Inequality and public good provision: An experimental analysis

Anderson, Lisa R.; Mellor, Jennifer M.; Milyo, Jeffrey

doi:10.1016/j.socec.2006.12.073

Cited by 178 publications

(130 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…There has been also a substantial effort to study PGG with heterogeneous groups. However, the results are somewhat inconsistent because of differences in implementation and various social, historical or other factors [102,110,111]. In an early review of experimental work on PGG, Ledyard [109] concluded that asymmetry of benefits had negative effects on contributions.…”

Section: (Iv) Experimental Gamesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Collective action problem in heterogeneous groups

Gavrilets

2015

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

118

133

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One contribution of 13 to a theme issue 'Solving the puzzle of collective action through inter-individual differences: evidence from primates and humans'. I review the theoretical and experimental literature on the collective action problem in groups whose members differ in various characteristics affecting individual costs, benefits and preferences in collective actions. I focus on evolutionary models that predict how individual efforts and fitnesses, group efforts and the amount of produced collective goods depend on the group's size and heterogeneity, as well as on the benefit and cost functions and parameters. I consider collective actions that aim to overcome the challenges from nature or win competition with neighbouring groups of co-specifics. I show that the largest contributors towards production of collective goods will typically be group members with the highest stake in it or for whom the effort is least costly, or those who have the largest capability or initial endowment. Under some conditions, such group members end up with smaller net pay-offs than the rest of the group. That is, they effectively behave as altruists. With weak nonlinearity in benefit and cost functions, the group effort typically decreases with group size and increases with within-group heterogeneity. With strong nonlinearity in benefit and cost functions, these patterns are reversed. I discuss the implications of theoretical results for animal behaviour, human origins and psychology.

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Section: (Iv) Experimental Gamesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Collective action problem in heterogeneous groups

Gavrilets

2015

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

118

133

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“…Inequality has been studied extensively in the context of collective action problems. The presence of inequality is often found to complicate cooperation (23)(24)(25), although communication between users tends to improve the likelihood of cooperation (26,27). Different patterns of interaction are observed depending on the type and cause of inequality and on the type of resource at stake (28).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Inequality, communication, and the avoidance of disastrous climate change in a public goods game

Tavoni

Dannenberg

Kallis

et al. 2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

414

309

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International efforts to provide global public goods often face the challenges of coordinating national contributions and distributing costs equitably in the face of uncertainty, inequality, and free-riding incentives. In an experimental setting, we distribute endowments unequally among a group of people who can reach a fixed target sum through successive money contributions, knowing that if they fail, they will lose all their remaining money with 50% probability. In some treatments, we give players the option to communicate intended contributions. We find that inequality reduces the prospects of reaching the target but that communication increases success dramatically. Successful groups tend to eliminate inequality over the course of the game, with rich players signaling willingness to redistribute early on. Our results suggest that coordination-promoting institutions and early redistribution from richer to poorer nations are both decisive for the avoidance of global calamities, such as disruptive climate change.

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“…For example, some studies examining the impact of heterogeneity in endowments find that it has a negative effect on cooperation (Cherry et al, 2005;Anderson et al, 2008), and some find it has a positive effect (Chan et al, 1996;Chan et al, 1999;Buckley and Croson, 2006;Reuben and Riedl, 2013). Similarly, evidence suggests that heterogeneity may operate differently in the presence and absence of mechanisms for promoting cooperation.…”

Section: Related Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Equality Concerns and the Limits of Self-Governance in Heterogeneous Populations

2015

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Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen:Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden.Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen.Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. The Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in Bonn is a local and virtual international research center and a place of communication between science, politics and business. IZA is an independent nonprofit organization supported by Deutsche Post Foundation. The center is associated with the University of Bonn and offers a stimulating research environment through its international network, workshops and conferences, data service, project support, research visits and doctoral program. IZA engages in (i) original and internationally competitive research in all fields of labor economics, (ii) development of policy concepts, and (iii) dissemination of research results and concepts to the interested public. Terms of use: Documents in D I S C U S S I O N P A P E R S E R I E S Equality Concerns and the Limits of Self-Governance in Heterogeneous PopulationsIZA Discussion Papers often represent preliminary work and are circulated to encourage discussion. Citation of such a paper should account for its provisional character. A revised version may be available directly from the author.IZA Discussion Paper No. 9384 September 2015 ABSTRACTEquality Concerns and the Limits of Self-Governance in Heterogeneous Populations * Mechanisms to overcome social dilemmas provide incentives to maximize efficiency. However, often -such as when agents are heterogeneous -there is a trade-off between efficiency and equality. Agents' concerns for equality in such instances can limit the ability of mechanisms to promote efficiency. We provide evidence for this from a public good experiment using a simple mechanism which allows individuals to communicate periodically with other group members and reward them for their actions. We show that, in homogeneous populations -where there is no tension between efficiency and equality -the mechanism permits group to obtain maximum efficiency. This is not the case in heterogeneous populations where individuals derive different benefits from cooperation. Although almost all heterogeneous groups agree to follow specific contribution rules with positive contributions, most of them either prioritize equality over efficiency or strike a compromise between the two. These findings suggest that equality concerns can impose limits on the ability of heterogeneous populations to reach efficient outcomes through self-governance.JEL Classification: C92, H41, D74

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Inequality and public good provision: An experimental analysis

Cited by 178 publications

References 53 publications

Collective action problem in heterogeneous groups

Collective action problem in heterogeneous groups

Inequality, communication, and the avoidance of disastrous climate change in a public goods game

Equality Concerns and the Limits of Self-Governance in Heterogeneous Populations

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