Private Law Theory

ABSTRACT
We study whether concentrating enforcement resources – raising sanction probabilities in some areas or times while lowering them elsewhere – reduces socially undesirable behavior. Using a theoretical model and a laboratory experiment, we examine whether splitting a uniform sanction probability $p$ into a higher~$p_H$ and a lower $p_L$ can decrease overall violations. Our analysis also provides an empirical test of beneficial splitting, a central concept in the Bayesian persuasion literature, to assess its practical relevance in a parameterized setting.

Neeman, Zvika and hernandez, penelope and Zultan, Ro’i, Deterrence of Unwanted Behavior: a Theoretical and Experimental Investigation. Posted to SSRN 3 September 2025.