The Evolution of a "Kantian Trait": Inferring from the Dictator Game

Lorenzo Cerda Planas ()
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Lorenzo Cerda Planas: Paris School of Economics - Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne, https://centredeconomiesorbonne.univ-paris1.fr

Documents de travail du Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne from Université Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris 1), Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne

Abstract: The aim of this paper is twofold. Starting from the population dynamics literature, which usually finds the resulting distribution of a trait in a population, according to some parents' preferences, I answer the inverted question: Which preference function would yield into a given trait distribution? I solve this using a continuous trait, instead of finite types of agents. Using this result, I connect this transmission theory of social traits with the well-known results of Dictator Game (DG) experiments. I use a specific definition of a Kantian trait applied to DG results, and determine the distribution of this trait that is commonly found in these experiments. With these two ingredients, I show that homo-oeconomicus parents have a greater' dislike' or disutility of having offspring with different traits from them compared to their Kantian counterparts. This could be a result of myopic empathy being stronger in homo-oeconomicus parents, driving this dislike of difference

Keywords: Population dynamics; Kantian morale; evolutionary equilibrium (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C61 C62 C63 C73 D64 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 23 pages
Date: 2015-03
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-evo, nep-exp, nep-gth and nep-hpe
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:mse:cesdoc:15032

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