Perceptions of Equity across Cultures and over Time: A Questionnaire-Experimental Approach

Abstract

We discuss the results of investigations where students from several countries were confronted with questionnaires describing hypothetical situations. All situations start from the preference structure which underlies an equity axiom based on Rawls's difference principle. We ask whether respondents satisfy the equity axiom by supporting the worst-offs and how often they revise their initial decision when more people join the side of the more advantaged. Moreover, we control for context-dependency and investigate whether there are major differences across countries and cultures. The available data also allow us to consider changes of justice evaluations over time. © 2010 International Atlantic Economic Society.