infonet-economy

This paper shows how non-individualistic preferences can be individual fitness maximizing in the presence of general equilibrium externalities. In the model, individuals share an endowment, which can be consumed on its own and/or used as a means of exchange to purchase goods from merchants on the external market if such exists. Assuming that increased consumption means increased individual fitness, we show that inequity-averse behavior with respect to endowment distribution can benan optimal response to merchants' price discrimination and lead to the evolution ofninequity-averse preferences. The findings presented here are supported by empirical evidence on the endogeniety of people's preferences with respect to exposure to market exchange.