Abstract
This paper shows how market exposure can support the evolution of non-individualisticpreferences. In a group, one agent is randomly selected to divide an exogenous endowment.Endowment shares are used for either consumption or market exchange with external merchants.As a more equal endowment distribution attenuates the scope of merchants’ price discrimination,we argue that inequity-averse preferences may lead to a higher utility of consumption and sosurvive evolutionary pressures. This effect arises from an opportunity to create and extractinformation rents. We offer a new explanation to the empirical finding that a society's exposure tomarkets has a positive effect on its members’ sociality.
Zubrickas, Robertas