Investigated whether a desire to influence others’ choices affects our own behavior. To separate such influence motives from social pressure, we study participants’ willingness to register for a COVID-19 vaccination in a field experiment in Germany. We vary whether participants’ registration decisions are shared with a peer, to activate social pressure, and whether peers are informed before their own decision, to isolate influence motives. We find that influence motives double participants‘ registration likelihood, an effect driven by individuals with ex-ante trust in the vaccine. Despite anticipating to influence their peers, participants cannot alter peer behavior in the experiment.
Geographic Coverage: Germany, Bavaria
Collection Date(s): 4/2021 – 4/2021
Universe: Adult residents of the German state of Bavaria
Data Type(s): aggregate data; experimental data; survey data
Collection Mode: web-based survey
Unit(s) of Observation: Individuals
Geographic Unit: Zip code (Postleitzahl)