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Does Self-Control Foster Generosity? Evidence from Ego Depleted Children

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  • Ugur, Zeynep B.

Abstract

If people enjoy giving, then why do they not always give? This study examines whether self-control influences prosocial behavior among 316 young children. For this purpose, we experimentally elicited self-control, altruism, and cognitive skills. In line with previous studies, we find that the majority of children, like adults, tend to give away some of their endowments. Our main finding is that self-control is significantly associated with altruism. Using children's participation time to our game as an instrument, we show that self-control depletion leads to significantly lower altruism among children.

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  • Ugur, Zeynep B., 2021. "Does Self-Control Foster Generosity? Evidence from Ego Depleted Children," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:soceco:v:90:y:2021:i:c:s2214804320306959
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socec.2020.101652
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    Cited by:

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    2. Antonia Grohmann & Jana Hamdan, 2021. "The Effect of Self-Control and Financial Literacy on Impulse Borrowing: Experimental Evidence," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1950, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    3. Ugur, Zeynep B & Molina Pérez, Alberto, 2023. "The toll of COVID-19 on organ donation and kidney transplantation in Europe: Do legislative defaults matter?," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    4. Acerbi, Alberto & Sacco, Pier Luigi, 2022. "The self-control vs. self-indulgence dilemma: A culturomic analysis of 20th century trends," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 101(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Self-control; Donation; Altruism; Ego depletion;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D64 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
    • D01 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Microeconomic Behavior: Underlying Principles
    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments

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