The effect of financial constraints on in-group bias: Evidence from rice farmers in Thailand
Issued Date
2023-03-01
Resource Type
ISSN
01672681
Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85146912861
Journal Title
Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization
Volume
207
Start Page
96
End Page
109
Rights Holder(s)
SCOPUS
Bibliographic Citation
Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization Vol.207 (2023) , 96-109
Suggested Citation
Boonmanunt S., Meier S. The effect of financial constraints on in-group bias: Evidence from rice farmers in Thailand. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization Vol.207 (2023) , 96-109. 109. doi:10.1016/j.jebo.2023.01.012 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/81329
Title
The effect of financial constraints on in-group bias: Evidence from rice farmers in Thailand
Author(s)
Other Contributor(s)
Abstract
In-group bias can be detrimental for communities and economic development. We study the causal effect of financial constraints on in-group bias in prosocial behaviors – cooperation, norm enforcement, and sharing – among low-income rice farmers in rural Thailand, who cultivate and harvest rice once a year. We use a between-subjects design – randomly assigning participants to experiments either before harvest (more financially constrained) or after harvest. Farmers interacted with a partner either from their own village (in-group) or from another village (out-group). We find that in-group bias in cooperation and norm enforcement is not increased by financial constraints. By contrast, the results seem to suggest that in-group bias exists only after harvest, that is, when people are less financially constrained.