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I Think About You: Group Mentality and Altruism Among Farmers

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  • Phumsith Mahasuweerachai

Abstract

Does exposure to reminder of resource scarcity lead individuals toward generous or selfish behavior? I estimate the effect of resource scarcity information on the number of farmers applied for the new crops program that provides temporary income subsidy using a field experiment. The result shows that the number of applicants in villages that received resource scarcity information, indicating that the number of farmers joining the program was limited in each village, is significantly lower than that of the villages that received no such information. And, a lab-in-the-field experiment reveals that when resource scarcity is salient, farmers tend to sacrifice their benefit to increase the benefit of others who are identified as their ingroup members. However, I do not find this generous behavior toward outsiders. Together, the results suggest that the exposure to resource scarcity information would not always guide people to focus on maximizing their own welfare, rather it may lead people to behave generously if resources are shared among their ingroup members.

Suggested Citation

  • Phumsith Mahasuweerachai, 2021. "I Think About You: Group Mentality and Altruism Among Farmers," PIER Discussion Papers 159, Puey Ungphakorn Institute for Economic Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:pui:dpaper:159
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Resource Scarcity; Group Identity; Generosity; Field Experiment; Lab-in-the-Field Experiment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C92 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Group Behavior
    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments
    • D64 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
    • D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making

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