This website uses cookies.

By clicking the "Accept" button or continuing to browse our site, you agree to first-party and session-only cookies being stored on your device to enhance site navigation and analyze site performance and traffic. For more information on our use of cookies, please see our Privacy Policy.

  1. Home
  2. Journals
  3. American Economic Journal: Microeconomics
  4. May 2013
  5. Preference Signaling in Matching Markets

American Economic Journal:
Microeconomics

ISSN 1945-7669 (Print) | ISSN 1945-7685 (Online)

Preference Signaling in Matching Markets

  • Peter Coles
  • Alexey Kushnir
  • Muriel Niederle
American Economic Journal: Microeconomics
vol. 5, no. 2, May 2013
(pp. 99–134)
Download Full Text PDF

Abstract

Many labor markets share three stylized facts: employers cannot give full attention to all candidates, candidates are ready to provide information about their preferences for particular employers, and employers value and are prepared to act on this information. In this paper we study how a signaling mechanism, where each worker can send a signal of interest to one employer, facilitates matches in such markets. We find that introducing a signaling mechanism increases the welfare of workers and the number of matches, while the change in firm welfare is ambiguous. A signaling mechanism adds the most value for balanced markets. (JEL C78)

Citation

Coles, Peter, Alexey Kushnir, and Muriel Niederle. 2013. "Preference Signaling in Matching Markets." American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, 5 (2): 99–134. DOI: 10.1257/mic.5.2.99

Additional Materials

JEL Classification

  • C78 Bargaining Theory; Matching Theory
There are no comments for this article.
Login to Comment