Reciprocity, Altruism and the Civil Society: In praise of heterogeneity (Routledge Advances in Game Theory)

Reciprocity is a term used in a number of contexts, from the ethic of reciprocity as expressed by philosophers such as Confucius and Jesus Christ via social psychology, international relations and cultural anthropology. This book is the first to examine it from an economic perspective. Luigino Bruni examines three forms of reciprocity: reciprocity without benevolence; philia-reciprocity and unconditional reciprocity. Going back through the writings of thinkers such as Aristotle and Hume as well as modern neoclassical economists, this volume book represents a challenge to the way contemporary social sciences consider reciprocity. Furthermore, making use of simple evolutionary game theory the author challenges the contraposition between the "market" reciprocity based on contracts or repeated games and the "genuine" reciprocity typical of non-market relation based, instead, on gift and other-oriented behavior.Luigino Bruni is the author of 'Reciprocity, Altruism and the Civil Society: In praise of heterogeneity (Routledge Advances in Game Theory)', published 2008 under ISBN 9780415428583 and ISBN 0415428580.