The Impact Of Similarity On Third-party Punishment: The Moderating Effect Of Identity Type

Third-party punishment refers to the behavior of individuals who are not related to economic interests and are willing to pay costs to punish violators.This kind of behavior goes beyond the hypothesis of economic man and is considered as a behavior pattern that voluntarily pays for the punishment of those who violate social norms.It is a purer altruistic punishment and plays a very important role in the evolution of human cooperative behavior.This study suggests that the relationship between similarity and third-party punishment is influenced by the type of identity.As a dimension of social distance,similarity is an important factor affecting third-party punishment.Previous studies on the relationship between similarity and third-party punishment have different conclusions.Therefore,this study argues that the relationship between similarity and third-party punishment is affected by the type of identity.Under different conditions of identity,similarity may have completely opposite effects on the third-party punishment,so it is necessary to explore its internal mechanism.Before the formal study,people's attitudes towards some background information are investigated through the questionnaires.Finally,name and birthday are used as the experimental materials of "individual identity",hometown and school are used as the experimental materials of "group identity",and they are applied in the subsequent research.The formal study includes three studies.Study1 explores whether the influence of similarity on third-party punishment is moderated by the type of identity(individual identity vs.group identity)through two experiments(the public goods game and the dictator game).On the basis of study 1,study 2,experiment 3(the public goods game)and experiment 4(the dictator game)continued to explore the mediating mechanism of the influence of similarity on third-party punishment under different types of identity.Study 3(multi-round dictator game)adds rounds to the game settings,further discussing whether the moderating effect of the type of identity on the relationship between similarity and third-party punishment still exists in the context of multiple interactions.The research results are as follows:(1)The moderating effect of identity type between similarity and third-party punishment is significant.Under the condition of individual identity,similarity increases the third-party punishment.Under the condition of group identity,similarity reduces the third-party punishment.(2)In the face of behaviors violating cooperative norms,under the condition of individual identity,similarity influences the effect of third-party punishment through multiple mediating of expectation and anger.Under the condition of group identity,similarity affects the third-partypunishment through the mediation of anger.(3)In the face of behaviors violating fairness norms,under the condition of individual identity,similarity can affect third-party punishment through multiple mediating effects of expectation and anger,or only through mediating effects of expectation.Under the condition of group identity,similarity affects the third-party punishment through the mediation of anger.(4)After multiple interactions,the moderating effect of the type of identity on similarity and third-party punishment are not found.Therefore,the implementation of punishment by the third party,to fully consider the effect of similarity,the more attention to the moderating role of the type of identity between the two,which helps clarify people's attitudes towards violations by similar individuals,facilitates the understanding and analysis of people's reactions and behavior patterns in different situations,and thus promotes the compliance and maintenance of social norms.