Rational Behavior of Dictators - Evidence on Gender and Religiosity
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Rational Behavior of Dictators Evidence on Gender and Religiosity Aleksandra Staniszewska 1 & Monika Czerwonka 2 & Krzysztof Kompa 3
Published online: 15 August 2020 # The Author(s) 2020
Abstract The dictator game (DG) is one of the simplest and most commonly used experimental games for examining economic and altruistic behaviors. Altruism became crucial in research on decisions in experimental and behavioral economy. This study extends existing research on the relationship between cognitive performance, measured by the Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT) and the DG, taking into account such factors as gender and declared religiosity. The research assesses whether gender and declared religiosity affect altruistic behavior measured in the DG’s payoffs. 511 participants (master’s students in economics) were asked to respond to six types of DGs and the CRT7 test. Correlation analysis, descriptive statistics, student t-tests, the MannWhitney test and Tobit regression analysis were conducted. Cognitive reflection was positively correlated with rational (selfish) behavior in the DG. Those dictators who scored high on the CRT (reflective dictators) kept more money for themselves than those who achieved lower scores on the CRT (altruistic, impulsive dictators). The results confirmed a distinct, inequity aversion attitude among altruistic, impulsive dictators and a selfish attitude among reflective dictators. The dictator’s payoff was significantly related to the gender and declared religiosity of the participants. Women were more concerned about equal distribution of income than men (on average they shared 30% more than men) and religious agents shared 20%–30% more than nonbelievers.
* Aleksandra Staniszewska [email protected];
1
Warsaw School of Economics, Institute of Risk and Capital Markets, Al. Niepodległości 162, 02-554 Warszawa, Poland
2
Warsaw School of Economics, Institute of Finance, Al. Niepodległości 162, 02-554 Warszawa, Poland
3
University of Johannesburg, College of Business and Economics, PO Box 524, Auckland Park 2006, Republic of South Africa
290
Staniszewska A. et al.
Keywords Cognitive reflection test . Dictator game . Rationality . Gender . Religiosity . Altruism JEL Classification Codes C7 . C91 . D63 . D64 . D70 . Z13
Introduction Dual process theories assume that thought can arise as a result of two different processes. The first process (system 1) is automatic, fast and unconscious, while the second one (system 2) is relatively slow, controlled and computationally expensive (Kahneman 2011). The Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT) is designed to measure the tendency to overcome intuitive but incorrect responses arising from system 1 (impulsive players) and more thoughtful correct responses coming from system 2 (reflective players). Studies have shown that performance on the CRT is a good predictor of cognitive and rational thinking. It is important to point out that the Dictator Game (DG) is one of the simplest and most commonly used experimental games to examine economic and altruistic behavior
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