Discrimination as a Coordination Device : Markets and the Emergence of Identity
The paper develops a new theory of group discrimination in which the discrimination in favor or against certain groups is simply a coordination device. It is built on the axiom that a person who gets to perform many tasks is more effective in carry...
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2015
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2015/11/25463497/discrimination-coordination-device-markets-emergence-identity http://hdl.handle.net/10986/23454 |
| Summary: | The paper develops a new theory of group
discrimination in which the discrimination in favor or
against certain groups is simply a coordination device. It
is built on the axiom that a person who gets to perform many
tasks is more effective in carrying out each task, which
implies increasing returns to productivity in doing the same
task or strategic complementarity between doing different
tasks. The theory helps us understand discrimination in free
markets and the .finding of some empirical studies that show
that people discriminate in job markets against certain
groups even when all other traits are held constant. The
model gives insight into the relation between group size,
discrimination, and productivity. |
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