Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/75752 
Year of Publication: 
2001
Series/Report no.: 
CESifo Working Paper No. 490
Publisher: 
Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo), Munich
Abstract: 
Most professional economists believe that economists in general are more selfish than other persons and that this greater selfishness is due to economics education. This paper offers empirical evidence against this widely held belief. Using a unique data set about giving behavior in connection with two social funds at the University of Zurich, it is shown that economics education does not make people act more selfishly. Rather, this natural experiment suggests that the particular behavior of economists can be explained by a selection effect.
Subjects: 
economists
public good
giving behavior
education
selection
Document Type: 
Working Paper
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