Dissertation Research: Social Norms and Group Cooperation in an Agro-Pastoral Region of Tanzania

9817248 Richerson/Paciotti这个项目支持加州大学戴维斯分校一名人类学专业学生的论文研究，研究社会规范如何产生制裁，影响坦桑尼亚农村地区社区成员的合作倾向。学生将采访农牧社区的成员，了解社会激励的类型和频率，以激励个人参与合作的基层保护组织或义务警员小组。将对不同社区的人们的行为进行研究，以评估当地社会规范和机构的差异对以这种活动形式进行合作的倾向的影响。将注意影响搭便车的条件，如八卦和个人的社会地位。这名学生将使用人种学技术在两个民族社区学习，并对随机抽样的家庭进行深入访谈。在进行了初步访谈以确定一系列义务警员行为的普遍性之后，学生将随机抽取第二个样本来报告个人参与这些事件。这项研究是有价值的，因为涉及大型群体的合作在民主社会中具有根本利益，而且与环境退化和共同资源管理等应用问题有关。这个项目将增进我们对社会规范和机构在当地社区中提供信任的功能的了解。此外，该项目还支持培训一名年轻的社会科学家，并促进我们对世界这一重要领域的了解。

9817248Richerson / Paciotti This project supports the dissertation research of an anthropology student from the University California-Davis, studying how social norms produce sanctions that affect the propensity of community members to cooperate in a rural area of Tanzania. The student will interview members of agro-pastoral communities about the types and frequencies of social incentives that motivate individuals to participate in cooperative grass-roots protection organizations or vigilante groups. The behavior of people in different communities will be studied to assess the local variation in social norms and institutions affecting the propensity to cooperate in this form of activity. Attention will be paid to the conditions affecting free-riding such as gossip and to the social status of individuals. The student will study in two ethnic communities using ethnographic techniques and in-depth interviews on a random sample of households. After a primary set of interviews to establish the prevalence of a set of incidents of vigilante behavior, the student will draw a second random sample to report personal involvement in the incidents. This research is valuable because cooperation involving large groups is of fundamental interest in democratic society, as well as relevant to applied problems such as environmental degradation and common resource management. This project will advance our knowledge of the function of social norms and institutions that function to provide trust in local communities. In addition the project supports the training of a young social scientist, and advances our knowledge of this important area of the world.