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In fairness to future generations: The role of egocentrism, uncertainty, power, and stewardship in judgments of intergenerational allocations

Publication ,  Journal Article
Wade-Benzoni, KA; Hernandez, M; Medvec, V; Messick, D
Published in: Journal of Experimental Social Psychology
March 1, 2008

In this paper, we found that fairness judgments in intergenerational allocation decisions depend on (1) individuals' position in the intergenerational sequence (i.e., whether they are in the preceding or succeeding generation), (2) the amount of uncertainty about the effect of the preceding generation's decisions on the succeeding one, and (3) whether the preceding generation is primed with power. We found that both power priming and greater levels of uncertainty about the future consequences of present decisions can elicit stewardship attitudes, which may temper self-interested behavior on the part of the preceding generation. Our data also indicate that the nature of the uncertainty is important; it is not just a matter of how much future generations will be affected, but also whether or not they will be affected at all by the decisions of earlier generations. Our findings help to explain (1) how intergenerational inequities can occur even when people are explicitly focused on achieving fair allocations of resources between generations, and (2) how social responsibility concerns can motivate intergenerational beneficence in the face of intergenerational conflict. © 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Published In

Journal of Experimental Social Psychology

DOI

EISSN

1096-0465

ISSN

0022-1031

Publication Date

March 1, 2008

Volume

44

Issue

2

Start / End Page

233 / 245

Related Subject Headings

  • Social Psychology
  • 5205 Social and personality psychology
  • 1702 Cognitive Sciences
  • 1701 Psychology
 

Citation

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Wade-Benzoni, K. A., Hernandez, M., Medvec, V., & Messick, D. (2008). In fairness to future generations: The role of egocentrism, uncertainty, power, and stewardship in judgments of intergenerational allocations. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 44(2), 233–245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2007.04.004
Wade-Benzoni, K. A., M. Hernandez, V. Medvec, and D. Messick. “In fairness to future generations: The role of egocentrism, uncertainty, power, and stewardship in judgments of intergenerational allocations.” Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 44, no. 2 (March 1, 2008): 233–45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2007.04.004.
Wade-Benzoni KA, Hernandez M, Medvec V, Messick D. In fairness to future generations: The role of egocentrism, uncertainty, power, and stewardship in judgments of intergenerational allocations. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. 2008 Mar 1;44(2):233–45.
Wade-Benzoni, K. A., et al. “In fairness to future generations: The role of egocentrism, uncertainty, power, and stewardship in judgments of intergenerational allocations.” Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, vol. 44, no. 2, Mar. 2008, pp. 233–45. Scopus, doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2007.04.004.
Wade-Benzoni KA, Hernandez M, Medvec V, Messick D. In fairness to future generations: The role of egocentrism, uncertainty, power, and stewardship in judgments of intergenerational allocations. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. 2008 Mar 1;44(2):233–245.
Journal cover image

Published In

Journal of Experimental Social Psychology

DOI

EISSN

1096-0465

ISSN

0022-1031

Publication Date

March 1, 2008

Volume

44

Issue

2

Start / End Page

233 / 245

Related Subject Headings

  • Social Psychology
  • 5205 Social and personality psychology
  • 1702 Cognitive Sciences
  • 1701 Psychology