What You Don’t Know…Can’t Hurt You? A Natural Field Experiment on Relative Performance Feedback in Higher Education

Ghazala Azmat
Ghazala Azmat
Sciences Po and Centre for Economic Performance, LSE, Paris, Île-de-France 75337, France;
Search for more papers by this author
,
Manuel Bagues
Manuel Bagues
Aalto University and IZA, Helsinki 00076, Finland;
Search for more papers by this author
,
Antonio Cabrales
Antonio Cabrales
University College London, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom;
Search for more papers by this author
,
Nagore Iriberri
Corresponding Author
Nagore Iriberri
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0317-0115
University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, País Vasco 48080, Spain
Search for more papers by this author

Ghazala Azmat

Sciences Po and Centre for Economic Performance, LSE, Paris, Île-de-France 75337, France;

Search for more papers by this author

Manuel Bagues

Aalto University and IZA, Helsinki 00076, Finland;

Search for more papers by this author

Antonio Cabrales

University College London, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom;

Search for more papers by this author

Nagore Iriberri

Corresponding Author

Nagore Iriberri

http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0317-0115

University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, País Vasco 48080, Spain

Search for more papers by this author

Published Online:14 May 2019https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2018.3131

Supplemental Material

The replication files for this article are available HERE.

Cited by
- Performance Ranks, Conformity, and Cooperation: Evidence from a Sweater Factory
  Anik Ashraf
  11 August 2025 | Management Science, Vol. 72, No. 4
- The promise and pitfalls of AI-generated negative feedback on learning willingness: the moderating role of AI reliability cues
  18 March 2026 | Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Vol. 29
- Gender Differences in Aversion to Social Comparison Feedback
  12 March 2026 | Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Vol. 12
- Does displaying continuous relative feedback increase students’ performance and effort?
  Vie & sciences de l'entreprise, Vol. n° 226-227, No. 3-4
- Does displaying continuous relative feedback increase students’ performance and effort ?
  Vie & sciences de l'entreprise, Vol. n° 226-227, No. 3-4
- Relative Performance Feedback in Education
  Revue économique, Vol. Vol. 76, No. 4
- Relative Performance Feedback in Education
  Revue économique, Vol. Vol. 76, No. 4
- Reducing Customer Complaints through Algorithm-Generated Feedback: Evidence from a Field Experiment
  23 April 2025 | Journal of Systems Science and Systems Engineering, Vol. 34, No. 6
- Better peers, lower rank: gender differences in selective groups
  30 May 2025 | SERIEs, Vol. 16, No. 3-4
- Small ponds are best to motivate performance with relative feedback
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 240
- Peers’ performance feedback: Evidence from soccer penalty shootouts
  Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Vol. 119
- Relative performance feedback in the trucking industry: how rank information affects drivers’ fuel efficiency
  17 October 2025 | International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, Vol. 55, No. 9
- Gamified Physical Activity App for Students at Universities: Results of Five Development Loops MHCI013
  9 September 2025 | Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, Vol. 9, No. 5
- Improving the teacher feedback process in primary education: evidence from randomized controlled trials in schools in rural China
  15 October 2024 | Education Economics, Vol. 33, No. 5
- The effect of test anxiety on high-stakes exams: evidence from an RCT using biomarkers
  3 September 2024 | Education Economics, Vol. 33, No. 4
- The curvilinear effects of relative positions in smartphone app leaderboards on physical activity
  Computers in Human Behavior, Vol. 165
- Digital nudging model for learning management systems: Saudi Arabia perspective
  Heliyon, Vol. 11, No. 6
- Relative Feedback Response in Competitive Environments
  23 January 2025 | Review of Behavioral Economics, Vol. 12, No. 1
- Does supportive feedback on class rank improve scores for intermediate-level microeconomics?
  13 September 2024 | The Journal of Economic Education, Vol. 56, No. 1
- Designing a System of Performance Feedback Communication in Higher Education
  8 October 2025
- The effect of feedback on student performance
  Journal of Public Economics, Vol. 241
- The Power of Knowing a Woman Is in Charge: Lessons from a Randomized Experiment
  Loretti Dobrescu,
  Alberto Motta,
  Akshay Shanker
  12 March 2024 | Management Science, Vol. 70, No. 12
- ‘Good job!’ the impact of positive and negative feedback on performance
  Sports Economics Review, Vol. 8
- The impact of social status on the formation of collaborative ties and effort provision: An experimental study
  Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Vol. 113
- How good am I? Effects and mechanisms behind salient rank
  European Economic Review, Vol. 170
- Grades as signals of comparative advantage: How letter grades affect major choices
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 227
- Can leagues mitigate the demoralization effect of rank feedback? A randomized controlled trial
  Labour Economics, Vol. 90
- Pay transparency intervention and the gender pay gap: Evidence from research‐intensive universities in the UK
  10 November 2023 | British Journal of Industrial Relations, Vol. 62, No. 2
- Work experience, information revelation, and study effort
  29 April 2023 | Oxford Economic Papers, Vol. 76, No. 2
- The effects of more informative grading on student outcomes
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 218
- Projektvorhaben: Nudging als Instrument zur Erhöhung von BNE-Kompetenzen bei Fernstudierenden im Rahmen des Projektvorhabens Versand Digital
  16 March 2024
- Helping Students to Succeed – the Long-Term Effects of Soft Commitments and Reminders
  1 January 2024 | SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 61
- Effect of Feedback on Beliefs About Self-Ability
  1 January 2024 | SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 65
- Social Information and Educational Investment—Nudging Remedial Math Course Participation
  21 December 2023 | Education Finance and Policy, Vol. 19, No. 1
- College major choice and beliefs about relative performance: An experimental intervention to understand gender gaps in STEM
  Economics of Education Review, Vol. 97
- Can rank-based non-monetary rewards improve student attendance? Experimental evidence from India
  Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Vol. 107
- Measuring the welfare and spillover effects of rank information
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 216
- My Professor Cares: Experimental Evidence on the Role of Faculty Engagement
  American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, Vol. 15, No. 4
- Overexertion of Effort under Working Time Autonomy and Feedback Provision
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 212
- Performance feedback in a group contest: A field experiment on electricity conservation
  13 October 2021 | Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Vol. 32, No. 3
- Do timing and reference frame of feedback influence high-stakes educational outcomes?
  Economics of Education Review, Vol. 94
- Knowing what it takes: The effect of information about returns to studying on study effort and achievement
  Economics of Education Review, Vol. 94
- Can barely winning lead to losing? Gender and past performance
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 208
- Knowing that you know: incentive effects of relative performance disclosure
  25 November 2021 | Review of Accounting Studies, Vol. 28, No. 1
- Effects of perceived productivity on study effort: Evidence from a field experiment
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 207
- Random Experiment on Relative Performance Feedback in Higher Education at URJC
  15 November 2023
- Performance feedback and productivity: Evidence from a field experiment
  1 January 2023 | Production and Operations Management, Vol. 32, No. 1
- Incentives to Work Out: Evidence from Field Experiments
  1 January 2023 | SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 61
- Overexertion of Effort Under Working Time Autonomy and Feedback Provision
  1 January 2023 | SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 101
- Perceived Ability and School Choices: Experimental Evidence and Scale-Up Effects
  1 January 2023 | SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 107
- The Power of Knowing a Woman Is in Charge: Lessons from a Randomized Experiment
  1 January 2023 | SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 63
- Response to relative performance feedback in simulation games
  The International Journal of Management Education, Vol. 20, No. 3
- Self-perceptions about academic achievement: Evidence from Mexico City
  Journal of Econometrics, Vol. 231, No. 1
- Relative performance feedback and the effects of being above average — field experiment and replication
  Economics of Education Review, Vol. 89
- Homework and finance students’ learning and achievement
  Finance Research Letters, Vol. 46
- The Persistent Effects of Short-Term Peer Groups on Performance: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Higher Education
  Petra Thiemann
  2 September 2021 | Management Science, Vol. 68, No. 2
- The psychological effect of a math signal
  Economics of Education Review, Vol. 86
- Peer effects of ambition
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 193
- Pay Transparency Intervention and the Gender Pay Gap: Evidence from the UK
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 25
- College Field Specialization and Beliefs About Relative Performance: An Experimental Intervention to Understand Gender Gaps in Stem
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 11
- A note on pessimism in education and its economic consequences
  10 August 2021 | The Journal of Economic Inequality, Vol. 19, No. 4
- Far above others
  Journal of Economic Theory, Vol. 198
- Relative Performance Feedback in Education: Evidence from a Randomised Controlled Trial*
  6 May 2021 | The Economic Journal, Vol. 131, No. 640
- Nudging in education: from theory towards guidelines for successful implementation
  24 August 2020 | European Journal of Psychology of Education, Vol. 36, No. 3
- In absence of money: a field experiment on volunteer work motivation
  14 March 2025 | Experimental Economics, Vol. 24, No. 3
- Does Immediate Feedback Make You Not Try as Hard? A Study on Automotive Telematics
  Vivek Choudhary,
  Masha Shunko,
  Serguei Netessine
  28 December 2020 | Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, Vol. 23, No. 4
- Motivating low-achievers—Relative performance feedback in primary schools
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 187
- Inclusive cognitive hierarchy
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 186
- Motivating teams: Private feedback and public recognition at work
  Journal of Public Economics, Vol. 197
- High School Rank in Math and English and the Gender Gap in STEM
  Labour Economics, Vol. 69
- Motivating Teams: Private Feedback and Public Recognition at Work
  19 April 2021 | , Vol. 63
- Knowing who you actually are: The effect of feedback on short- and longer-term outcomes
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 183
- Verhaltensökonomisch motivierte Maßnahmen zur Sicherung des Studienerfolgs (VStud)
  10 September 2021
- The Psychological Effect of a Math Signal
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 114
- Measuring Welfare and Spillover Effects of Ranking Information
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 110
- Homework and Finance Students' Learning and Achievement
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 53
- Can barely winning lead to losing? Evidence for a substantial gender gap in psychological momentum
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 100
- Can digital feedback increase employee performance and energy efficiency in firms? Evidence from a field experiment
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 180
- Top of the Class: The Importance of Ordinal Rank
  7 May 2020 | The Review of Economic Studies, Vol. 87, No. 6
- Feedback spillovers across tasks, self-confidence and competitiveness
  Games and Economic Behavior, Vol. 123
- Am I the big fish? The effect of ordinal rank on student academic performance in middle school
  Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 176
- When do teachers respond to student feedback? Evidence from a field experiment
  Labour Economics, Vol. 65
- Performance Feedback and Peer Effects
  8 July 2020
- Inclusive Cognitive Hierarchy
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 100
- Self-Perceptions About Academic Achievement: Evidence from Mexico City
  1 January 2020 | SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 72
- Can Rank Feedback Avoid Demoralization? A Randomized Controlled Trial
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 65
- Differential Performance in High Versus Low Stakes Tests: Evidence from the Gre Test*
  16 May 2019 | The Economic Journal, Vol. 129, No. 623
- Rank Incentives and Social Learning: Evidence From a Randomized Controlled Trial
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 25
- Motivating Low-Achievers—Relative Performance Feedback in Primary Schools
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 100
- Self Confidence Spillovers and Motivated Beliefs
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 65
- The Effects of Student Feedback to Teachers: Evidence from a Field Experiment
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 39
- Does Real-Time Feedback Make You Try Less Hard?: A Study of Automotive Telematics
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 29
- Dark Side of Incentives: Evidence From a Randomized Control Trial in Uganda
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 96
- On Foundations of Pessimism in Education and its Economic Consequences
  SSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 95

Volume 65, Issue 8

August 2019

Pages 3470-3469

Article Information

Supplemental Material

Metrics

Information

Received:October 27, 2016
Accepted:May 30, 2018
Published Online:May 14, 2019

Cite as

Ghazala Azmat, Manuel Bagues, Antonio Cabrales, Nagore Iriberri (2019) What You Don’t Know…Can’t Hurt You? A Natural Field Experiment on Relative Performance Feedback in Higher Education. Management Science 65(8):3714-3736.

https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2018.3131

Keywords

PDF download

Available Issues

Available Issues

Available Issues

Available Issues

Available Issues

Available Issues

Available Issues

Available Issues

Available Issues

What You Don’t Know…Can’t Hurt You? A Natural Field Experiment on Relative Performance Feedback in Higher Education

Supplemental Material

Volume 65, Issue 8

Article Information

Supplemental Material

Metrics

Information

Cite as

Keywords

Sign Up for INFORMS Publications Updates and News