HELLO, I'M
Sigma Samhita
Applied Economics Researcher with specialisation in Behavioural Economics using experimental tools.
Sigma Samhita
PhD scholar at the Vienna Graduate School of Economics, University of Vienna
About
I am an applied microeconomist, with a specialisation in Behavioural Economics using experimental tools. I am keenly interested in human decision-making. My current research revolves around coordination in asymmetric environments, the role of morals in climate - related decisions and the economics of trust - building. My research philosophy is to find answers to fascinating questions in economics by delving into the interplay of economics, psychology, evolutionary biology, anthropology and other disciplines.
My current research
Are the more vulnerable doomed? Insights from an Experimental Threshold Public Goods Game, Sigma Samhita (Job Market Paper)
Abstract: Climate change disparately affects different parts of the earth, with catastrophic consequences for some. Coordinated global mitigation efforts can avert this crisis. More vulnerable nations require substantially higher global mitigation efforts than the needs of less vulnerable nations. This raises a coordination problem: what should be the target global effort level? Can high global effort be achieved when it is important only to the more vulnerable? We propose a novel method of heterogeneous thresholds and payoffs using a threshold public goods game. We experimentally find that heterogeneity in vulnerability significantly reduces contributions and coordination on high effort, compared to a homogeneous setting. Coordination on high effort increases when the less vulnerable contributes first. This is achieved by significantly higher contribution of the more vulnerable, which leaves them no better off than if only low effort were achieved.
Fostering Trust for an Out-group with Gradualism, Melis Kartal, Wieland Muller, Sigma Samhita (Working Paper)
Abstract: We present an experimental investigation of the effect of gradualist strategies (trusting little-by-little) on efficiency and trust-fostering for an outgroup, compared to binary trust - all - or - nothing strategies. Guided by a revised version of the theoretical model set down by Kartal, Mulller and Tremewan (2021), we identified a real world ingroup and outgroup based on linguistic groups in India. Specifically, Tamil students formed the ingroup and non-Tamil students formed the outgroup. To the best of our knowledge, this research is the first work to test gradualism in an innately existing low trust environment, as well as implement repeated interaction in real time among subjects playing a trust game. We conjectured high trust within the ingroup and lower trust for the outgroup. This would give gradualism a chance to foster trust and enhance efficiency in ingroup - outgroup interactions, compared to the binary all-or-nothing strategy. Contrary to our expectations, we find that trust is remarkably low in our sample and gradualism fails to foster any trust. We also find evidence of discrimination only in the Gradual game, not in the Binary, which is contrary to our hypotheses. This work adds to the body of literature that identifies the limits of gradualism as a trust-fostering mechanism, despite its prevalent use in many walks of life.
Markets or Not: Can Money Buy Morals? Christian Koch, Sigma Samhita (Work-in-Progress)
The idea that markets may erode morals is a long-standing thought in social sciences and a fundamental debate in modern societies. Notable examples include trade in human beings, appropriateness of markets for complex financial products involving high risks or an international market for waste disposal or carbon trading. It is important to ask where markets are appropriate and where they are not. Non-economists like Sandel argue that more fundamentally, pricing can alter the character of a good. The aim of the project is to study the effect of pricing – non-market and market – on environmentally-moral behaviour. To this end, we propose a novel Flygskam game. We systematically vary pricing and market interaction to find their individual and combined effects. We are currently in the data collection phase where we conduct the experiment on Prolific with a representative USA and UK sample.
Education
2018 - Present
PhD scholar
Vienna Graduate School of Economics, University of Vienna
Aug 2017 - Oct 2018
Visitor and Research Assistant
Department of Economics, Indian Institute of Technology Bhubaneswar, India
Sept 2016 - Aug 2017
Master of Science in Economics (First Class - with Distinction)
University of Warwick, UK
October 2013 - May 2016
Bachelor of Science in Economics (with Honours)
University of Warwick, UK
Teaching Experience
Teaching Assistant for 2 semesters (In-person, Online), Decision and Game Theory (Undergraduate level), University of Vienna, Course Instructor - Prof. Clement Minaudier
I taught twice weekly where I solved problem sets, prepared supplemental material to aid understanding of the main course material, graded and provided individual weekly feedback to students on their problem sets solutions, organised help sessions, assisted in the setting of the questions paper for the mid-term and final exams, evaluated answer scripts of mid-term and final exams
Fellowships and Research Grants
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Recipient of the Uni: Docs fellowship, University of Vienna (10/2019 - 09/2022)
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Co - awarded Diligentia Foundation grant (01/2020)
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Co - awarded research grant by the Vienna Graduate School of Economics (06/2019 - 12/2019)
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Recipient of the Prae-Doc fellowship, awarded by the Vienna Graduate School of Economics, (10/2018 - 09/2019)
Talks and Presentations
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Research Seminar in Microeconomics, University of Vienna (October 2022, June 2021, May 2020) - 75 min talk - Are the more vulnerable doomed? Insights from an Experimental Threshold Public Goods Game
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Research Seminar in Microeconomics, University of Vienna (March 2022) - 75 min talk - Markets or Not: Can Money Buy Morals?
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Research Seminar in Microeconomics, University of Vienna (November 2020, January 2020) - 75 min talk - Fostering Trust for an Out-group with Gradualism