Distinguished Visiting Speaker: The Dark Side of the Vote: Biased Voters, Social Information, and Information Aggregation Through Majority Voting

July 16, 2026

• Title: The Dark Side of the Vote: Biased Voters, Social Information, and Information Aggregation Through Majority Voting
• Speaker: Rebecca Morton | New York University
• Date: Saturday, Oct. 3, 2016
• Time: 11:30 AM
• Room: P2007

Summary

We experimentally investigate information aggregation through majority voting when some voters are biased. In such situations, majority voting can have a “dark side,” that is, result in groups making choices inferior to those made by individuals acting alone. In line with theoretical predictions, information on the popularity of policy choices is beneficial when a minority of voters is biased, but harmful when a majority is biased. In theory, information on the success of policy choices elsewhere de-biases voters and alleviates the inefficiency. However, in the experiment, providing social information on success is ineffective and does not de-bias voters.

Biography

By definition, scientists do experiments. Increasingly, that truism now applies to political scientists, just as it does to chemists or biologists. Rebecca Morton is at the forefront of the development and growing recognition of this new aspect of an old discipline. Rebecca Morton's research focuses on voting processes as well as experimental methods. She is the author or coauthor of four books and numerous journal articles, which have appeared in noted outlets such as the American Economic Review, American Journal of Political Science, American Political Science Review, Journal of Law and Economics, Journal of Politics, and Review of Economic Studies.