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Vasilisa Werner

@vasilisawerner.bsky.social
392 followers 399 following 38 posts

Behavioral and experimental economist | Assistant professor @uniofgalwaycairnes.bsky.social | she/her

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Reposted by Vasilisa Werner
Lisa Spantig @lisaspantig.com · 05/11/2025
How strong are contrast effects? Join us at the U Penn seminar and find out: After @vasilisawerner.bsky.social presents her super-polished (former JM) paper, "Destructive Communication", I will present "Individual Preferences for Truth-Telling". Tomorrow, 7 pm CET. Registration: shorturl.at/mD1qe
Screenshot of the email announcing Visilisa's talk, "Destructive Communication" with headshot, affiliation, title and abstract.

The abstract reads:
"Does communication always promote socially efficient behavior? We challenge this common proposition by showing that communication becomes destructive in polarized contexts. In an online experiment, we investigate what happens when participants who fundamentally disagree communicate. We exogenously vary the degree of polarization and the participants’ ability to communicate. When participants are sufficiently polarized, communication no longer improves trust and significantly reduces trustworthiness. Using natural language processing and supervised machine learning, we document that a substantial fraction of participants focus their communication on being polarized, leading to a destructive effect on both trust and trustworthiness. Our findings challenge the universality of contact theory, highlighting that communication may backfire in settings where parties hold opposing views."
Screenshort from the seminar announcement email with title "Individual Preferences for Truth-Telling", abstract and headshot of Lisa. 

The abstract reads: 
"Contrary to the traditional economic view that individuals misreport private information to maximize material payoffs, recent evidence highlights robust preferences for truth-telling among many decision-makers. Theoretical models that align with aggregate behavioral patterns posit that these preferences arise from both an intrinsic motivation to be honest and a desire to be perceived as honest. We propose a novel incentivized measure to independently capture these two motives at the individual level for the first time. We validate the measure’s properties experimentally and show that it predicts behavior in other commonly studied situations that allow for (dis)honesty. The measure enables the classification of individual preference types, revealing systematic heterogeneity and fairly stable type distributions across different samples. Additionally, we propose an experimentally validated 2-minute survey module that proxies both motives and predicts behavior in a typical reporting task. Including this module in a large panel, we offer first insights into how early-life experiences may shape preferences for being and being seen as honest."
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
Just started putting together a game theory slide set for my bachelor's class. Unfortunately, the only reference I have is my PhD-level deck. Same-same but different.
Two presentation slides. The one above defines a normal form game as a table listing players' strategies and payoffs. The one below (from my PhD class) provides a lengthy, technical definition of a normal form game, accompanied by extensive notation.
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 11/09/2025
A new DP on partial cartels and ringleader discrimination is out. Check it out!
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
I couldn't be more grateful for three fantastic years in Berlin @cepa-unipotsdam.bsky.social and @bsoeberlin.bsky.social!
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
I'm thrilled to announce that I joined @uniofgalway.bsky.social @uniofgalwaycairnes.bsky.social for a permanent position as an Assistant Professor (Lecturer) in Economics. I'm excited to start a new chapter here and looking forward to getting to know everyone!
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Reposted by Vasilisa Werner
Tobias Werner @tfwerner.com · 08/07/2025
Thrilled to share that this September I’ll be joining @sotonecon.bsky.social at @unisouthampton.bsky.social pton.bsky.social as a Lecturer 🎉 I look forward to continuing my research in IO, experimental economics, and human-AI interactions, and to engaging more with the UK econ community.
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 24/06/2025
Apply now!
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
Key takeaways: 🔸Communication reduces suspicion compared to no communication and pre-chat levels. 🔸Suspicion decreases further when receivers learn their sender’s past dictator behavior, especially if it was generous. 🔸The tone of a message can be even more important than its content. #EconSky
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
Overall, communication substantially reduces suspicion, but some receivers become more suspicious during the communication. We disentangle these effects using machine learning methods to analyze the chat logs. N/N
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
We focus on the impact of open communication on the receivers’ suspicion as measured by the size of the deviation from the senders’ recommendation before and after the communication. 3/N
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
In this paper, we study how communication influences suspicion. The experiment uses a senderreceiver setup with a low probability of misaligned incentives for senders and receivers. 2/N
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
A new discussion paper "Suspicion and Communication" (w/ Lisa Bruttel and Friedericke Fromme) is out now! Check it out: ideas.repec.org/p/pot/cepadp... 1/N @cepa-unipotsdam.bsky.social
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
Facts😎
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 13/02/2025
⏰Two more days to apply! The deadline will not be extended!
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
Please feel free to share this call with colleagues who might be interested, and we look forward to your contributions! For additional information, don't hesitate to contact us at text-as-data@uni-potsdam.de
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
We are delighted to offer financial support for presenters: 🔴 Participation is free for presenters. 🔴We will cover travel and accommodation costs for all presenters.
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
We invite the submission of full papers or extended abstracts from various fields, including economics, social science, psychology, computer science, neuroscience, and related disciplines. Please submit here until February 15, 2025: sites.google.com/view/text-as...
sites.google.com
Text as Data in Behavioral Economics
Call for papers
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
We are delighted to welcome @elliottash.bsky.social, Associate Professor of Law, Economics, and Data Science @ethzurich.bsky.social, as our keynote speaker. He is the Scientific Lead in the Swiss AI Initiative, a @cepr.org Research Affiliate, and an Associate Editor at the Economics Journal.
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
🚨Less than two weeks to go: Apply to the workshop “Text as Data in Behavioral Economics”, aimed at exploring the intersection of text mining techniques and behavioral economics. 📍Potsdam, Germany on 10-11.06.25. 📍Submit here until 15.02.25: sites.google.com/view/text-as... #EconSky
sites.google.com
Text as Data in Behavioral Economics
Call for papers
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
We invite the submission of full papers or extended abstracts from various fields, including economics, social science, psychology, computer science, neuroscience, and related disciplines. Please submit here until February 15, 2025: sites.google.com/view/text-as...
sites.google.com
Sign in - Google Accounts
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
We are delighted to welcome @elliottash.bsky.social, Associate Professor of Law, Economics, and Data Science at ETH, as our keynote speaker. Prof. Ash is the Scientific Lead in the Swiss AI Initiative, a CERP Research Affiliate (Political Economy), and an Associate Editor at the Economic Journal.
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Reposted by Vasilisa Werner
Tobias Werner @tfwerner.com · 24/01/2025
Just used Gemini Live to participate in a beh. experiment without even reading the instructions or speaking the language. LLMs acting as participants on platforms like Prolific could pollute data meant to study humans. With OpenAI’s operator model, this issue is growing. 🎥👇 youtu.be/NujyGZSA7Hg
youtu.be
Participating in a behavioral experiment with Gemini Live
YouTube video by Tobias Werner
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 23/01/2025
Thanks!
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 23/01/2025
I've decided to stop cross-posting on my X account, so I hope to reunite with many of you here! #EconSky
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 25/12/2024
It was a gift but maybe @tfwerner.com can tell you!🎁
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 25/12/2024
Unfortunately I'm not sure myself. I got it as a gift 🤷🏼‍♀️
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 25/12/2024
Merry Christmas🎄 #EconSky
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 17/12/2024
Thanks, Ben☺️
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 17/12/2024
Thanks, Stephanie!
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Reposted by Vasilisa Werner
Stephanie Wang @sweiwang.bsky.social · 17/12/2024
#eeac Day 11: @vasilisawerner.bsky.social asks when might communication have negative effects on trust in JMP "Destructive Communication" papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.... People who are polarized enough on an issue talk and focus on that issue, trust and trustworthiness can decrease #econsky #econjmp
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 16/12/2024
I’m delighted that our paper “Foreclosure and Profit Shifting With Partial Vertical Ownership” (w/ M. Hunold) has found its home in the Journal of Economics & Management Strategy. You can read the paper here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.... #EconSky
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 12/12/2024
Thanks! I made the latest draft of the paper available online: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
papers.ssrn.com
Willful Ignorance and Reference Dependence of Self-Image Concerns
Self-image concerns play a crucial role in economic decision-making. I conduct a laboratory experiment and offer a theoretical framework to examine whether self
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 11/12/2024
I would be happy to be added, thanks!
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 10/12/2024
Thanks @lisakramer.com
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Reposted by Vasilisa Werner
Lisa Spantig @lisaspantig.com · 10/12/2024
Hey #Econsky, I just discovered this great starter pack: go.bsky.app/Hsdczbc Follow the Lisas! 👩‍🎓 @lisakramer.com , I think we should also add Vasilisa @vasilisawerner.bsky.social, who is on the job market with an #EconJMP on "Destructive Communication" ➡️ bsky.app/profile/vasi...
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/12/2024
You are welcome to apply if ✅You are currently a PhD student ✅Your paper is single-authored or with only junior co-authors
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 03/12/2024
⏱️Apply until January 20, 2025: 1st Berlin Micro Theory and Behavioral Economics PhD Conference will take place in Berlin on July 7–9, 2025 wzb.eu/system/files... @bbeconomics.bsky.social @bseberlin.bsky.social @wzb.bsky.social
wzb.eu
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 29/11/2024
The University of Potsdam is experiencing severe technical issues at the moment. Among other things, we cannot send or receive emails. If you need to contact me, please use my private email address: vasilisa.werner (at) gmail (dot) com
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 12/11/2024
Check out my #JMP on destructive communication and polarization about abortion rights here: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.... #Econsky #EconJobMarket
papers.ssrn.com
Destructive Communication
This paper studies whether polarization offsets the well-documented positive effect of communication on trust. In an experimental setting, we vary the degree of
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 12/11/2024
Using ML tools, we document that a substantial fraction of subjects talk about their polarized opinions. When this is the case, both trust and trustworthiness deteriorate drastically. Check out the full paper here: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.... 4/4 #Econsky #EconJM #EconJobMarket #JMP
papers.ssrn.com
Destructive Communication
This paper studies whether polarization offsets the well-documented positive effect of communication on trust. In an experimental setting, we vary the degree of
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 12/11/2024
We show theoretically and experimentally that communication harms social welfare when polarization is sufficiently strong. In a Trust Game setup with polarized (pro-life and pro-choice) pairs, communication no longer promotes trust and even harms trustworthiness on average. 3/4
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 12/11/2024
Communication is perceived as an ultimate remedy for the outcomes of social interactions: trust, cooperation, public goods contributions, etc. We challenge the universality of the positive effect of communication by focusing on individuals with polarized opinions. 2/4
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Vasilisa Werner @vasilisawerner.bsky.social · 12/11/2024
🚀I am excited to announce that I am on the Job Market this year! My JMP, "Destructive Communication" (with M. Andres), shows that when individuals are highly polarized, communication not only fails to promote trust but actively damages it. #Econsky #EconJM #EconJobMarket #JMP 1/4
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