Short TED talk on inequality

[luke wilson]

Two monkeys get given unequal rewards for doing the same thing... watch the reactions

_http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meiU6TxysCg

 

[Palinurus]

Thanks for sharing, luke wilson.

As this is by now a very famous experiment, I was sure to have read about it before -- so I did a search.

Believe it or not, this experiment was already mentioned on SotT on September 9, 2005. You have to scroll to the bottom of that page to reach it (and no video in those days, of course):

Study: Monkeys Reject Unequal Pay
Sarah F. Brosnan and Frans B. M. de Waal
Nature, 425: 297-299, 2003

During the evolution of cooperation it may have become critical for individuals to compare their own efforts and pay-offs with those of others.

Negative reactions may occur when expectations are violated. One theory proposes that aversion to inequity can explain human cooperation within the bounds of the rational choice model, and may in fact be more inclusive than previous explanations. Although there exists substantial cultural variation in its particulars, this 'sense of fairness' is probably a human universa that has been shown to prevail in a wide variety of circumstances. However, we are not the only cooperative animals, hence inequity aversion may not be uniquely human. Many highly cooperative nonhuman species seem guided by a set of expectations about the outcome of cooperation and the division of resources.

Here we demonstrate that a nonhuman primate, the brown capuchin monkey (Cebus apella), responds negatively to unequal reward distribution in exchanges with a human experimenter. Monkeys refused to participate if they witnessed a conspecific obtain a more attractive reward for equal effort, an effect amplified if the partner received such a reward without any effort at all. These reactions support an early evolutionary origin of inequity aversion. [...]

Comment: This study begs the question: why do humans - who are supposedly so much more advanced than monkeys - so readily accept financial, social, racial, and gender inequality?

I also found two related topics here on the forum (warning, containing dead links):

Signs Economic Commentary (August 28, 2006) by Donald Hunt

Envy is a dog's life, study finds

It's fun, learning... :)

 

[obyvatel]

Frans de Waal's work with primates is also relevant in this context. There is anecdotal evidence that primates display some seeds of morality. The moral foundation theory (described briefly here ) identifies 5 foundations - care/harm, fairness/cheating, loyalty/betrayal, respect for authority, sanctity/degradation. Researchers working on MFT consider that primate populations do clearly exhibit 3 of the 5 foundations - care, loyalty towards in-group and respect for authority. There is anecdotal evidence towards sensitivity to the fairness foundation - like mentioned in the articles/videos above.

Here are a couple of paraphrased excerpts from de Waal's work.

A group of chimps were given a bundle of branches valued for their tasty leaves

If [the female chimp] Gwinnie obtained one of the large bundles of browse [in the enclosure], she would take it to the top of a climbing frame, where it could easily be monopolized. Except for her offspring, few others managed to get anything. [Another female chimp] Mai, in contrast, shared readily and was typically surrounded by a cluster of beggars. Guess who met with more resistance if she herself was in need and tried to get food? Gwinnie and other stingy personalities encountered far more threats and protestations than generous sharers such as Mai.
. . . It is as if the other apes are telling Gwinnie, “You never share with us, why should we share with you!”

Another anecdote regarding reaction to non-reciprocation

A high-ranking female, Puist, took the trouble and risk to help her male friend, Luit, chase off a rival, Nikkie. Nikkie, however, had a habit aft er major confrontations of singling out and cornering allies of his rivals, to punish them. This time Nikkie displayed at [threatened] Puist shortly after he had been [chased off ]. Puist turned to Luit, stretching out her hand in search of support. But Luit did not lift a finger to protect her. Immediately after Nikkie . . . left the scene, Puist turned to Luit, barking furiously. She chased him across the enclosure and even pummeled him.
................

If her [Puist] fury was in fact the result of Luit's failure to help her after she had helped him, this would suggest that reciprocity among chimpanzees is governed by the same sense of moral rightness and justice as it is among humans.