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When fairness is not enough : the disproportionate contributions of the poor in a collective action problem
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Malthouse, E., Pilgrim, Charlie, Sgroi, Daniel and Hills, Thomas Trenholm (2023) When fairness is not enough : the disproportionate contributions of the poor in a collective action problem. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 152 (11). pp. 3229-3242. doi:10.1037/xge0001455 ISSN 0096-3445.
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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0001455
Abstract
Many of our most pressing challenges, from combating climate change to dealing with pandemics, are collective action problems: situations in which individual and collective interests conflict with each other. In such situations, people face a dilemma about making individually costly but collectively beneficial contributions to the common good. Understanding which factors influence people’s willingness to make these contributions is vital for the design of policies and institutions that support the attainment of collective goals. In this study, we investigate how inequalities, and different causes of inequalities, impact individual-level behavior and group-level outcomes. First, we find that what people judged to be fair was not enough to solve the collective action problem: if they acted according to what they thought was fair, they would collectively fail. Second, the level of wealth (rich vs. poor) altered what was judged to be a fair contribution to the public good more than the cause of wealth (merit vs. luck vs. uncertain). Contributions during the game reflected these fairness judgments, with poorer individuals consistently contributing a higher proportion of their wealth than richer participants, which further increased inequality—particularly in successful groups. Finally, the cause of one’s wealth was largely irrelevant, mattering most only when it was uncertain, as opposed to resulting from merit or luck. We discuss implications for policymakers and international climate change negotiations.
Item Type: | Journal Article | |||||||||
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Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HM Sociology | |||||||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Economics Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Mathematics Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Psychology |
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Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Collective behavior, Public goods, Equality -- Psychological aspects, Cooperativeness | |||||||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Journal of Experimental Psychology: General | |||||||||
Publisher: | American Psychological Association | |||||||||
ISSN: | 0096-3445 | |||||||||
Official Date: | November 2023 | |||||||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | 152 | |||||||||
Number: | 11 | |||||||||
Page Range: | pp. 3229-3242 | |||||||||
DOI: | 10.1037/xge0001455 | |||||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | |||||||||
Publication Status: | Published | |||||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Open Access (Creative Commons) | |||||||||
Copyright Holders: | © 2023 The Author(s) | |||||||||
Date of first compliant deposit: | 1 June 2023 | |||||||||
Date of first compliant Open Access: | 22 August 2023 | |||||||||
RIOXX Funder/Project Grant: |
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