Consistency of Microeconomic Behaviour across Canada

Abstract

Standard economic models do not always accurately predict human behaviour. While deviations from economic theory are often qualitatively consistent across different populations and/or different timeframes, it is important to appreciate that even small deviations in behaviour can have significant implications for the effectiveness of institutions and the efficacy of policy. Although previous studies have, within the context of a specific game, focused on how a specific human behaviour has deviated from the predictions of economic models, this study utilizes a battery of four games, coupled with a socio-demographic survey, to search for consistency in behaviour across games and across three distinct regions of Canada: Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador. The empirical findings demonstrate a high degree of qualitative similarity in behaviours among subjects in these different locations, but there are still statistically significant differences in quantitative behaviour along multiple dimensions.