Abstract
In the present study EEG was recorded simultaneously while two participants were playing the three-person ultimatum game (UG). Both participants received different offers from changing proposers about how to split up a certain amount of money between the three players. One of the participants had no say, whereas the other, the responder, was able to harm the payoff of all other players. The aim of the study was to investigate how the outcomes of the respective other are evaluated by participants who were treated fairly or unfairly themselves and to what extent agency influences concerns for fairness. Analyses were focused on the medial frontal negativity (MFN) as an early index for subjective value assignment. Recipients with veto-power exhibited enhanced, more negative-going, MFN amplitudes following proposals that comprised a low share for both recipients, suggesting that responders favored offers with a fair amount to at least one of the two players. Though, the powerless players cared about the amount assigned to the responder, MFN amplitudes were larger following fair compared to unfair offers assigned to the responder. Similarly, concerns for fairness which determined the amplitude of the MFN, suggested that the powerless players exhibited negative and conversely the responders, positive social preferences.
Highlights
Comparative processes are essential to assess the emotional meaning assigned to a given situation
These differences in power became apparent already about 250 ms after the onset of the different offers. For both participants a difference in medial frontal negativity (MFN) amplitude depending on the share assigned to the respective other can be reported
In line with previous literature, MFN amplitudes elicited by unfair offers were more negative going than those elicited by fair offers, but this only applied for the responders
Summary
Comparative processes are essential to assess the emotional meaning assigned to a given situation. The nature of emotions elicited by the reception, omission, or termination of reward or punishment depends on what we expect and on what others receive in comparison to oneself (Festinger, 1954; Rolls, 2005). This circumstance becomes apparent when looking at recent findings in the field of neuroeconomics investigating how people evaluate specific situations associated with reward or punishment in relation to significant others using simple experimental games. Intellectual abilities, and socio-economic status do not modulate behavior in this game (Güth et al, 2007; Nguyen et al, 2011)
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