Inequality and Relative Ability Beliefs
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 9710858 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jeffrey V Butler (0000-0001-6401-7504, Einaudi Institute for Economics and Finance, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2016 |
| Volume | 126 |
| Issue | 593 |
| Pages | 907-948 |
| Publication date | 2016-06-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The Economic Journal (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0013-0133 • E-ISSN: 1468-0297 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1111/ecoj.12175 |
| OpenAlex | W2105715648 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 53 |
I present experimental evidence for a novel mechanism yielding inequality persistence. Just world beliefs research suggests that individuals believe they merit unequal treatment they experience. Merit depends on ability and effort so that disadvantage (advantage) may undermine (bolster) confidence in own relative ability. Because decisions determining economic success rely on such beliefs (e.g. competitiveness), inequality may self‐perpetuate. In multiple experiments, I randomly assign unequal pay for an identical task where performance depends on cognitive ability. I find that pay level consistently and substantially affects beliefs but not performance. Finally, I show that among males high pay increases competitiveness by 33
Cognition · Demographic economics · Disadvantage · Economics · Inequality · Microeconomics · Persistence (discontinuity · Political science · Positive economics · Public economics · Task (project management · Culture, Economy, and Development Studies · Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics · Experimental Behavioral Economics Studies · Law · Mathematics · Psychology · Social Psychology
A Structural Analysis of Disappointment Aversion in a Real Effort Competition
The Missing "One-Offs"
Self-Confidence and Personal Motivation
Do Women Shy Away From Competition? Do Men Compete Too Much?
The Formation of Beliefs
Income Distribution and Macroeconomics
Behavioral Macroeconomics and Macroeconomic Behavior
Measuring utility by a single-response sequential method
Performance in Competitive Environments
Monkeys reject unequal pay
Chapter 8 Theories of persistent inequality and intergenerational mobility
A theory of persistent income inequality
Belief in a Just World and Redistributive Politics
Universal dimensions of social cognition
Z-Tree
Prospect Theory
Poverty Impedes Cognitive Function
The Economics of Discrimination
Social preferences, self-interest, and the demand for redistribution
Aspirations, Poverty, and Economic Change
Responses to Victimizations and Belief in a Just World
Discrimination, Social Identity, and Durable Inequalities
Stereotype content model across cultures
Intergenerational Transfers and the Distribution of Earnings
Social Structure Shapes Cultural Stereotypes and Emotions
Occupational Choice and the Process of Development
A Theory of Fads, Fashion, Custom, and Cultural Change as Informational Cascades
Evaluation of performance as a function of performer's reward and attractiveness
Stereotype threat and the intellectual test performance of African Americans
Characterological versus behavioral self-blame
The trouble with overconfidence
Social inequality and the reduction of ideological dissonance on behalf of the system
Experimental Research on Just-World Theory
Just world research and the attribution process
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,43 |
| Citation span | 2019 - 2023 (5) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |