PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Kristian Behrens
AU  - Matthieu Chemin
TI  - Nonbinding Peer Review and Effort in Teams
AID  - 10.3368/jhr.55.4.0717-8907R2
DP  - 2020 Oct 02
TA  - Journal of Human Resources
PG  - 1365--1399
VI  - 55
IP  - 4
4099  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/55/4/1365.short
4100  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/55/4/1365.full
SO  - J Hum Resour2020 Oct 02; 55
AB  - Individuals tend to free-ride in teams, thus providing inefficiently low effort. We implement a system of confidential peer review in a randomly selected set of teams, whereby teammates complete an online survey to review the effort of their peers. These reviews are not linked to any rewards or sanctions, thus making them nonbinding. We find that nonbinding peer reviews increase effort and team productivity and do not decrease worker morale. The effects are stronger for low-ability individuals in low-ability teams, where the traditional forces of peer effects may be absent.