Conformity and adaptation in groups

Abstract

Empirical and experimental evidence suggests that individual behavior in group interactions is affected by perceived norms of behavior within the group. We design an experiment to test this hypothesis. We find that (a) when agents interact within a group, the initial diverse behaviors converge to the group average and individuals cluster more tightly around this benchmark as they learn the average, (b) actions further from this benchmark in a self-serving direction are less acceptable by others, and (c) when an agent is moved to a group with a different benchmark, s/he conforms quickly to the new benchmark.