The Social Will

Will social security boom ?

In this paper we consider the design and implementation of a pay-as-you-go social-insurance system as a problem in political economy. We consider whether a society of forward-looking rational economic agents would implement a system in which the level of benefits depends on the relative shares of different age groups in the population. We calibrate a model economy to match long-run features of ...

Social mindfulness: skill and will to navigate the social world.

Although one may not always see it, social life often involves choices that make people act in ways that are mindful of others or not. We adopt an interdependence theoretical approach to the novel concept of social mindfulness, which we conceptualize in terms of other-regarding choices involving both skill (to see it, e.g., theory of mind, perspective taking) and will (to do it, e.g., empathic ...

Political diversity will improve social psychological science.

Psychologists have demonstrated the value of diversity--particularly diversity of viewpoints--for enhancing creativity, discovery, and problem solving. But one key type of viewpoint diversity is lacking in academic psychology in general and social psychology in particular: political diversity. This article reviews the available evidence and finds support for four claims: (1) Academic psychology...

Social Evolution: This Microbe Will Self-Destruct

Phenotypic noise and social evolution in microbes have recently attracted huge interdisciplinary interest. A new study highlights the interaction between these phenomena and its implications for self-destructive cooperation.

The Scope of Man's Free Will