The Grammar of Society

Abstract

In The Grammar of Society, first published in 2006, Cristina Bicchieri examines social norms, such as fairness, cooperation, and reciprocity, in an effort to understand their nature and dynamics, the expectations that they generate, and how they evolve and change. Drawing on several intellectual traditions and methods, including those of social psychology, experimental economics and evolutionary game theory, Bicchieri provides an integrated account of how social norms emerge, why and when we follow them, and the situations where we are most likely to focus on relevant norms. Examining the existence and survival of inefficient norms, she demonstrates how norms evolve in ways that depend upon the psychological dispositions of the individual and how such dispositions may impair social efficiency. By contrast, she also shows how certain psychological propensities may naturally lead individuals to evolve fairness norms that closely resemble those we follow in most modern societies.

Trust at zero acquaintance: More a matter of respect than expectation of reward.

“…That is, it is one's socialization in early years that matters. Active regulation in one's current social environment would not be relevant (Bicchieri, 2006;Dubreuil & Grégoire, 2013;Elster, 2009).…”

“…If people trust to enhance their reputation, they should trust more when their decisions are made public rather than kept private. If, instead, they trust to conform to a moral norm, the public versus private nature of their decision should not matter (Bicchieri, 2006;Dubreuil & Grégoire, 2013;Elster, 2009). …”

“…Thus, the norm participants followed in the trust game appears to be, as Bicchieri (2006) termed it, moral in nature (see also Elster, 2009). Trusting another person follows a moral standard that is internal to the individual and that requires no social pressure to evoke.…”

Conformorality. A Study on Group Conditioning of Normative Judgment

“…Bicchieri, 2006;Elster, 2009;Haidt, Koller, and Dias, 1993;Nichols, 2002;Turiel, 1977). Although 1 there are differences in the way particular researchers individuate different kinds of norms, many would agree that there are features that distinguish moral, social and what can be called "decency norms."…”

The Thesis of Norm Transformation in the Theory of Mass Atrocity

“…So, in experiments designed to analyze norms of fairness, subjects may be selectively fed information about the past behavior of their experimental partners; or they may be told that the experiment has been designed in such a way as to prevent partners from detecting unfair divisions of monetary rewards. 43 Experiments of this kind are clearly not feasible when it comes to the study of norms supposed to have existed in historical contexts. 44 There are, however, other sources, besides the actions of historical individuals themselves, which can provide evidence of the existence of norms that might help to explain those actions.…”