or less advertising. Our data rejects that users are, overall, averse to search advertising targeted to them. At the margin, users prefer the search engine with higher level of advertising. The usage of the search engine (in terms of number of searches, and number of search sessions) is higher among users who see higher levels of advertising, relative to the control group. This difference in usage persists even after the experimental treatment ends. The increase in usage is higher for users on the margin who, in the past, typed a competing search engine's name in the search query and navigated away from our focal search engine. On the supply side, higher level of advertising increases traffic to newer websites. Consumer response to search advertising is also more positive when more businesses located in the consumer's state create new websites. Quantitatively, the experimental treatment of a higher level of advertising increases ad clicks which leads to between 4.3% to 14.6% increase in search engine revenue.
Overall, patterns in our data are consistent with an equilibrium in which advertising conveys relevant “local” information, which is unknown to the search engine, and therefore missed by the organic listings algorithm. Hence, search advertising makes consumers better off on average. On the margin, the search engine does not face a trade-off between advertising revenue and search engine usage.
Keywords: search advertising, search engine, marketing, economics
JEL Classification: M37, D83, L10
We exhibit a bias to accept incoming information, because most claims in our environments are true; and we interpret feelings, like ease of processing, as evidence of truth, regardless of intelligence level or cognitive style
Judging Truth. Nadia M. Brashier and Elizabeth J. Marsh. Annual Review of Psychology, Vol. 71:- (Volume publication date Jan 2020), September 12, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-010419-050807
Abstract: Deceptive claims surround us, embedded in fake news, advertisements, political propaganda, and rumors. How do people know what to believe? Truth judgments reflect inferences drawn from three types of information: base rates, feelings, and consistency with information retrieved from memory. First, people exhibit a bias to accept incoming information, because most claims in our environments are true. Second, people interpret feelings, like ease of processing, as evidence of truth. And third, people can (but do not always) consider whether assertions match facts and source information stored in memory. This three-part framework predicts specific illusions (e.g., truthiness, illusory truth), offers ways to correct stubborn misconceptions, and suggests the importance of converging cues in a post-truth world in which falsehoods travel further and faster than the truth.
Abstract: Deceptive claims surround us, embedded in fake news, advertisements, political propaganda, and rumors. How do people know what to believe? Truth judgments reflect inferences drawn from three types of information: base rates, feelings, and consistency with information retrieved from memory. First, people exhibit a bias to accept incoming information, because most claims in our environments are true. Second, people interpret feelings, like ease of processing, as evidence of truth. And third, people can (but do not always) consider whether assertions match facts and source information stored in memory. This three-part framework predicts specific illusions (e.g., truthiness, illusory truth), offers ways to correct stubborn misconceptions, and suggests the importance of converging cues in a post-truth world in which falsehoods travel further and faster than the truth.
The experiments and paradigms that purportedly demonstrate spontaneous perspective-taking have not as yet convincingly demonstrated the existence of such a phenomenon
The closing of the theory of mind: A critique of perspective-taking. Geoff G. Cole, Abbie C. Millett. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, September 12 2019. https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/s13423-019-01657-y
Abstract: Theory of mind (ToM) is defined as the ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others and is often said to be one of the cornerstones of efficient social interaction. In recent years, a number of authors have suggested that one particular ToM process occurs spontaneously in that it is rapid and outside of conscious control. This work has argued that humans efficiently compute the visual perspective of other individuals. In this article, we present a critique of this notion both on empirical and theoretical grounds. We argue that the experiments and paradigms that purportedly demonstrate spontaneous perspective-taking have not as yet convincingly demonstrated the existence of such a phenomenon. We also suggest that it is not possible to represent the percept of another person, spontaneous or otherwise. Indeed, the perspective-taking field has suggested that humans can represent the visual experience of others. That is, going beyond assuming that we can represent another’s viewpoint in anything other than symbolic form. In this sense, the field suffers from the same problem that afflicted the “pictorial” theory in the mental imagery debate. In the last section we present a number of experiments designed to provide a more thorough assessment of whether humans can indeed represent the visual experience of others.
Abstract: Theory of mind (ToM) is defined as the ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others and is often said to be one of the cornerstones of efficient social interaction. In recent years, a number of authors have suggested that one particular ToM process occurs spontaneously in that it is rapid and outside of conscious control. This work has argued that humans efficiently compute the visual perspective of other individuals. In this article, we present a critique of this notion both on empirical and theoretical grounds. We argue that the experiments and paradigms that purportedly demonstrate spontaneous perspective-taking have not as yet convincingly demonstrated the existence of such a phenomenon. We also suggest that it is not possible to represent the percept of another person, spontaneous or otherwise. Indeed, the perspective-taking field has suggested that humans can represent the visual experience of others. That is, going beyond assuming that we can represent another’s viewpoint in anything other than symbolic form. In this sense, the field suffers from the same problem that afflicted the “pictorial” theory in the mental imagery debate. In the last section we present a number of experiments designed to provide a more thorough assessment of whether humans can indeed represent the visual experience of others.
Patients locked in state suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Cognitively intact, are completely paralyzed, eyes mostly closed, artificial ventilation & artificial nutrition, but we found a surprisingly healthy sleep pattern
Sleep
in the Completely Locked-in State (CLIS) in Amyotrophic Lateral
Sclerosis. Azim Malekshahi, Ujwal Chaudhary, Andres Jaramillo-Gonzalez,
Alberto Lucas Luna, Aygul Rana, Alessandro Tonin, Niels Birbaumer,
Steffen Gais. Sleep, zsz185, August 2 2019,
https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsz185
Abstract: Persons in the completely locked in state (CLIS) suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are deprived of many zeitgebers of the circadian rhythm: While cognitively intact, they are completely paralyzed, eyes mostly closed, with artificial ventilation and artificial nutrition, and social communication extremely restricted or absent. Polysomnographic recordings in 8 patients in CLIS however revealed the presence of regular episodes of deep sleep during night time in all patients. It was also possible to distinguish an alpha-like state and a wake-like state. Classification of REM sleep is difficult because of absent eye movements and absent muscular activity. 4 out of 8 patients did not show any sleep spindles. Those who have spindles also show K-complexes and thus regular phases of sleep stage 2. Thus, despite some irregularities we found a surprisingly healthy sleep pattern in these patients.
Keywords: movement disorders, neurological disorders, sleep/wake physiology, circadian rhythms, completely locked in state, polysomnography
Abstract: Persons in the completely locked in state (CLIS) suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are deprived of many zeitgebers of the circadian rhythm: While cognitively intact, they are completely paralyzed, eyes mostly closed, with artificial ventilation and artificial nutrition, and social communication extremely restricted or absent. Polysomnographic recordings in 8 patients in CLIS however revealed the presence of regular episodes of deep sleep during night time in all patients. It was also possible to distinguish an alpha-like state and a wake-like state. Classification of REM sleep is difficult because of absent eye movements and absent muscular activity. 4 out of 8 patients did not show any sleep spindles. Those who have spindles also show K-complexes and thus regular phases of sleep stage 2. Thus, despite some irregularities we found a surprisingly healthy sleep pattern in these patients.
Keywords: movement disorders, neurological disorders, sleep/wake physiology, circadian rhythms, completely locked in state, polysomnography
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