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When norm change hurts
Charles Efferson1, Sönke Ehret1, Lukas von Flüe1
1University of Lausanne, Faculty of Business and Economics, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
Summary
Applied cultural evolution uses social learning to change behavior. In diverse populations, small interventions can be more effective than large ones, and sometimes miscoordination, not social tipping, improves welfare.
Area of Science:
- Social and behavioral sciences
- Evolutionary science
- Sociology
Background:
- Applied cultural evolution aims to promote behavior change through social learning.
- Social tipping, driven by conformity and coordination, can shift harmful social norms to beneficial ones.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the complex relationship between intervention size, social tipping, and social welfare in heterogeneous populations.
- To investigate how population heterogeneity affects the efficacy of applied cultural evolution strategies.
Main Methods:
- Development and analysis of two mathematical models.
- Simulation of social learning dynamics under varying intervention strategies and population structures.
Main Results:
- The effectiveness of interventions is not always proportional to their size in heterogeneous populations.
- Strategies creating persistent miscoordination can yield higher social welfare than those inducing social tipping.
- The preferences of resistant individuals significantly influence the benefits of miscoordination.
Conclusions:
- Population heterogeneity complicates applied cultural evolution, weakening the links between intervention size, behavior change, and societal well-being.
- Optimal intervention strategies must account for population diversity and may involve fostering miscoordination rather than solely aiming for social tipping.
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