Université de Fribourg

Does Decentralization of Decisions Increase the Stability of Large Groups?

Bjedov, Tjaša ; Lapointe, Simon ; Madiès, Thierry ; Villeval, Marie Claire

In: Social Choice and Welfare, 2018, vol. 51, p. 681-716

Using a laboratory experiment with nested local and global public goods, we analyze the stability of global groups when individuals have the option to separate, according to the degree of decentralization of decision-making. We show that increasing the number of decisions made at the local level within a smaller group reduces the likelihood that individuals vote in favor of a configuration...