The effect of financial constraints on in-group bias: Evidence from rice farmers in Thailand

• Main Author: Boonmanunt S.
• Other Authors: Mahidol University
• Format: Article
• Published: 2023
• Subjects: Business, Management and Accounting
• Online Access: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/123456789/80112; https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=85146912861&origin=inward

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.