Conformists and mavericks: the empirics of frequency-dependent cultural transmission

摘要: Conformity is a type of social learning that has received considerable attention among psychologists and human evolutionary ecologists, but existing empirical research does not identify conformity cleanly. more than just tendency to follow the majority; it involves an exaggerated majority. The “exaggerated” part this definition ensures conformists do show any bias toward majority, sufficiently strong increase size majority through time. This compelling because only form frequency-dependent influence produces behaviorally homogeneous groups. We conducted experiment see if players were by separating individual learners. Players chose between two technologies repeatedly. Payoffs random, one technology had higher expected payoff. Individual learners knew their realized payoffs after each choice, while distribution choices A subset behaved according classic model conformity. remaining did respond frequency information. They neither nor nonconformists, mavericks. Given heterogeneity in strategies, conform increased earnings dramatically.