Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/223933 
Year of Publication: 
2020
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 13491
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, traditional (offline) chess tournaments were prohibited and instead held online. We exploit this as a unique setting to assess the impact of moving offline tasks online on the cognitive performance of individuals. We use the Artificial Intelligence embodied in a powerful chess engine to assess the quality of chess moves and associated errors. Using within-player comparisons, we find a statistically and economically significant decrease in performance when competing online compared to competing offline. Our results suggest that teleworking might have adverse effects on workers performing cognitive tasks.
Subjects: 
productivity
teleworking
chess
COVID-19
JEL: 
H12
L23
M11
M54
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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