The Individual Behavior in a Public Goods game
Abstract
Generally, with a standard linear public goods game, one observes at the aggregate level that contributions lay between the Nash equilibrium and the social optimum and decrease over time with an end-effect.Our purpose is to see whether these general aggregate results remain available at the group and at the individual levels. To do so, we formed six groups of four persons and made them play a public goods game. At the aggregate level, we find that our results correspond almost to the standard experimental findings in literature.Using the classification of Isaac et al. (1984), we find that at the group level, only two groups adopt the standard behavior and only two groups present a behavior similar to what we obtain at the aggregate level. At the individual level, we compare contributions over time of each subject to the group and the aggregate results and classify them into types. Only in one of the 6 groups individuals adopt an homogeneous behavior. In the five other groups, individuals have different behaviors.Download Info
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Paper provided by EconWPA in its series Experimental with number 0502003.Length: 18 pages
Date of creation: 21 Feb 2005
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:wpa:wuwpex:0502003
Note: Type of Document - pdf; pages: 18
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Web page: http://128.118.178.162
Related research
Keywords: Public Goods; Free-Riding; Aggregate level; Individual Behavior; Experiments.;Other versions of this item:
- Walid Hichri, 2005. "The individual behaviour in a public goods game," International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, Springer, vol. 2(1), pages 59-71, June.
- H4 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods
This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:
- NEP-ALL-2005-04-16 (All new papers)
- NEP-CBE-2005-04-16 (Cognitive & Behavioural Economics)
- NEP-EXP-2005-04-16 (Experimental Economics)
- NEP-PBE-2005-04-16 (Public Economics)
References
References listed on IDEASPlease report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
- Claudia Keser & Roy Gardner, 1999.
"Strategic behavior of experienced subjects in a common pool resource game,"
International Journal of Game Theory,
Springer, vol. 28(2), pages 241-252.
- Keser, C. & Gardner, R., 1994. "Strategic Behavior of Experienced Subjects in a Common Pool Resource Game," Papers 94-009, Indiana - Center for Econometric Model Research.
- Chan, Kenneth S. & Godby, Rob & Mestelman, Stuart & Muller, R. Andrew, 1997. "Equity theory and the voluntary provision of public goods," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 349-364, March.
- Sefton, Martin & Steinberg, Richard, 1996. "Reward structures in public good experiments," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(2), pages 263-287, August.
- Croson, Rachel T. A., 1996. "Partners and strangers revisited," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 25-32, October.
- W. Hichri, 2004. "Interior collective optimum in a voluntary contribution to a public-goods game," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 11(3), pages 135-140.
- R. Isaac & James Walker, 1998. "Nash as an Organizing Principle in the Voluntary Provision of Public Goods: Experimental Evidence," Experimental Economics, Springer, vol. 1(3), pages 191-206, December.
- Keser, Claudia, 1996. "Voluntary contributions to a public good when partial contribution is a dominant strategy," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 50(3), pages 359-366, March.
- Marc Willinger & Anthony Ziegelmeyer, 2001. "Strength of the Social Dilemma in a Public Goods Experiment: An Exploration of the Error Hypothesis," Experimental Economics, Springer, vol. 4(2), pages 131-144, October.
- Anderson, Simon P. & Goeree, Jacob K. & Holt, Charles A., 1998. "A theoretical analysis of altruism and decision error in public goods games," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(2), pages 297-323, November.
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