Revealed distributional preferences: Individuals vs. teams

Balafoutas, Loukas; Kerschbamer, Rudolf; Kocher, Martin; Sutter, Matthias (2014): Revealed distributional preferences: Individuals vs. teams. In: Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Vol. 108, No. C: pp. 319-330

Abstract

We compare experimentally the revealed distributional preferences of individuals and teams in allocation tasks. We find that teams are significantly more benevolent than individuals in the domain of disadvantageous inequality while the benevolence in the domain of advantageous inequality is similar across decision makers. A consequence for the frequency of preference types is that while a substantial fraction of individuals is classified as inequality averse, this type disappears completely in teams. Spiteful types are markedly more frequent among individuals than among teams. On the other hand, by far more teams than individuals are classified as efficiency lovers.

• Item Type: Journal article
• Form of publication: Publisher's Version
• Keywords: Distributional preferences; Social preferences; Team decisions; Individual decisions; Stability of preferences; Behavioral economics; Experimental economics
• Faculties: Economics > Chairs > Chair of Empirical Economics
• Subjects: 300 Social sciences > 330 Economics
• JEL Classification: c91, c92, d03, d63, d64
• Language: English