Reciprocity, Exchange and Redistribution: An Experimental Investigation Inspired by Karl Polanyi's 'The Economy as Instituted Process'

21 Pages Posted: 2 Jul 2008

See all articles by Luigi Mittone

Luigi Mittone

University of Trento - Department of Economics and Management

Giuseppe Danese

University of Padua

Date Written: June 28, 2008

Abstract

Inspired by Karl Polanyi's writings on three allocation modes, namely reciprocity, exchange and redistribution, we first tested a reciprocity ring with ten players. The baseline treatment, with no possibility of socialisation, displayed very low levels of allocative efficiency. Consistently with the Polanyian approach to reciprocity, we found that inducing the notion of symmetry among the players increased efficiency levels significantly. We then simulated a market exchange, with significant allocative efficiency gains. We conclude that indirect-reciprocity rings among anonymous players can seldom function in the absence of definite institutional refinements, promoting forms of symmetry-acknowledgement.

Keywords: Reciprocity, Redistribution, Exchange, Comparative Institutional Analysis

JEL Classification: Z13, D02, C91

Suggested Citation

Mittone, Luigi and Danese, Giuseppe, Reciprocity, Exchange and Redistribution: An Experimental Investigation Inspired by Karl Polanyi's 'The Economy as Instituted Process' (June 28, 2008). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1152645 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1152645

Luigi Mittone

University of Trento - Department of Economics and Management ( email )

Via Inama 5
Trento, I-38100
Italy

Giuseppe Danese (Contact Author)

University of Padua ( email )

Via del Santo, 33
Padova, PD 35123
Italy

HOME PAGE: http://muse.io/giuseppedanese

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