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Updated: Jun 11, 2025
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The Collective Trust Game: An Online Group Adaptation of the Trust Game Based on the HoneyComb Paradigm
Published on: October 20, 2022
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Increasing benefits in one-time public goods does not promote cooperation
Natalie Struwe1, Esther Blanco1,2, James M Walker2,3
1Department of Public Finance, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck 6020, Austria.
Summary
Individuals do not increase their cooperation in one-time public good contributions, even when benefits rise. Expectations of others' cooperation, not higher rewards, drive individual giving behavior in these scenarios.
Area of Science:
- Behavioral Economics
- Social Psychology
- Decision Science
Background:
- Cooperation research traditionally shows individuals adjust contributions based on self-interest versus collective benefit.
- Existing studies often involve repeated decisions or strategic scenario analysis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate cooperation in single-decision public good scenarios.
- To determine if individuals adjust their contributions when the benefits of cooperation increase in one-time interactions.
Main Methods:
- Two studies with 2,232 participants examined decisions in public good games.
- The marginal per capita return (MPCR) was varied across participants.
- Participant pools (general population, students) and settings (online, lab) were varied.
Main Results:
- Contribution levels and distributions were unaffected by increases in cooperation benefits.
- No significant difference in cooperation was observed despite varying MPCR.
- Results held across different participant groups and experimental settings.
Conclusions:
- Individuals do not increase contributions in one-time public good provision when benefits rise.
- Cooperation is strongly linked to expectations of others' behavior, which do not increase with higher benefits.
- Understanding one-time cooperation requires further investigation beyond benefit levels.
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