On the External Validity of Social Preference Games: A Systematic Lab-Field Study

• Authors: Daniel Navarro-Martínez.
• BSE Working Paper: 110283 | September 15
• Keywords: experimental games , social preferences , external validity , field behavior
• JEL codes: C92, C93, D03
• experimental games
• social preferences
• external validity
• field behavior

We present a lab-field experiment designed to systematically assess the external validity of social preferences elicited in a variety of experimental games. We do this by comparing behavior in the different games with several behaviors elicited in the field and with self-reported behaviors exhibited in the past, using the same sample of participants. Our results show that the experimental social preference games do a poor job explaining both social behaviors in the field and social behaviors from the past.