Judging on thin ice: the effects of group membership on evaluation

Abstract

Employment, legal and social settings often expect the objective evaluation of others regardless of race, sex or other group identification. Such objectivity may be undermined by group membership that is difficult to detect. In this paper we exploit an institutional feature of figure skating, namely that figure skaters possess individual styles and technique, rather than their performance being influenced by club-specific characteristics, which allows us to identify the role of favouritism in a context where it is intended to be excluded. We can identify judges being influenced by group identity, in this case club membership and exhibiting favouritism for club members. We discuss the implications of our findings for rule which would help limit the role of favouritism in decision-making.