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Fairness and the development of inequality acceptance
Ingvild Almås1, Alexander W Cappelen, Erik Ø Sørensen
1Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration, Department of Economics, N-5045 Bergen, Norway. ingvild.almas@nhh.no
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|May 29, 2010
Summary
Children
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Behavioral Economics
- Social Neuroscience
Background:
- Fairness considerations are central to human behavior, yet understanding fairness preferences is limited.
- The standard dictator game assesses equality-based fairness but doesn't capture real-world disagreements on fairness justifications.
- Disagreements arise from differing views on whether individual achievement, luck, or efficiency can justify inequality.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the developmental trajectory of inequality acceptance during adolescence.
- To explore how different justifications for inequality (achievement, luck, efficiency) are perceived as fair over time.
- To adapt the dictator game to study nuanced fairness preferences beyond strict equality.
Main Methods:
- Modification of the standard dictator game to incorporate achievement, luck, and efficiency as potential justifications for inequality.
- Experimental study involving adolescents to assess their fairness judgments in various inequality scenarios.
- Analysis of how age and developmental stage influence the acceptance of different types of inequality.
Main Results:
- Adolescents increasingly accept inequalities based on individual achievement as they mature.
- Acceptance of inequality due to luck does not significantly increase with age during adolescence.
- Considerations of efficiency in justifying inequality become more prominent in late adolescence.
Conclusions:
- Adolescent development involves a shift towards accepting achievement-based inequalities.
- Fairness perceptions evolve beyond simple equality, incorporating complex justifications.
- Understanding these developmental changes is crucial for comprehending social behavior and decision-making.
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