Gary Bolton
Professor of Business Economics, Pennsylvania State University
4-5:30 pm
UM: 411 West Hall
WSU: 313 State Hall (via videoconference)
This investigation highlights the strategic and social elements involved in the production of reputation information. We provide evidence showing how strategic behavior can lead to distortion of reputation information, hampering market efficiency. Using laboratory experiments and field data we demonstrate how changes in market design can effectively mitigate these effects without crowding out social motivations necessary for the functioning of reputation systems. Work with with Ben Greiner and Axel Ockenfels.
Gary Bolton studies decision-making issues such as bargaining, dispute resolution, and reputation building, using the tools of experimental (laboratory) economics and game theory. Questions arising from his efforts in this area have led him to basic research work concerning human motivation for cooperation and the nature of strategic learning. This work has been published in economics, business, psychology and statistics journals. Dr. Bolton teaches courses in economics and quantitative methods in the Smeal College MBA program. http://www.personal.psu.edu/geb3/
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Engineering Trust: Strategic Behavior in the Production of Reputation Information article | 1.25 MB |