Personality traits and performance in online labour markets

Abstract

In this paper we investigate the impact of non-cognitive skills on the quality of task-specific outcomes by conducting a quasi-experiment on a well-known online crowdsourcing platform. We show that a worker's performance varies with personality traits, gender, human capital, crowdsourcing experience and work effort. Regarding the effects of non-cognitive skills, we find that workers' performance in online microtasks is positively related to extraversion and agreeableness. The positive impact of extroverts is also revealed when performance is adjusted for task completion time. These findings provide implications regarding the integration of selection mechanisms in online labour matching platforms aiming in uncovering microworkers soft skills to improve performance and consequently the allocation of resources in online microtasks.

Role of Reputation in Sustainable Performance of Online Crowdsourcing Vendors: An Explanation From Transaction Cost Theory

“…This article drew on transaction cost theory to explore the relationship between the growth of vendors’ reputation, the scale of crowdsourcing tasks, and the vendors’ sustainable performance in different types of crowdsourcing markets. Building on previous studies ( Liu et al, 2014 ; Hong et al, 2016 ; Lin et al, 2018 ; Mourelatos et al, 2020b ), this research provides new evidence of online crowdsourcing vendors’ behavior from a unique perspective, and enriches related research in the field of crowdsourcing. This research also expands the application of TCT to the field of social business in the new era.…”

“…Demographics including age, gender, education, and number of income sources can explain the patterns in workers’ participation and how workers engage in different types of work ( Chen et al, 2019 ). Subtask heterogeneity also plays a significant role on the formation of the online performance in crowdsourcing labor markets ( Mourelatos et al, 2020a ). Monitoring with economic penalties may activates social norms for honesty and promotes honest reporting in an online labor market ( Reffett et al, 2019 ).…”

Understanding the effects of personality traits on solver engagement in crowdsourcing communities: a moderated mediation investigation

“…For example, Zhang et al (2017a) found that people with lower levels of emotional stability (vs. neuroticism) are more likely to select crowdsourcing communities for factual tasks. By conducting an experimental study, Mourelatos et al (2020) found that work performance in online microtasks is positively related to extraversion. It is reasonable to expect certain relationships between solvers' behaviors, including their engagement in online crowdsourcing communities, and individual personality.…”

“…Studies have also shown that personality traits are pivotal in forming personal beliefs and inspiring personal behaviors in online crowdsourcing contexts (Crone and Williams, 2017; Mourelatos et al , 2020), although the exact mechanisms are not yet well understood. For example, Zhang et al (2017a) found that people with lower levels of emotional stability (vs. neuroticism) are more likely to select crowdsourcing communities for factual tasks.…”

Can you see opportunity knocking? An examination of technology-based political skill on opportunity recognition in online communities for MTurk workers

“…MTurk) and historical data about prior microtasks and requester behaviors. Recent research has noted the importance of accounting for individual differences that may affect how individuals perform when engaging in microtasking activities (Mourelatos et al, 2020). Individual differences enable workers to detect unique insights embedded within the public goods to derive further benefits, thereby separating their performance from those less capable of detecting such insights.…”