Analytical thinking, prosocial voting, and intergroup competition: experimental evidence from China

• Published in: Public choice Vol. 191; no. 3-4; pp. 363 - 385
• Main Authors: Morton, Rebecca B., Ou, Kai, Qin, Xiangdong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.06.2022; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: College football; Competition; Cooperation; Decision making; Economics; Economics and Finance; Ethnic groups; Ethnic identity; Experiments; Favoritism; Group identity; Laboratories; Minority & ethnic groups; Muslims; Political Science; Prosocial behavior; Public Finance; Religion; Self interest; Voter behavior; Voting; China; Chinese Muslim; Ethnic identity; D6; D7; Analytical thinking; C9; Intergroup competition; H0; Lab-in-the-field experiment
• ISSN: 0048-5829; 1573-7101
• DOI: 10.1007/s11127-020-00859-6

We investigate whether and how analytical thinking affects Muslims’ prosocial voting towards in-group (fellow Muslims) and out-group (Han Chinese) members. We conduct an incentivized laboratory-style voting experiment in western China, where tension and competition exist between the two ethnic groups. We find a significant negative effect of analytical thinking on prosocial voting in general. We also find that the effect of analytical thinking is related to group identity: A strong and significant negative effect is found on behavior towards out-group members, but a small and generally insignificant effect towards in-group members. Our results are consistent with group competition affecting the benefits and costs of prosocial voting, and those benefits and costs become more salient when engaging in analytical thinking.