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on Social Norms and Social Capital |
| By: | Yamamura, Eiji |
| Abstract: | A Japanese General Social Survey is used to re-examine how voluntary giving is associated with inequality aversion, and how the relationship differs between high- and low-income groups. This paper also investigates how social capital influences that relationship. The key findings are that (1) the level of voluntary giving increases with inequality aversion for high-income groups, but not for low-income groups, and (2) social capital accumulated in the respondent’s residential area reinforces the positive influence of inequality aversion on voluntary giving for high-income groups only. |
| Keywords: | Inequality aversion; charitable contribution; trust; private provision of public goods |
| JEL: | D63 H41 Z13 |
| Date: | 2012–04–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:37975&r=soc |
| By: | Bervoets, Sebastian; Calvó-Armengol, Antoni; Zenou, Yves |
| Abstract: | We propose a dynastic model in which individuals are born in an educated or uneducated environment that they inherit from their parents. We study the role of social networks on the correlation in the parent-child educational status independent of any parent-child interaction. We show that the network reduces the intergenerational correlation, promotes social mobility and increases the average education level in the population. We also show that a planner that encourages social mobility also reduces social welfare, hence facing a trade off between these two objectives. When individuals choose the optimal level of social mobility, those born in an uneducated environment always want to leave their environment while the reverse occurs for individuals born in an educated environment. |
| Keywords: | education; intergenerational correlation; Social mobility; strong and weak ties |
| JEL: | I24 J13 Z13 |
| Date: | 2012–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:8932&r=soc |
| By: | Klemens Keldenich |
| Abstract: | This paper presents a laboratory experiment to measure the effect of group membership on individual behavior in modified dictator games. The results suggest that this effect is influenced by the degree of group membership saliency. A within-subject design is employed: in stage 1, each subject decides individually; in stage 2, the subjects are divided into groups of three and one person is selected at random from each group to make the decision (the “hierarchical decision rule”). In stage 3, additional pre-play communication in the group is allowed before the decision and, in stage 4, the decisions are again made on an individual basis. Interestingly, the dictators behave more selfishly when group members are not allowed to communicate. However, if groups are allowed to communicate, decisions do not differ from individual choices. Chat content shows that groups are concerned with reaching a consensus, even though talk is “cheap” and only one group member will make the binding decision. |
| Keywords: | Group decision making; social comparison; leadership; communication |
| JEL: | C91 C92 D71 |
| Date: | 2012–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rwi:repape:0322&r=soc |
| By: | Jérôme Hergueux (LaRGE Research Center, Université de Strasbourg) |
| Abstract: | We construct a gravity model of worldwide foreign direct investment stock (FDI) in order to study the effect of religion on FDI allocation. We establish empirically that both bilateral religious similarity and bilateral religious diversity foster FDI at the country pair level. These apparently contradicting results confirm an empirical puzzle that has already emerged in the literature, particularly in the case of trade in goods. We investigate whether the answer to this puzzle could lie on the fact that the effect of these two variables play for different types of countries, depending on the level of efficiency of their institutions. |
| Keywords: | culture, religion, institutions, trust, foreign direct investment. |
| JEL: | F21 F23 Z12 |
| Date: | 2012 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lar:wpaper:2012-06&r=soc |
| By: | Julie Rosaz (University of Montpellier 1, LAMETA, avenue Raymond Dugrand - Site Richter C.S. 79606, F-34960 Montpellier Cedex 2, France); Robert Slonim (University of Sydney, Department of Economics, Merewether building, NSW 2006 Sydney, Australia; IZA, Bonn, Germany); Marie-Claire Villeval (University of Lyon 2, Lyon, F-69007, France ; CNRS, GATE Lyon St Etienne, Ecully, F-69130, France; IZA, Bonn, Germany. GATE: 93, Chemin des Mouilles, 69130 Ecully, France) |
| Abstract: | While peer effects have been shown to affect worker's productivity when workers are paid a fixed wage, there is little evidence on their influence on quitting decisions. This paper presents results from an experiment in which participants receive a piece-rate wage to perform a real-effort task. After completing a compulsory work period, the participants have the option at any time to continue working or quit. To study peer effects, we randomly assign participants to work alone or have one other worker in the room with them. When a peer is present, we manipulate the environment by giving either vague or precise feedback on the co-worker's output, and also vary whether the two workers can communicate. We find that allowing individuals to work with a co-worker present does not increase worker's productivity. However, the presence of a peer in all working conditions causes workers to quit at more similar times. When, and only when, communication is allowed, workers are significantly more likely to (1) stay longer if their partner is still working, and (2) work longer the more productive they are. We conclude that when workers receive a piece-rate wage, critical peer effects occur only when workers can communicate with each other. |
| Keywords: | Quits, peer effects, communication, feedback, experiment |
| JEL: | C91 D83 J63 J28 J81 |
| Date: | 2012 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gat:wpaper:1204&r=soc |
| By: | Joaquín (Departamento de Organización de empresas y Marketing, Universidad Pablo de Olavide); Juan Carlos (Departamento de Organización de empresas y Marketing, Universidad Pablo de Olavide) |
| Abstract: | This paper aims at explaining the role performed by organizational commitment, trust and organizational learning capability (OLC) regarding product innovation and, more specifically, testing double mediation from a manager perspective. On the one hand, we test the mediator role performed by supervisors’ trust between the employees commitment perceived by managers and organizational learning capability. On the other, we test the mediator role performed by organizational learning capability between the trust provided by supervisors and product innovation. Our findings thus indicate that, although some commitment was perceived and both supervisors’ trust and OLC show significant relationships, trust does not mediate between these variables. Also, we conclude that trust is related to product innovation through organizational learning capability, which verifies its full mediator role. We conclude that, first, OLC is the mechanism by which the trust perceived by employees has an impact on innovation, and second, the manager decides to trust those employees that display commitment.. |
| Keywords: | North-South, growth model, innovation assimilation |
| Date: | 2012–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pab:wpbsad:12.04&r=soc |
| By: | Bortoluzzi, Guido; Balboni, Bernardo |
| Abstract: | The article focuses on subcontractors’ capability of linking to local hubs of internationalized networks and using them as springboards to international markets. The aim of this paper is to analyze the causal relationships between subcontractors’ relational capabilities and their degree of internationalization, mediated by the level of the subcontractors’ involvement with local firms and networks linked to international markets. A multivariate causal model was tested through structural equation modelling on a sample of 104 Italian subcontracting small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The data suggest the positive role of local but internationalized supply networks in supporting subcontractors’ internationalization processes, while, surprisingly, we found that the linkage to localized multinational enterprises (MNEs) can have a negative influence on internationalization outcomes. |
| Keywords: | Subcontractors, SMEs, Internationalization, Relational capabilities |
| Date: | 2012–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tre:wpaper:6&r=soc |