The influence of first name valence on the likelihood of receiving help: A field experiment

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted to test whether the likelihood of receiving help is affected by the valence of the person in need’s first name. It was expected that people bearing devalued names would receive less help compared to individuals with liked first names. It was further tested if the proposed effect was driven by a general devaluation of stigmatized names or the application of name-associated stereotypes.Participants (N = 631) received e-mails containing an ostensibly missent reply to another person’s job application. The applicant’s first name was either positive or negative and the job offered was either a low-status or a high-status position. Participants could help the alleged applicant by informing the sender that the e-mail was sent to the wrong address.For low-status job applicants, name valence had no effect on participants’ helping behavior. By contrast, for high status positions, applicants with negative names received less help compared to participants with a positive name.