Abstract:*

We investigate the impact of providing employees with information about the descriptive norm of absenteeism through a field experiment within a retail chain. The study involved 817 employees, from whom we selected those in the top quartile of absenteeism. Half of these 194 employees were randomly assigned to the treatment group, where employees received information about their own absence relative to the median absence rate. The intervention led to a significant decrease in one-day absences. Absences longer than one day were not significantly affected. This is consistent with the explanation that the intervention was effective in reducing absenteeism among employees who may have taken short absences without being genuinely ill. Our additional results are consistent with rational belief updating about the social norm and an intrinsic preference for norm adherence.

*Co-authored with M. Kohler, M. Mahlendorf (Frankfurt School of Finance) & D. Sliwka (University of Cologne).

General information:

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