Improving Worker Productivity Through Tailored Performance Feedback: Field Experimental Evidence from Bus Drivers
Tinbergen Institute Discussion Paper No. 17-073/VII
72 Pages Posted: 22 Aug 2017 Last revised: 5 Jan 2023
Date Written: January 5, 2023
Abstract
We analyze two forms of feedback in a sample of 409 drivers at a large Dutch bus company: written peer-comparison reports and individual in-person coaching by high-achieving peers. We experimentally vary the nature and number of peer-comparison messages that drivers receive in their monthly feedback report. In addition, we examine the effects of in-person coaching by exploiting quasi-experimental variation in the coaching program that the company implemented in parallel to the written feedback.
We find that in-person coaching generates significant improvements on all dimensions. This effect lasts four to nine weeks. Especially drivers in the bottom half of the performance distribution respond positively to individual coaching. In contrast, the announcement and introduction of written feedback and the inclusion of peer-comparison messages seems ineffective in improving either fuel economy or outcomes pertaining to passenger comfort.
Keywords: labor productivity, feedback, peer comparisons, field experiment, two-way fixed effects
JEL Classification: D23, J24, M53, Q55
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation