Academic CV
DIEGO AYCINENA ABASCAL
ACADEMIC POSITIONS & AFFILIATIONS
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, Philadelphia, PA
Senior Visiting Scholar, Master of Behavioral and Decisions Sciences (August 2023-)
UNIVERSIDAD DEL ROSARIO, Bogotá, Colombia
Associate Professor with tenure (Profesor Asociado de Carrera), Department of Economics (August, 2017-March, 2024)
ECONOMIC SCIENCE INSTITUTE, CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY, Orange, CA
Research Affiliate (September 2010-2020)
Visiting Research Professor (Spring 2017, Fall 2017)
UNIVERSIDAD FRANCISCO MARROQUIN, Guatemala , Guatemala
Catedrático, Facultad de Ciencias Económicas (January 2008-December 2016)
Director, Centro Vernon Smith de Economía Experimental– (December 2007-February 2017)
EDUCATION
Ph.D. Economics - GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY, Fairfax, VA; 2007
M.A. Economics - GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY, Fairfax, VA; 2004
B.A. in Business (minor in Finance) - UNIVERSIDAD FRANCISCO MARROQUIN, Guatemala; 1999
· Magna Cum Laude; Dean’s List.
PUBLICATIONS
“Measuring Norms: Assessing the threat of Social Desirability Bias to the Bicchieri and Xiao elicitation method” with Francesco Bogliacino and Erik Kimbrough (JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC BEHAVIOR & ORGANIZATION, 222)
“Does free information provision crowd out costly information acquisition? It’s a matter of timing” with Andrei Gomberg, Alexander Elbittar, and Lucas Rentschler (GAMES AND ECONOMIC BEHAVIOR, 141, 2023)
“Social Norms and Dishonesty across Societies” with Benjamin Beranek, Lucas Rentschler and Jonathan Schulz (PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES, 119(31), 2022)
“Intertemporal Choice Experiments and Large Stakes Behavior” with Szabolcs Blazsek, Lucas Rentschler and Charles Sprenger (JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC BEHAVIOR & ORGANIZATION, 196, 2022)
“Endogenous Entry in Contests with Incomplete Information: Theory and Experiments," with Lucas Rentschler (EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF POLITICAL ECONOMY, 60, 2019)
“Smoothing, Discounting and Demand for Intra-Household Control for Recipients of Conditional Cash Transfers” with Szabolcs Blazsek, Lucas Rentschler and Betzy Sandoval (JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECONOMICS, 22(1) 2019)
“Valuation Structure in Incomplete Information Contests: Experimental Evidence,” with Lucas Rentschler and Rimvydas Baltaduonis. (PUBLIC CHOICE, 179(3-4), 2019)
“Auctions with Endogenous Participation and an Uncertain Number of Bidders: Experimental Evidence” with Lucas Rentschler (EXPERIMENTAL ECONOMICS, 21(4), 2018)
“Off the Charts: Massive Unexplained Heterogeneity in a Global Study of Ambiguity Attitudes” with Olivier l’Haridon, Ferdinand Vieider, Agustinus Bandur, Alexis Belianin, Lubomírm Cingl, Amit Kothiyal, and Peter Martinsson (REVIEW OF ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS100(4), 2018)
“Informed Entry in Auctions” with Hernan Bejarano and Lucas Rentschler (INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GAME THEORY, 47(1), 2018)
“Discounting and Digit Ratio: Low 2D:4D Predicts Patience for a Sample of Females” with Lucas Rentschler (FRONTIERS IN BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE, 11, 2018)
“Channeling Remittances to Education: A Field Experiment Among Migrants from El Salvador,” with Dean Yang and Catherine Ambler (AMERICAN ECONOMIC JOURNAL: APPLIED ECONOMICS, 7(2), 2015)
“Savings in Transnational Households: A Field Experiment Among Migrants from El Salvador” with Dean Yang, Nava Ashraf, and Claudia Martinez (REVIEW OF ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS, 97(2), 2015)
“Valuation Structure in First Price and Least Revenue Auctions: An Experimental Investigation,” with Rimvydas Baltaduonis and Lucas Rentschler (EXPERIMENTAL ECONOMICS, 17(1), 2014)
“Risk Preferences and Prenatal Exposure to Sex Hormones for Ladinos” with Rimvydas Baltaduonis and Lucas Rentschler (PLoS ONE, 9(8), 2014)
WORKING PAPERS & ONGOING RESEARCH
“Relative Feedback Response in Competitive Environments” with Rimvydas Baltaduonis, Haylee Downey, Kristian Fors, and Lucas Rentschler (R&R, REVIEW OF BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS)
“Interactions in a High Immigration Context” with Francisco B. Galarza and Javier Torres (Conditionally Accepted, LAER)
“Trust and Cooperation” with Praveen Kujal and Gabriele Camera (under review)
“Measuring Norms: A Comparison of the Descriptive and Predictive Power of Three Methods” with Francesco Bogliacino and Erik Kimbrough (under review)
“Measuring Norms: Eliciting normative expectations with Krupka and Weber's method allowing for neutral report” with Francesco Bogliacino and Erik Kimbrough (Working Paper)
“COVID, Negative Income Shocks and Trust” with Mariana Blanco (Working Paper)
“The Impact of Remittance Fees on Remittance Flows: Evidence from a Randomized Experiment,” with Claudia Martínez and Dean Yang (Working Paper)
“Remittance Responses to Temporary Discounts: A Field Experiment among Central American Migrants,” with Catherine Ambler and Dean Yang (Working Paper)
CHAPTERS IN BOOKS
“What can experimental economists learn from Adam Smith?” with Lucas Rentschler, in A Companion to Adam Smith, ed. Julio H. Cole (Guatemala: Universidad Francisco Marroquín) 2016
“Economic Systems Design” with David Porter and Stephen Rassenti, in Experimental Economics.Volume II: Economic Applications, ed. Pablo Brañas-Garza and Antonio Cabrales (London: Palgrave Macmillan) 2016.
“Measuring the Impact of the US Financial Crisis on Salvadoran Migrants and Family Remittances” with Sebastian Calonico, Gabriela Inchauste, Claudia Martinez and Dean Yang, in Financing the Family: Remittances to Central America in a Time of Crisis. ed. Gabriela Inchauste and Ernesto Stein, Inter-American Development Bank (New York, Palgrave Macmillan) 2013.
“Diseño de Sistemas Económicos” with David Porter and Stephen Rassenti, in Economía Experimental y del Comportamiento, ed. Pablo Brañas-Garza (Barcelona: Antoni Bosch) 2011.
“Extending the Analysis: Dominican Republic. An Assessment of the USAID Investors Roadmap and a New Institutional Economics Perspective on the Barriers to Entrepreneurship” with David Harper and Andrés Marroquín, in New Institutional Economics and Development: Case Studies and Applications; USAID, Forum 8,Mercatus Center at George Mason University and IRIS, Washington, D.C., 17 September 2003.
INVITED PRESENTATIONS
Seminario del Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social (2024 – Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile): “Measuring Norms: Eliciting normative expectations with Krupka and Weber's method allowing for neutral report”
Seminario del Departamento de Teoría e Historia Económica (2024 – Universidad de Málaga): “Measuring Norms: A Comparison of the Predictive and Descriptive Power of Three Methods”
University of Gothenburg Seminar (2024 – Gothenburg, Sweeden): “Measuring Norms: A Comparison of the Predictive and Descriptive Power of Three Methods”
GATE-LAB Seminar (2024 – GATE, University Lumière Lyon, France): “Measuring Norms: Eliciting normative expectations with Krupka and Weber's method allowing for neutral report”
ICES George Mason University (2022 - Arlington, VA): “Measuring Norms using the BESA method”
University of Pennsylvania, Center for Social Norms and Behavioral Dynamics (2021 – Philadelphia, PA) Norms and Behavioral Change (NoBeC) Seminar: “Measuring Norms: Assessing Normative Expectation Elicitation Methods” with Francesco Bogliacino and Eric Kimbrough
University of Konstanz (2020 – Konstanz, Germany) Exzellenzcluster The Politics of Inequality Colloqium: “Intertemporal Choice Experiments and Large Stakes Behavior” with Sabolcz Blazek, Lucas Rentschler and Charles Sprenger
Universidad Nacional (2019 – Bogotá, Colombia) Seminario CID: “Intertemporal Choice Experiments and Large Stakes Behavior” with Sabolcz Blazek, Lucas Rentschler and Charles Sprenger
University of Konstanz (2019 – Konstanz, Germany): “Social Norms and Dishonesty across Societies” with Benjamin Beranek, Lucas Rentschler and Jonathan Schulz
University of Montpellier (2019 – Montpellier, France): “Social Norms and Dishonesty across Societies” with Benjamin Beranek, Lucas Rentschler and Jonathan Schulz
ICESI (2019 Cali, Colombia): “Social Norms and Dishonesty across Societies” with Benjamin Beranek, Lucas Rentschler and Jonathan Schulz
Universidad del Norte (2018 - Barranquilla, Colombia): “Social Norms and Dishonesty across Societies” with Benjamin Beranek, Lucas Rentschler and Jonathan Schulz
CEDE Seminar – Universidad de los Andes (2018 –Bogotá, Colombia): “Social Norms and Dishonesty across Societies” with Benjamin Beranek, Lucas Rentschler and Jonathan Schulz
Universidad San Francisco de Quito (2018 –Quito, Ecuador): “Social Norms and Dishonesty across Societies” with Benjamin Beranek, Lucas Rentschler and Jonathan Schulz
Georgetown University Qatar (2017 – Doha, Qatar): “Injunctive and Descriptive Social Norms regarding Cheating: Cross Cultural Evidence”
Center for Experimental Social Science-Santiago, Universidad de Santiago de Chile (2016 - Santiago, Chile): “Getting Away with Murder: An Experiment on Status and Impunity”
Universidad del Rosario (2016 - Bogotá, Colombia): “Injunctive and Descriptive Social Norms regarding Cheating: Cross Cultural Evidence”
Navarra Center for International Development, Universidad de Navarra (2016 - Pamplona, Spain): “Injunctive and Descriptive Social Norms regarding Cheating: Cross Cultural Evidence”
Universidad del Norte (2015 - Barranquilla, Colombia): “Economía como Ciencia Experimental: Ejemplos y Posibles Direcciones de Investigación”
University California-Santa Barbara (2015 - Santa Barbara, CA): “Informed Entry in Auctions”
Economic Science Institute, Chapman University (2015 - Orange, CA): “Demand for Intra-Household Control, Risk and Discounting for Recipients of Conditional Cash Transfers”
CeDEX Workshop University of Nottingham (2014 - Nottingham, UK): “Revenue in Auctions with Endogenous Participation and an Uncertain Number of Bidders: Experimental Evidence”
IX Simposio Nacional de Microeconomía, Universidad Nacional y Universidad Externado (2013 - Bogotá, Colombia): “Demand for Intra-Household Control, Risk and Discounting for Recipients of Conditional Cash Transfers”
ICES George Mason University (2011 - Arlington, VA): “Valuation Structure in First Price and Least Revenue Auctions: An Experimental Investigation”
Florida State University (2011 - Tallahassee, FL): “Savings in Transnational Households: A Field Experiment Among Migrants from El Salvador”
Economic Science Institute, Chapman University (2011 - Orange, CA): “Auctions with endogenous participation”
CATIE (2010 - Turrialba, Costa Rica): “Savings in Transnational Households: A Field Experiment Among Migrants from El Salvador
Universidad de Granada, Alhambra Experimental Workshop (2010 - Granada, Spain): “Valuation Structure in First Price and Least Revenue Auctions: An Experimental Investigation”
Universidad de Montevideo (2009 – Montevideo, Uruguay): “Savings in Transnational Households: A Field Experiment among Migrants from El Salvador”
GRANTS, AWARDS AND HONORS
“Rule-based Behavior, Punishment and Long Run Cooperation” (with Gabriele Camera and Praveen Kujal): International Foundation for Research in Experimental Economics –IFREE- Small Grants Program (2020-2021)
“Estudio para Identificar las Preferencias Intertemporales y de Riesgo de los Vinculados al Programa Hoy y Mañana BEPS” (with Mariana Blanco): COLPENSIONES, 2020-2021
Senior Fellowship in the Cluster of Excellence “The Politics of Inequality”, Konstanz University (Germany, 2020)
“Measuring Trust among Nationals and Migrants” (with Mariana Blanco): Inter-American Development Bank, Trust Measures and Interventions in Latin America and the Caribbean, 2019
“Experimental Economics in Latin America: Bogotá Experimental Economics Workshop & Conference”: International Foundation for Research in Experimental Economics –IFREE (2021, 2020 –with Mariana Blanco, and Cesar Mantilla; 2019 –with Mariana Blanco, Cesar Mantilla and Lucas Rentschler; 2018 –with Lucas Rentschler and Mariana Blanco)
“Experimental Economics in Latin America: Antigua Experimental Economics Workshop & Conference”: International Foundation for Research in Experimental Economics –IFREE (2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2012 –with with Lucas Rentschler)
“Comportamiento relacionado con ahorro de familias receptoras de Transferencias Monetarias Condicionadas en Guatemala”: Fundación Capital (2013)
UFM Faculty Research Grant, with Lucas Rentschler, (2011).
“Channeling Remittances toward Human Capital Accumulation in Central America” (with Dean Yang): Inter-American Development Bank (2010-2012)
“Bidder Behavior and Performance of Auction Institutions with Costly Participation”: International Foundation for Research in Experimental Economics –IFREE- Small Grants Program (2010-2011)
“Mobilizing Remittances for Enterprise Finance” (with Dean Yang): United States Agency for International Development / The William Davidson Institute (2009-2010)
Research Scholarship from Centre for Energy and Environmental Markets at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia (Fall 2005)
Research Fellow, James M. Buchanan Center for Political Economy, George Mason University (2003-2004)
Social Change Fellow, Mercatus Center (2002-2003)
Earhart Summer Fellowship (2002)
Fellowship, Fundación Herculano Aguirre (Guatemala, 1998-1999).
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE & MEMBERSHIP / REFEREEING / LANGUAGES / OTHER
Associate Editor, Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 2022-
Co-organizer of the “Bogotá Experimental Economics Workshop and Conference” (2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022), ESA North American Meetings in Antigua Guatemala (2018), “Antigua Experimental Economics Workshop and Conference” (2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017), Taller Estudiantil de Economía Experimental (Experimental Economics High School Workshop; 2009, 2011, 2013), Taller de Economía Experimental y Mercados de Energía Eléctrica (Experimental Economics Workshop on Electric Power Markets; 2009).
Member of the American Economic Association, the Economic Science Association, and of the Latin American and Caribbean Economic Association
Referee for: American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, Journal of Development Economics, Experimental Economics, PLoS ONE, Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Management Science, Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Economic Development and Cultural Change, World Development, Migration Studies, Environment and Development Economics, Journal of Development Studies, Latin American Research Review, Desarollo y Sociedad, Review of Economic Design, Games and Economic Behavior.
Languages: Spanish (native) and English (fluent), French (beginner).
CONFERENCES AND INTERNAL WORKSHOP PRESENTATIONS
2024: 6th LACEA BRAIN Conference, XIX Ridge Forum, Pontifica Universidad Catolica de Chile; TWI-Konstanz Microeconomics Seminar, TWI’University of Konstanz, Germany; Symposium on Economic Experiments in Developing Countries –SEEDEC (Bergen, Norway); Economic Science Association World Meetings, Universidad de los Andes (Bogotá, Colombia).
2022: Bogotá Experimental Economics Conference –BEEC (Bogotá, Colombia).
2021: Bogotá Experimental Economics Conference –BEEC (Bogotá, Colombia); The Second Conference on Zero/Minimal Intelligence Agents (online; organized by Yale SoM, Universitat Klagenfurt, Max Planck Institute for Human Development).
2020: Bogotá Experimental Economics Conference –BEEC (Bogotá, Colombia);
2019: Bogotá Experimental Economics Conference –BEEC (Bogotá, Colombia); Thurgau Experimental Economics Meeting (Kreuzlingen, CH); Behavioral and Experimental Public Choice Workshop (Cork, Ireland); Universidad del Rosario, Departamental Seminar (Bogotá, Colombia).
2018: Norms and Behavioral Change Workshop, University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA); Lima Conference on Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Universidad Católica (Lima, Perú); Association for the Study of Religion, Economics, and Culture 2018 Annual Conference (Orange, CA); Economic Science Association North American Meetings (Antigua Guatemala).
2017: Economic Science Association World Meetings (San Diego, CA); Economic Science Institute, Chapman University (Orange, CA); Florence-Konstanz workshop on Social Norms in Multi-ethnic Societies (Florence, Italy).
2016: Antigua Experimental Economics Conference (Antigua Guatemala); APEE Annual Meetings (Las Vegas, NV); Economic Science Association North American Meetings (Tucson, AZ); Southern Economic Association Meetings (Washington, D.C.).
2015: Antigua Experimental Economics Conference (Antigua Guatemala); Economic Science Association North American Meetings (Dallas, TX); Seminario de Investigadores Económicos de Guatemala (Banco de Guatemala, Guatemala); Universidad Francisco Marroquín (Guatemala).
2014: Antigua Experimental Economics Conference (Antigua Guatemala); Economic Science Association World Meetings, University of Hawaii (Honolulu, HI); Seminario de Investigadores Económicos de Guatemala (Banco de Guatemala, Guatemala); LACEA Annual Meetings (Sao Paulo, Brazil), Symposium on Economic Experiments in Development Countries (Bergen, Norway); Universidad Francisco Marroquín (Guatemala).
2013: APEE Annual Meetings (Maui, HI); Universidad Francisco Marroquín (Guatemala); AEA Conference on Teaching and Research in Economic Education (Chicago, IL); Economic Science Association World Meetings, University of Zurich (Zurich, Switzerland); Universidad Francisco Marroquín (Guatemala).
2012: APEE Annual Meetings (Las Vegas, NV); Universidad Francisco Marroquín (Guatemala); Economic Science Association World Meetings, New York University (New York, NY); Antigua Experimental Economics Conference (Antigua Guatemala); Economic Science Association Regional Meetings, University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ).
2011: Universidad Francisco Marroquín (Guatemala); Economic Science Association World Meetings, University of Chicago (Chicago, IL); Economic Science Association Regional Meetings, University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ).
2010: Universidad Francisco Marroquín (Guatemala), Economic Science Association World Meetings, University of Copenhagen (Copenhagen, Denmark); 3rd Migration and Development Conference, Paris School of Economics (Paris, France); LACEA Annual Meetings (Medellín, Colombia).
2009: IZA Annual Migration Meeting -AM²- (Bonn, Germany); LACEA Meetings of the Impact Evaluation Network, Universidad de los Andes (Bogotá, Colombia); International Economic Science Association Meetings (Washington, DC).
2008: Universidad Francisco Marroquín (Guatemala, Guatemala).
2007: Interdisciplinary Center for Economic Science, George Mason University (Arlington, VA).
CONSULTING AND OTHER PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Inter-American Development Bank – Alternate Executive Director (2021- 2023) Washington, DC
Inter-American Development Bank – Senior Counselor (2020-2021) Washington, DC
FIIAPP / Departamento Nacional de Planeación – Consultant Bogotá, Colombia
Arlington Economics – Academic Associate Arlington, VA
Bolsa de Valores Nacional - Consultant Guatemala, Guatemala
Comisión Nacional de Energía Eléctrica (Electric Power Regulator) - Advisor to the Board of Directors (Consultant) Guatemala, Guatemala
Multilateral Investment Fund / Inter-American Development Bank – Short Term Consultant Washington, DC
World Bank – Short Term Consultant Washington, DC