The Effects of Competition on the Nature of Cheating Behavior

19 Pages Posted: 30 Dec 2012

See all articles by Mary L. Rigdon

Mary L. Rigdon

University of Arizona

Alexander D'Esterre

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey - Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Date Written: December 21, 2012

Abstract

Competition among individuals comes in a variety of forms: for mates, for resources, for prestige and recognition. Such competitive pressure can lead individuals to engage in unethical behavior in an effort to get ahead. There are several forms of cheating in which individuals may engage to improve their own outcome: they may lie about their own performance in a task and they may lie about others’ performance in a task. Our research is the first to examine how competition affects each of these two types of cheating behavior. We find that individuals are much more willing to cheat by lying about themselves than they are willing to sabotage another when under competitive pressure.

Keywords: competition, cheating, lying, economics experiment

JEL Classification: D03, C91

Suggested Citation

Rigdon, Mary and D'Esterre, Alexander, The Effects of Competition on the Nature of Cheating Behavior (December 21, 2012). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2194870 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2194870

Mary Rigdon (Contact Author)

University of Arizona ( email )

Department of Political Economy and Moral Science
Social Sciences Building
Tucson, AZ 85719

Alexander D'Esterre

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey - Faculty of Arts and Sciences ( email )

New Brunswick, NJ 08901
United States

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