Social division, trust, and reciprocity among Chinese inmates

Han Liu, Lucy Ackert, Fang Chang, Li Qi and Yaojiang Shi

Research in Economics, 2021, vol. 75, issue 3, 259-273

Abstract: Social capital promotes cooperation between people and, in turn, economic growth and stability. Trust and trustworthiness are components of social capital that are associated with economic success. This paper provides insight into the impact of social division on cooperative behavior. We use the one-shot investment game to measure trust and reciprocity among inmates in a Chinese prison, which offers an institutional setting that allows us to examine how social interaction, or a lack thereof, fosters cooperation. Results show that the variation in social division through physical separation does not have a significant impact on cooperative behavior among inmates. However, inmates are more trusting than our benchmark group of university students even though inmates have faced significant life challenges. While social interaction fails to boost trust and reciprocity, childhood experience and family environment mold social preferences. In particular, reciprocity deteriorates for those who have migrant mothers.

Keywords: Trust; Reciprocity; Trustworthiness; Social capital (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C91 O19 R23 Z13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:reecon:v:75:y:2021:i:3:p:259-273

DOI: 10.1016/j.rie.2021.06.004

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