By Neuroscience News
New research indicates that in brief, zero-sum-game competitions, people's behavior towards others is primarily driven by their own actions, either generous or selfish.
The study, published in the journal Cognitive Science, found that individuals' actions carry more weight than others' attitudes and behaviors when it comes to decision-making.
Prior research suggested that social norms primarily guided decisions in competitive scenarios, but this study contests that belief, suggesting self-behavior is more influential.
The research was conducted using the Ultimatum Game, a test where a proposer suggests how to split a pot of money, and the receiver decides whether to agree or reject the proposal.
Findings indicated that generous people accepted only generous offers, while selfish people were content with selfish offers, even when it hurt them financially.
Interestingly, both generous and selfish individuals showed trust towards others who behaved similarly to them, regardless of the economic outcome.
The researchers found that people were guided more by their own behavior than the need to conform when deciding whether to punish others for selfishness or generosity.
The study concludes that a person's own generous or selfish behavior greatly influences their actions in numerous social interactions and evaluations.