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Is the veil of ignorance only a concept about risk? An experiment

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  • Hörisch, Hannah

Abstract

We implement the Rawlsian thought experiment of a veil of ignorance in the laboratory which introduces risk and possibly social preferences. We find that both men and women react to the risk introduced by the veil of ignorance. Only the women additionally exhibit social preferences that reflect an increased concern for equality. Our results for women imply that maximin preferences can also be derived from a combination of some, not necessarily infinite risk aversion and social preferences. This result contrasts the Utilitarians' claim that maximin preferences necessarily represent preferences with infinite risk aversion.

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  • Hörisch, Hannah, 2007. "Is the veil of ignorance only a concept about risk? An experiment," Discussion Papers in Economics 1362, University of Munich, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:lmu:muenec:1362
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    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. What distribution principle would you choose behind a veil of ignorance?
      by Winton Bates in Freedom and Flourishing on 2010-10-11 10:02:00

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    veil of ignorance; social preferences; equality; efficiency; experiment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • D64 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
    • C99 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Other

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