Conditions for the Emergence of Shared Norms in Populations with Incompatible Preferences

PLoS ONE 9(8), 2014, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0104207

14 Pages Posted: 14 Sep 2014

See all articles by Dirk Helbing

Dirk Helbing

ETH Zürich - Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences (GESS)

Wenjian Yu

ETH Zürich - Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences (GESS)

Karl-Dieter Opp

University of Leipzig

Heiko Rauhut

University of Zurich

Date Written: August 28, 2014

Abstract

Understanding norms is a key challenge in sociology. Nevertheless, there is a lack of dynamical models explaining how one of several possible behaviors is established as a norm and under what conditions. Analysing an agent-based model, we identify interesting parameter dependencies that imply when two behaviors will coexist or when a shared norm will emerge in a heterogeneous society, where different populations have incompatible preferences. Our model highlights the importance of randomness, spatial interactions, non-linear dynamics, and self-organization. It can also explain the emergence of unpopular norms that do not maximize the collective benefit. Furthermore, we compare behavior-based with preference-based punishment and find interesting results concerning hypocritical punishment. Strikingly, pressuring others to perform the same public behavior as oneself is more effective in promoting norms than pressuring others to meet one’s own private preference. Finally, we show that adaptive group pressure exerted by randomly occurring, local majorities may create norms under conditions where different behaviors would normally coexist.

Suggested Citation

Helbing, Dirk and Yu, Wenjian and Opp, Karl-Dieter and Rauhut, Heiko, Conditions for the Emergence of Shared Norms in Populations with Incompatible Preferences (August 28, 2014). PLoS ONE 9(8), 2014, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0104207, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2495470

Dirk Helbing (Contact Author)

ETH Zürich - Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences (GESS) ( email )

ETH Zurich - Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
Clausiusstrasse 50
Zurich, 8092
Switzerland

HOME PAGE: http://www.coss.ethz.ch

Wenjian Yu

ETH Zürich - Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences (GESS) ( email )

ETH-Zentrum SEW E 26
CH-8092 Zurich, Zurich 8006
Switzerland

Karl-Dieter Opp

University of Leipzig ( email )

Marschnerstrasse 31
D-04109 Leipzig, 04109
Germany

Heiko Rauhut

University of Zurich ( email )

Andreasstrasse 15
8050 Zurich, CH-8050
Switzerland
+41 44 635 23 54 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://www.suz.uzh.ch/rauhut.html

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