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Belief in Egalitarianism and Meritocracy

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  • Hideaki Goto

    (IUJ Research Institute, International University of Japan)

Abstract

Why do people often distribute joint surplus in an egalitarian way even when the payoffs for more productive people are lower than those distributed in a meritocratic way? In particular, does a stationary state exist in which more productive people believe in egalitarianism even when distaste for meritocracy decreases as meritocratic payoffs increase? We extend the Bisin–Verdier model of cultural transmission to address these questions and demonstrate that such a stationary state exists, but is stable only under certain conditions. Therefore, the fractions of people believing in egalitarianism and meritocracy may continue to fluctuate.

Suggested Citation

  • Hideaki Goto, 2022. "Belief in Egalitarianism and Meritocracy," Working Papers EMS_2022_05, Research Institute, International University of Japan.
    • Handle: RePEc:iuj:wpaper:ems_2022_05
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    File URL: https://www2.iuj.ac.jp/workingpapers/index.cfm?File=EMS_2022_05.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alberto Bisin & Giorgio Topa & Thierry Verdier, 2009. "Cultural transmission, socialization and the population dynamics of multiple‐trait distributions," International Journal of Economic Theory, The International Society for Economic Theory, vol. 5(1), pages 139-154, March.
    2. Roland Bénabou & Jean Tirole, 2006. "Belief in a Just World and Redistributive Politics," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 121(2), pages 699-746.
    3. Bisin, Alberto & Verdier, Thierry, 2001. "The Economics of Cultural Transmission and the Dynamics of Preferences," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 97(2), pages 298-319, April.
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    6. James D. Montgomery, 2010. "Intergenerational Cultural Transmission as an Evolutionary Game," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(4), pages 115-136, November.
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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • D30 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - General
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making

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