A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
Fairness views and cooperation under varying levels of economic inequality
Authors: Hariskos Wasilios, Neitzel Jakob, Sääksvuori Lauri
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Publication year: 2023
Journal: PLoS ONE
Journal name in source: PloS one
Journal acronym: PLoS One
Volume: 18
Issue: 11
ISSN: 1932-6203
eISSN: 1932-6203
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0288790
Web address : https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0288790
Self-archived copy’s web address: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/182061796
This paper investigates the impact of economic inequality on people's perceptions of fairness and willingness to cooperate. Using experimental and survey data, we distinguish people's injunctive perceptions of fairness from experimentally observed behavioral patterns. We find that impartial observers hold shared perceptions of fair contribution rules. Individuals with their own money at stake hold conflicting views over fair contribution rules. We find that contribution patterns are more scattered under strong inequality than under weak inequality. Overall, we observe that voluntary contributions are lower under strong inequality than under weak inequality. Our results contribute to the debate about the behavioral consequences of income and wealth inequalities in modern societies.
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