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Reputation, Group Structure and Social Tensions

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  • Dominic Rohner

    (University of York)

Abstract

Social tensions impede social cohesion and public goods provision. They can also be a driving force for more serious conflicts such as civil wars. Surprisingly, however, the emergence of social tensions has only rarely been studied in the literature. In the present contribution a game-theoretic model highlights how reputation concerns and the structure of group cleavages matter for the emergence of social tensions. In particular, the respective effects of fractionalisation, polarisation and segregation are assessed. The predictions of the model can account for recent empirical evidence on ethnic conflicts. The framework can also be applied to the study of social capital and merger failures.

Suggested Citation

  • Dominic Rohner, 2008. "Reputation, Group Structure and Social Tensions," HiCN Working Papers 40, Households in Conflict Network.
  • Handle: RePEc:hic:wpaper:40
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Dominic Rohner & Mathias Thoenig & Fabrizio Zilibotti, 2013. "War Signals: A Theory of Trade, Trust, and Conflict," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 80(3), pages 1114-1147.
    2. Ying Yao & Guanghua Wan & Dongfang Meng, 2019. "Income distribution and health: can polarization explain health outcomes better than inequality?," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 20(4), pages 543-557, June.
    3. Rohner, Dominic & Mueller, Hannes & Schönholzer, David, 2017. "The Peace Dividend of Distance: Violence as Interaction Across Space," CEPR Discussion Papers 11897, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    4. Dominic Rohner & Mathias Thoenig & Fabrizio Zilibotti, 2013. "Seeds of distrust: conflict in Uganda," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 217-252, September.
    5. Yikai Wang & Simon Alder, 2017. "Divide and Rule: An Origin of Polarization and Ethnic Conflict," 2017 Meeting Papers 1242, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    6. van der Ploeg, Frederick & Rohner, Dominic, 2012. "War and natural resource exploitation," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(8), pages 1714-1729.
    7. Thoenig, Mathias & Laurent-Lucchetti, Jeremy & Rohner, Dominic, 2019. "Ethnic Conflicts and the Informational Dividend of Democracy," CEPR Discussion Papers 14182, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    8. John Smith, 2012. "Reputation, Social Identity and Social Conflict," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 14(4), pages 677-709, August.
    9. Hannes Mueller & Dominic Rohner & David Schoenholzer, 2013. "Tectonic Boundaries and Strongholds: The Religious Geography of Violence in Northern Ireland," Cahiers de Recherches Economiques du Département d'économie 13.04, Université de Lausanne, Faculté des HEC, Département d’économie.
    10. Andes Chivangue, 2015. "Crony Capitalism in Mozambique: Evidence from Networks of Politicians and Businessmen," CEsA Working Papers 135, CEsA - Centre for African and Development Studies.
    11. Michael D. König & Dominic Rohner & Mathias Thoenig & Fabrizio Zilibotti, 2016. "The Long-lasting Shadow of the Allied Occupation of Austria on its Spatial Equilibrium," HiCN Working Papers 231, Households in Conflict Network.
    12. Paul Hufe & Andreas Peichl & Daniel Weishaar, 2022. "Lower and upper bound estimates of inequality of opportunity for emerging economies," Social Choice and Welfare, Springer;The Society for Social Choice and Welfare, vol. 58(3), pages 395-427, April.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Conflict; Information; Reputation; Ethnicity; Social Capital;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C73 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - Stochastic and Dynamic Games; Evolutionary Games
    • D74 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Conflict; Conflict Resolution; Alliances; Revolutions
    • L14 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Transactional Relationships; Contracts and Reputation
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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