When Construal Level and Financial Incentive Collides: An Eexperimental Study on Cooperative Behavior among Javanese and Balinese

This study attempted to answer the question of how the financial incentives can influence cooperative behavior in situations involving taboo tradeoffs, and the extent to which construal levels (abstract or concrete) also influences the willingness of participants to perform said tradeoffs. The study was conducted by taking three different contexts, namely a voluntary provision of tutorials from senior students to the junior (Depok study), mosque renovation activities (Mojokerto study) and renovation of temples (Bali study). The study used laboratory experimental methods for Depok study, and field experiment for Mojokerto and Bali studies. In Depok, we found that students were willing to do taboo tradeoffs and perceived them as not taboo. However, even though Mojokerto and Bali participants+K31 perceived the exchange as taboo, they were willing to do it. In general, we also found that participants tend to contribute higher taboo tradeoffs in abstract situation.