On the Nature, Modeling, and Neural Bases of Social Ties

38 Pages Posted: 2 Dec 2008

See all articles by F. A. A. M. Van Winden

F. A. A. M. Van Winden

University of Amsterdam - Amsterdam School of Economics (ASE); CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute); Tinbergen Institute

Mirre Stallen

Erasmus Research Institute of Management (ERIM)

Richard Ridderinkhof

University of Amsterdam - Amsterdam Center for the Study of Adaptive Control in Brain and Behavior (ACACIA)

Date Written: August 2008

Abstract

This paper addresses the nature, formalization, and neural bases of (affective) social ties and discusses the relevance of ties for health economics. A social tie is defined as an affective weight attached by an individual to the well-being of another individual ('utility interdependence'). Ties can be positive or negative, and symmetric or asymmetric between individuals. Characteristic of a social tie, as conceived of here, is that it develops over time under the influence of interaction, in contrast with a trait like altruism. Moreover, a tie is not related to strategic behavior such as reputation formation but seen as generated by affective responses. A formalization is presented together with some supportive evidence from behavioral experiments. This is followed by a discussion of related psychological constructs and the presentation of suggestive neural findings, based on the existing literature. We conclude with some suggestions for future research.

Keywords: Affect, Modeling, Neuroeconomics, Social Ties

JEL Classification: D01, D64, D87, H41, I10

Suggested Citation

Van Winden, F. A. A. M. and Stallen, Mirre and Ridderinkhof, Richard, On the Nature, Modeling, and Neural Bases of Social Ties (August 2008). CEPR Discussion Paper No. DP6950, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1307540

F. A. A. M. Van Winden

University of Amsterdam - Amsterdam School of Economics (ASE) ( email )

Roetersstraat 11
Amsterdam, North Holland 1018 WB
Netherlands

CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)

Poschinger Str. 5
Munich, DE-81679
Germany

Tinbergen Institute ( email )

Gustav Mahlerplein 117
Amsterdam, 1082 MS
Netherlands

Mirre Stallen

Erasmus Research Institute of Management (ERIM) ( email )

P.O. Box 1738
3000 DR Rotterdam
Netherlands

Richard Ridderinkhof (Contact Author)

University of Amsterdam - Amsterdam Center for the Study of Adaptive Control in Brain and Behavior (ACACIA) ( email )

Roetersstraat 15
Amsterdam, 1018 WB
Netherlands

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