Psychology

Self-reliance crowds out group cooperation and increases wealth inequality

J. Gross, S. Veistola, et al.

Explore how self-reliance affects cooperation in public goods and exacerbates wealth inequality in this insightful research conducted by Jörg Gross, Sonja Veistola, Carsten K. W. De Dreu, and Eric Van Dijk. Discover the surprising dynamics unveiled through a laboratory experiment.

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Playback language: English

Index

Abstract

Humans establish public goods to provide for shared needs. However, public goods rely on cooperation, which can break down due to free-riding. This research investigates how self-reliance, the ability to solve shared problems individually, influences cooperation. A laboratory experiment showed that self-reliance decreases cooperation and exacerbates wealth inequality, particularly when self-reliance is asymmetrically distributed within groups.

Publisher

Nature Communications

Published On

Oct 14, 2020

Authors

Jörg Gross, Sonja Veistola, Carsten K. W. De Dreu, Eric Van Dijk

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