This experiment was intended to investigate respondents’ reporting of their labour market expectations. Specifically, it investigated how these vary, depending on a random allocation to have options presented to them either anchored to their current wages or their assessment of the market wage given their skills and experience.
All included respondents were asked, non-experimentally, to estimate their probabilities of being offered a new job within the next year, for both offers from their current employer and a different employer.
They were also be asked, non-experimentally, to estimate the probabilities that over the next 12 months they will (a) remain in their job, (b) quit their job, and (c) be laid off from their job, which should add up to 100%.
Respondents were also be asked to provide their current earnings from their (main) job, plus the minimum and maximum they might expect to be offered if they received a job offer, and the minimum they would accept.
For those respondents allocated to be asked their expectations based on a ‘market wage’ anchor, they were also asked what they think a typical amount offered would be.
Respondents were asked to rate the probability that their earnings in a year’s time will be in each bucket describing a range:
| Less than 85% of anchor | 85%-95% of anchor | 95%-100% of anchor | 100%-105% of anchor | 105%-115% of anchor | Greater than 115% of anchor |
The bounds for each of these buckets were expressed as monetary sums, calculated by the script based on the anchor values provided previously by the respondent.
For respondents who had indicated a reasonably high probability of receiving at least one job offer, they were also be asked to provide probability estimates that their best job offer will be in each of the same buckets as they used for the previous question.
Inclusion criteria
These questions were asked of respondents who completed via the web or completing the self-complete section within the face-to-face interview (CASI). Telephone (CATI) respondents were excluded from this module.
The questions were only be asked of respondents who report their main economic activity is paid employment.
Allocations
The variable controlling allocation to treatments, randomised at the household level:
ff_lmeexpw17
(1/2 allocated to each condition, allocation stratified by sampleorig, p_nemp_dv, ff_gridmodew17, ff_incentw17)
1 Current wage anchor
2 Market wage anchor
Modules affected
scalabourmarketexpectations_ip17
