Perfect Equality Research Articles

Some Notes on the Gini Index and New Inequality Measures: The nth Gini Index

A new family of inequality indices based on the deviation between the expected maximum and the expected minimum of random samples, called the nth Gini index is presented. These indices generalize the Gini index. At the same time, this family of indices and the S-Gini index are generalized by proposing the uv-Gini index, which turns out to be a convex combination of the S-Gini index and the Lorenz family of inequality measures. This family of Gini indices provides a methodology for achieving perfect equality in a given distribution of incomes. This is achieved through a series of successive and equal increases in the incomes of each individual.

Determinants of China’s technological trade flows with Central Asian countries (CACs): a panel gravity approach

The purpose of this study is to examine the determinants of Chinese technological trade flows with Central Asian countries (CAC) with a revealed comparative advantage and the gravity model using two estimation techniques. The present study employs the Ordinary Least Square (OLS) and the Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood (PPML) on the data set from 2003 to 2018 panel dataset. Results from the Gravity model demonstrates that low-tech, medium-tech, and high-tech trade flows boost economic development in China and Central Asian nations, adversely affecting all technology trade flows in geographical distance. The research indicated that exchange rates showed a negative indication in bilateral trade, medium-tech trade, and high-tech trade. In contrast, the low technology trade showed a positive flow between China and Central Asia. Furthermore, the results reveal that openness to trade and membership of the WTO show a positive indication. The trade openness policy on both sides thus has a major beneficial effect on trade volumes. It proposed increased liberalization of trade policy and greater involvement in global commerce. In addition, Central Asia and export industries should take additional initiatives to enhance and diversify high-tech exports. A competitive international market provides perfect equality in reciprocal trade interactions.

Adjusting for quality of care in primary health care utilization and benefits in Bihar, India: A Benefit Incidence Analysis

India’s public health policies prioritize the least wealthy and vulnerable. Additionally, for Primary Health Care (PHC) to achieve equitable health outcomes, all must receive high-quality care. This study determined equality of utilization and benefit incidence of PHC services across socioeconomic (SE) groups in Bihar, with and without adjusting for quality of care. It used secondary data from linked PHC facility and household surveys in Bihar that included information on PHC facility utilization, quality of care and household expenditure patterns. Lorenz curves and concentration indices were constructed to examine relative distribution of utilization and benefits from public sector PHC services by SE status, before and after adjusting for quality of care using quality weights. We found that relative distribution of public sector PHC utilization, total and net benefits was statistically no different from perfect equality. With quality weights, utilization and benefits of PHC facilities in Bihar were slightly more pro-rich but statistically no different from perfect equality. The wealthiest do not disproportionately benefit from public sector PHC facilities, but neither do the least wealthy.In conclusion, relative utilization and benefits of public sector PHC facilities were equally distributed across socioeconomic groups in Bihar. Benefits from public sector PHC facilities are not disproportionately concentrated among the least wealthy in the community. As the Ayushman-Bharat Health and Wellness Centers are strengthened to improve public sector PHC services, it would be important to target its benefits towards the least wealthy by ensuring services are accessible and amenable.

Beautiful Gini

AbstractYou may very well be familiar with the Gini Coefficient, also known as the Gini index: a quantitative gauge with which socioeconomic inequality is measured, e.g. income disparity and wealth disparity. However, you may not know that the Gini Coefficient is an exquisite mathematical object. Enter this review paper—whose aim is to showcase (some of) the mathematical beauty and riches of the Gini Coefficient. The paper does so, in a completely self-contained manner, by illuminating the Gini Coefficient from various perspectives: Euclidean geometry vs. grid geometry; maxima and minima of random variables; statistical distribution functions; the residual lifetime and the total lifetime of renewal processes; increasing and decreasing failure rates; socioeconomic divergence from perfect equality; and weighted differences of statistical distribution functions. Together, these different perspectives offer a deep and comprehensive understanding of the Gini Coefficient. In turn, a profound understanding of the Gini Coefficient may lead to novel ‘Gini applications’ in science and engineering—such as recently established in the multidisciplinary field of restart research.

Ridesourcing platforms thrive on socio-economic inequality

Limited available market share data seems to suggest that ridesourcing platforms benefit from, even thrive on, socio-economic inequality. We suspect that this is associated with high levels of socio-economic inequality allowing for cheap labour as well as increasing the share of travellers with a considerably above-average willingness to pay for travel time savings and comfort. We test the relation between inequality and system performance by means of an agent-based simulation model representing within-day and day-to-day supply-demand interaction in the ridesourcing market. The model captures travellers’ mode choice with a heterogeneous perception of relevant time components, as well as job seekers’ participation choice with heterogeneous reservation wage. Our experiments cover scenarios for the entire spectrum ranging from perfect equality to extreme inequality. For several of such scenarios, we explore alternative platform pricing strategies. Our analysis shows a strong, positive relationship between socio-economic inequality and ridesourcing market share. This is the outcome of the combination of cheap labour and time-sensitive ridesourcing users, reinforced by network effects inherent to ridesourcing markets. We find that driver earnings are minimal in urban areas with large socio-economic inequality. In such contexts, drivers are likely to face a high platform commission, and yet, fierce competition for passengers.

A note on Sen’s representation of the Gini coefficient: Revision and repercussions

AbstractSen (1973 and 1997) presents the Gini coefficient of income inequality in a population as follows. “In any pair-wise comparison the man with the lower income can be thought to be suffering from some depression on finding his income to be lower. Let this depression be proportional to the difference in income. The sum total of all such depressions in all possible pair-wise comparisons takes us to the Gini coefficient.” (This citation is from Sen 1973, p. 8.) Sen’s verbal account is accompanied by a formula (Sen 1997, p. 31, eq. 2.8.1), which is replicated in the text of this note as equation (1). The formula yields a coefficient bounded from above by a number smaller than 1. This creates a difficulty, because the “mission” of a measure of inequality defined on the unit interval is to accord 0 to perfect equality (maximal equality) and 1 to perfect inequality (maximal inequality). In this note we show that when the Gini coefficient is elicited from a neat measure of the aggregate income-related depression of the population that consists of the people who experience income-related depression, then the obtained Gini coefficient is “well behaved” in the sense that it is bounded from above by 1. We conjecture a reason for a drawback of Sen’s definition, and we present repercussions of the usage of the “well-behaved” Gini coefficient.

Wealth Redistribution to Extend Longevity in the US

The US is unique among wealthy countries in its degree of wealth inequality and its poor health outcomes. Wealth is known to be positively associated with longevity, but little is known about whether wealth redistribution might extend longevity. To examine the association between wealth and longevity and estimate the changes in longevity that could occur with simulated wealth distributions that were perfectly equal, similar to that observed in Japan (among the most equitable of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD] countries), generated by minimum inheritance proposals, and produced by baby bonds proposals. This longitudinal cohort study analyzed the association between wealth and survival among participants in the Health and Retirement Study (1992-2018), a nationally representative panel study of middle-aged and older (≥50 years) community-dwelling, noninstitutionalized US adults. The data analysis was performed between November 15, 2022, and September 24, 2023. Household wealth on study entry, calculated as the sum of all assets minus the value of debts and classified into deciles. Weibull survival models were used to estimate the association between per-person wealth decile and survival, adjusting for age, sex, marital status, household size, and race and ethnicity. Changes in longevity that might occur under alternative wealth distributions were then estimated. The sample included 35 164 participants (mean [SE] age at study entry, 59.1 [0.1] years; 50.1% female and 49.9% male [weighted]). The hazard of death generally decreased with increasing wealth, wherein participants in the highest wealth decile had a hazard ratio of 0.59 for death (95% CI, 0.53-0.66) compared with those in the lowest decile, corresponding to a 13.5-year difference in survival. A simulated wealth distribution of perfect equality would increase populationwide median longevity by 2.2 years (95% CI, 2.2-2.3 years), fully closing the mortality gap between the US and the OECD average. A simulated minimum inheritance proposal would increase populationwide median longevity by 1.7 years; a simulated wealth distribution similar to Japan's would increase populationwide median longevity by 1.2 years; and a simulated baby bonds proposal would increase populationwide median longevity by 1.0 year. These findings suggest that wealth inequality in the US is associated with significant inequities in survival. Wealth redistribution policies may substantially reduce those inequities and increase population longevity.

Income-Related Inequality Changes in Osteoarthritis First-Line Interventions: A Cohort Study

ObjectiveTo examine income-related inequality changes in the outcomes of an osteoarthritis (OA) first-line intervention. DesignRetrospective cohort study. SettingSwedish health care system. ParticipantsWe included 115,403 people (age: 66.2±9.7 years; females 67.8%; N=115,403) with knee (67.8%) or hip OA (32.4%) recorded in the “Swedish Osteoarthritis Registry” (SOAR). InterventionsExercise and education. Main Outcome MeasuresErreygers’ concentration index (E) measured income-related inequalities in “Pain intensity,” “Self-efficacy,” “Use of NSAIDs,” and “Desire for surgery” at baseline, 3-month, and 12-month follow-ups and their differences over time. E-values range from -1 to +1 if the health variables are more concentrated among people with lower or higher income. Zero represents perfect equality. We used entropy balancing to address demographic and outcome imbalances and bootstrap replications to estimate confidence intervals for E differences over time. ResultsComparing baseline to 3 months, “pain” concentrated more among individuals with lower income initially (E=-0.027), intensifying at 3 months (difference with baseline: E=-0.011 [95% CI: -0.014; -0.008]). Similarly, the “Desire for surgery” concentrated more among individuals with lower income initially (E=-0.009), intensifying at 3 months (difference with baseline: E=-0.012 [-0.018; -0.005]). Conversely, “Self-efficacy” concentrated more among individuals with higher income initially (E=0.058), intensifying at 3 months (difference with baseline: E=0.008 [0.004; 0.012]). Lastly, the “Use of NSAIDs” concentrated more among individuals with higher income initially (E=0.068) but narrowed at 3 months (difference with baseline: E=-0.029 [-0.038; -0.021]). Comparing baseline with 12 months, “pain” concentrated more among individuals with lower income initially (E=-0.024), intensifying at 12 months (difference with baseline: E=-0.017 [-0.022; -0.012]). Similarly, the “Desire for surgery” concentrated more among individuals with lower income initially (E=-0.016), intensifying at 12 months (difference with baseline: E=-0.012 [-0.022; -0.002]). Conversely, “Self-efficacy” concentrated more among individuals with higher income initially (E=0.059), intensifying at 12 months (difference with baseline: E=0.016 [0.011; 0.021]). The variable 'Use of NSAIDs' was not recorded in the SOAR at 12-month follow-up. ConclusionOur results highlight the increase of income-related inequalities in the SOAR over time.

Effect of Human Capital Investment on Income Inequality in Kenya

Human capital investment has a crucial role in economic growth, and as such, it has been regarded as a significant aspect of government spending. The Gini index score reported an average of 41.6 percent in 2018, which is higher than the generally recognized perfect equality Gini index of 20%, suggesting that Kenya has been suffering from high income disparity. There has been a widespread belief that income inequality and human capital investment are mutually exclusive. The theoretical and empirical approaches in the literature provide mixed findings on the relationship. From 1990 to 2019, this study examined the effect of human capital investment on income inequality in Kenya while adjusting for interest rates and GDP per capita. The study adopted a causal research design to determine if a cause-and-effect association between the variables occurs. The time series data were subjected to diagnostic tests to ensure the presumptions of ordinary least squares held. Health expenditure was found to have a negative and statistically significant effect on income inequality after controlling for the interest rate and GDP per capita. After accounting for changes in interest rates and GDP per capita, the result shows that education investment has a negative and statistically insignificant effect on income inequality. The human development index was discovered to have a negative and statistically significant effect on disparity in income which was verified by the robust check. An inverted U was found using the Kuznets test, which was performed to broaden the scope of the research but yielded an insignificant result. The study recommends the formulation and implementation of policies that adhere to the Abuja Declaration on Health, which requires that 15% of government expenditure be allocated to health. The study recommends strict adherence to the 100% transition from primary to post-primary education. The study's conclusions are pertinent to the development and implementation of successful policies that encourage human capital investment, resulting in a decrease in Kenya's levels of income inequality.

Sandpile Universality in Social Inequality: Gini and Kolkata Measures.

Social inequalities are ubiquitous and evolve towards a universal limit. Herein, we extensively review the values of inequality measures, namely the Gini (g) index and the Kolkata (k) index, two standard measures of inequality used in the analysis of various social sectors through data analysis. The Kolkata index, denoted as k, indicates the proportion of the 'wealth' owned by (1-k) fraction of the 'people'. Our findings suggest that both the Gini index and the Kolkata index tend to converge to similar values (around g=k≈0.87, starting from the point of perfect equality, where g=0 and k=0.5) as competition increases in different social institutions, such as markets, movies, elections, universities, prize winning, battle fields, sports (Olympics), etc., under conditions of unrestricted competition (no social welfare or support mechanism). In this review, we present the concept of a generalized form of Pareto's 80/20 law (k=0.80), where the coincidence of inequality indices is observed. The observation of this coincidence is consistent with the precursor values of the g and k indices for the self-organized critical (SOC) state in self-tuned physical systems such as sand piles. These results provide quantitative support for the view that interacting socioeconomic systems can be understood within the framework of SOC, which has been hypothesized for many years. These findings suggest that the SOC model can be extended to capture the dynamics of complex socioeconomic systems and help us better understand their behavior.

Your neighborhood matters: an ecological social determinant study of the relationship between residential racial segregation and the risk of firearm fatalities

BackgroundFirearm fatalities are a major public health concern, claiming the lives of 40,000 Americans each year. While firearm fatalities have pervasive effects, it is unclear how social determinants of health (SDOH) such as residential racial segregation, income inequality, and community resilience impact firearm fatalities. This study investigates the relationships between these SDOH and the likelihood of firearm fatalities.MethodsCounty-level SDOH data from the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality for 2019 were analyzed, covering 72 Wisconsin counties. The dependent variable was the number of firearm fatalities in each county, used as a continuous variable. The independent variable was residential racial segregation (Dissimilarity Index), defined as the degree to which non-White and White residents were distributed across counties, ranging from 0 (complete integration) to 100 (complete segregation), and higher values indicate greater residential segregation (categorized as low, moderate, and high). Covariates were income inequality ranging from zero (perfect equality) to one (perfect inequality) categorized as low, moderate, and high, community resilience risk factors (low, moderate, and high risks), and rural-urban classifications. Descriptive/summary statistics, unadjusted and adjusted negative binomial regression adjusting for population weight, were performed using STATA/MPv.17.0; P-values ≤ 0.05 were considered statistically significant. ArcMap was used for Geographic Information System analysis.ResultsIn 2019, there were 802 firearm fatalities. The adjusted model demonstrates that the risk of firearm fatalities was higher in areas with high residential racial segregation compared to low-segregated areas (IRR.:1.26, 95% CI:1.04–1.52) and higher in areas with high-income inequality compared to areas with low-income inequality (IRR.:1.18, 95% CI:1.00–1.40). Compared to areas with low-risk community resilience, the risk of firearm fatalities was higher in areas with moderate (IRR.:0.61, 95% CI:0.48–0.78), and in areas with high risk (IRR.:0.53, 95% CI:0.41–0.68). GIS analysis demonstrated that areas with high racial segregation also have high rates of firearm fatalities.ConclusionAreas with high residential racial segregation have a high rate of firearm fatalities. With high income inequality and low community resilience, the likelihood of firearm fatalities increases.

SMITH AT 300: NEGATIVE JUSTICE AND POLITICAL WISDOM

Adam Smith is known as a liberal thinker. The political system that he promotes and describes as one of “perfect justice, perfect liberty, and perfect equality” (Wealth of Nations [1776] 1981; WN IV.ix.17:669) is characterized by the primacy of the rights of non-interference and the protection of a private sphere where every individual directs her life according to her own decisions. The moral justification for the primacy of negative justice is in the second book of The Theory of Moral Sentiments, where he unambiguously states: “Mere justice is, upon most occasions, but a negative virtue, and only hinders us from hurting our neighbor” ([1759] 1982; TMS II.i.1.9:82). For the same reason, the first time I read that book, the following paragraph struck me as an inexplicable contradiction, an incomprehensible lapse in Adam Smith’s thoroughly revised text: A superior may, indeed, sometimes, with universal approbation, oblige those under his jurisdiction to behave, in this respect, with a certain degree of propriety to one another. … The civil magistrate is entrusted with the power not only of preserving the public peace by restraining injustice, but of promoting the prosperity of the commonwealth, by establishing good discipline, and by discouraging every sort of vice and impropriety; he may prescribe rules, therefore, which not only prohibit mutual injuries among fellow-citizens, but command mutual good offices to a certain degree. … Of all the duties of a law-giver, however, this, perhaps, is that which it requires the greatest delicacy and reserve to execute with propriety and judgment. To neglect it altogether exposes the commonwealth to many gross disorders and shocking enormities, and to push it too far is destructive of all liberty, security, and justice. (TMS II.ii.1.8)

Understanding and calculating household size, wealth, and inequality in the Maya Lowlands

AbstractInequality is present in all human societies, but building a robust understanding of how that inequality developed and persisted for centuries requires historical and archaeological data. Identifying the degree of inequality (or disparity) in ancient communities can be addressed through a variety of methods. One method becoming standard practice in archaeology evaluates inequality through quantitative analysis of robust settlement data. In this Compact Special Section, we assess household size as a potential reflection of wealth inequality among Classic period (a.d. 250–900) Maya settlements. First, we generate house-size data from both pedestrian and remotely sensed LiDAR surveys. Then we use those data to calculate Gini coefficients and Lorenz curves, which provide measures of variation. Gini coefficients range from 0 to 1, where 0 reflects perfect equality and 1 indicates perfect inequality, regardless of the actual values in the distribution. Both area (m2) and volume (m3) provide different, complementary metrics to investigate residential size as a metric for wealth inequality among Classic Maya Lowland settlements. Proposed mechanisms that generate inequality include the intergenerational transmission of wealth and differential access to resources; however, addressing these and other pathways for how inequality develops and persists, and how it was maintained in the past provides insight into similar processes of systemic inequality worldwide.

Inequalities in maternal healthcare use in Sierra Leone: Evidence from the 2008-2019 Demographic and Health Surveys.

BackgroundSierra Leone is one of the countries with poor health outcomes. The country has made some progress in the uptake of maternal health services. Despite improvements in the national coverage rates, there is no evidence of how equal these improvements have been.ObjectiveTo estimate inequalities in maternal healthcare use in Sierra Leone.MethodsUsing cross-sectional study data from 2008, 2013, and 2019 Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), we study inequalities in maternal health services by computing rate ratios, and concentration indices (as well as concentration curves) using selected inequality stratifiers such as household wealth index, maternal education, and rural/urban place of residence.ResultsWe found that considerable progress has been made in increasing the uptake of maternal health services as well as reducing inequalities over time. We also found that inequalities in the selected health indicators favoured women from wealthy households, educated women, as well as women from urban areas. Although inequalities declined over time, the use of delivery services was highly unequal. However, of the selected health interventions, the use of four or more antenatal visits was almost at perfect equality in 2013 and 2019.ConclusionAlthough efforts have been made to increase the use of maternal healthcare services among women with a lower socioeconomic status, the use of maternal health services remains favourable to women with a higher socioeconomic standing. Therefore, policy initiatives need to prioritise women of lower socioeconomic status through projects aimed at increasing women’s educational levels as well as focusing on poverty reduction.

THE PARALLEL MARCH OF THE GINIS How does taxation relate to inequality, and what can be done about it?

THE PARALLEL MARCH OF THE GINIS How does taxation relate to inequality, and what can be done about it?

Optimal salary inequality for team performance: evidence from National Football League data

ABSTRACT Using salary data for players in the National Football League, I examine empirically the relationship between salary inequality and team performance under dynamic panel regressions. Main findings are: 1) the relationship between salary inequality and team performance is robustly hump-shaped, 2) the optimal Gini index to maximize the number of wins in a regular season is approximately 0.71 from estimates with all players’ salary data and ranges between 0.52 and 0.56 with players on rosters. These results imply that neither perfect equality nor perfect inequality in salary distribution is beneficial to team performance.

Using Microsimulation Modeling to Inform EHE Implementation Strategies in Los Angeles County.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is essential to ending HIV. Yet, uptake remains uneven across racial and ethnic groups. We aimed to estimate the impacts of alternative PrEP implementation strategies in Los Angeles County. Men who have sex with men, residing in Los Angeles County. We developed a microsimulation model of HIV transmission, with inputs from key local stakeholders. With this model, we estimated the 15-year (2021-2035) health and racial and ethnic equity impacts of 3 PrEP implementation strategies involving coverage with 9000 additional PrEP units annually, above the Status-quo coverage level. Strategies included PrEP allocation equally (strategy 1), proportionally to HIV prevalence (strategy 2), and proportionally to HIV diagnosis rates (strategy 3), across racial and ethnic groups. We measured the degree of relative equalities in the distribution of the health impacts using the Gini index (G) which ranges from 0 (perfect equality, with all individuals across all groups receiving equal health benefits) to 1 (total inequality). HIV prevalence was 21.3% in 2021 [Black (BMSM), 31.1%; Latino (LMSM), 18.3%, and White (WMSM), 20.7%] with relatively equal to reasonable distribution across groups (G, 0.28; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.26 to 0.34). During 2021-2035, cumulative incident infections were highest under Status-quo (n = 24,584) and lowest under strategy 3 (n = 22,080). Status-quo infection risk declined over time among all groups but remained higher in 2035 for BMSM (incidence rate ratio, 4.76; 95% CI: 4.58 to 4.95), and LMSM (incidence rate ratio, 1.74; 95% CI: 1.69 to 1.80), with the health benefits equally to reasonably distributed across groups (G, 0.32; 95% CI: 0.28 to 0.35). Relative to Status-quo, all other strategies reduced BMSM-WMSM and BMSM-LMSM disparities, but none reduced LMSM-WMSM disparities by 2035. Compared to Status-quo, strategy 3 reduced the most both incident infections (% infections averted: overall, 10.2%; BMSM, 32.4%; LMSM, 3.8%; WMSM, 3.5%) and HIV racial inequalities (G reduction, 0.08; 95% CI: 0.02 to 0.14). Microsimulation models developed with early, continuous stakeholder engagement and inputs yield powerful tools to guide policy implementation.

Joint message-passing-based accurate bidirectional channel estimation and generalized-approximation-message-passing-based low-complexity perfect equalization with underwater moving transceivers

Moving underwater acoustic communications incur the fast time-varying multipath interference (FTMI), leading to a decrease in decoding performance or even decoding failure. In this study, we address the FTMI issue using the superimposed training (ST) scheme and segment strategy with a joint channel estimation and equalization algorithm. The ST scheme refers to the linear superposition of the training sequence with a small power to the symbol sequence; the segment strategy slices a data block into the segments. Thus, the tracking capability of time-varying channels is significantly improved. To realize their full potential, a “novel” joint message-passing-based accurate bidirectional channel estimation and generalized-approximation-message-passing-based low-complexity perfect equalization (BCE-LPE) algorithm is developed. The Gaussian channel estimates of the segments can be parameterized by their means and variances, thereby enabling fusion of the channel estimates. The correlation of the channel estimates for the segments is established through a channel correlation coefficient, so that the whole data block can be used to estimate the channel of each segment, leading to an accurate channel estimation. Unlike the Gaussian approximate process of the input symbol sequence of the traditional linear equalization, the proposed low-complexity perfect equalization maintains the discrete and independent form of the input symbol sequence, avoiding the equalizer’s input information loss. The a priori, a posteriori, extrinsic means and variances of interleaved encoded bits are computed using the low-complexity diagonal-matrix message passing, leading to the low-complexity perfect equalization, with computational complexity in a logarithmic order per symbol. Moreover, channel estimation, equalization, and decoding are jointly performed in an iterative manner to significantly enhance the overall system performance. Additionally, the parallel processing strategy is used to improve the computation speed, in which all the data blocks are separately and parallelly processed. Field experiments with moving transceivers (the communication distance was about 5.5 km, the bandwidth was 4 kHz, and the transmission rate was 3765 bits/s) were performed in Jiaozhou Bay in 2021, with the experimental results verifying the effectiveness of the BCE-LPE algorithm.

Observing others give & take: A computational account of bystanders' feelings and actions.

Social interactions influence people’s feelings and behavior. Here, we propose that a person’s well-being is influenced not only by interactions they experience themselves, but also by those they observe. In particular, we test and quantify the influence of observed selfishness and observed inequality on a bystanders’ feelings and non-costly punishment decisions. We developed computational models that relate others’ (un)selfish acts to observers’ emotional reactions and punishment decisions. These characterize the rules by which others’ interactions are transformed into bystanders’ reactions, and successfully predict those reactions in out-of-sample participants. The models highlight the impact of two social values—‘selfishness aversion’ and ‘inequality aversion’. As for the latter we find that even small violations from perfect equality have a disproportionately large impact on feelings and punishment. In this age of internet and social media we constantly observe others’ online interactions, in addition to in-person interactions. Quantifying the consequences of such observations is important for predicting their impact on society.

Is co-management a double-edged sword in the protected areas of Sundarbans mangrove?

The overall objective of the study was to examine the pros and cons of the participatory approach adopted in natural resource management in the ecologically protected areas of the Sundarbans mangrove of Bangladesh. A comparative study was done between the people who are involved and non-involved in this approach. Empirical data was collected through personal interviews with a structured questionnaire. The Gini coefficient was measured first and then embedded with the Lorenz curve to draw a line between perfect equality and inequality vis-a-vis. The study revealed that the co-management built awareness in favor of biodiversity conservation and the efficient use of natural resources. Contradictorily, a segment of different hierarchical committees was involved in destructive activities like poisoning the wetlands for fishing. Therefore, a mixed outcome was found. The findings will help the policymakers in identifying the pitfalls and bottlenecks rooted in co-management. Hence, the study recommends revising the approach to ensure the community’s active participation on an equal basis and take action against them who degrade those resources. Exploring profitable alternative income-generating activities is warranted to narrow down the dependency on the Sundarbans mangrove’s natural resources. In order to address the tragedy of the commons, the study advocates for the unity of all knowledge ranging from science to humanistic scholarship for sound policymaking.