Replication Data for Chapter 2: Markets and socially responsible behavior - Do punishment and religion promote social responsibility in markets?

In our first experiment, we use a laboratory competitive product market where sellers and buyers, respectively, have the option to produce and buy a low-cost product with or a high-cost product without a negative externality. We randomly assign participants to a version of a game framed as a “market” context or as a “neutral” (non-market) context.

We find that, contrary to the prediction of pure self-interest theory, participants exhibit considerable levels of socially responsible behavior irrespective of the framed context. We also find evidence that socially responsible behavior is less prevalent in markets compared to non-market contexts. Further, our experimental results show that regulating mechanisms and culture, such as punishment and religion, play a significant role in promoting socially responsible behavior in markets.