Turning Up the Heat: The Discouraging Effect of Competition in Contests
研究发现，在参赛者同质且努力成本凸性的竞赛中，增加竞争激烈程度（如拉大奖品差距、扩大规模或增加参赛者）反而会抑制努力。这对设计公平的晋升和薪酬体系有重要启示。
We study contests in which contestants are homogeneous and have convex effort costs. Increasing contest competitiveness, by making prizes more unequal, scaling up the competition, or adding new contestants, always discourages effort. These results have significant implications: although often criticized as evidence of laxity or cronyism, muting competition (e.g., adopting softer grading curves or less high-powered promotion systems) can both reduce inequality and increase output. Holding promotion contests at the division level rather than the firm level can boost employees’ effort. Our results are also consistent with personnel policies that feature egalitarian pay systems and dismissal of worst-performing employees.