Explaining how political institutions shape human behavior is one of the big challenges of social sciences. This thesis uses game theory, behavioral economics and the tools of experimental economics to study two topics in particular: information aggregation and legitimacy of institutions. While...

In four independent Chapters, I examine how norms guide our behavior in an uncertain world. Methodologically, I apply the toolbox of experimental economics to research questions that are on the interface between economics and law (especially Chapter 1 and Chapter 2), sociology (especially...

In Chapter II we investigate consumer behavior when facing target rebates, a rebate practice challenged by antitrust law. In three experiments, we confirm the hypothesis derived from Cumulative Prospect Theory (CPT), that target rebates are likely to create psychological switching costs that can...

It is largely undisputed within the social sciences that genes, which influence human motivation and behavior must have been subject to the forces of natural selection in the same manner as genes, which determine physical traits and characteristics. In contrast, much less agreement has been...