Essays on Information Transmission in Principal-Agent Models.

Summary The first chapter studies the "hidden costs of rewards" in a dynamic perspective with a principal informed. We then show that there is a habituation effect to the reward. In a long term relationship, we observe that the principal avoids creating habituation of the agent, while the agent has no interest in showing too much enthusiasm for his tasks. The second chapter proposes a justification for discretionary bonus payments in a finitely repeated principal-agent relationship. The principal may choose to discretionarily distribute bonuses in order to provide the agent with credible information about her performance. The third chapter focuses on studying the credibility of advice provided by an informed intermediary. It studies the dissemination of information in a two-sided bargaining model via the intermediary who, prior to the bargaining, observes a non-specific signal of the value of the good to the buyer.