Research, particularly in economics, suggests that ethnic diversity can inhibit a society's capacity to provide public goods and services. However, most of this research is based on cross-cultural survey data, and fails to include primary ethnography or detailed accounts of daily cooperation. To solve this problem, graduate student, Timothy M. Waring, under the direction of Dr. Richard Mcelreath and Dr. Peter J. Richerson, has designed a new hybrid research methodology. It blends traditional ethnography with new experimental economic games, allowing him to test cross-cultural hypotheses without sacrificing ethnographic detail. Waring will investigate whether the social boundaries found in diverse societies damage public goods through an intensive study of cooperative irrigation practices in villages of the Palani Hills of Tamil Nadu, India.
To answer this question, Waring will utilize caste identity as a unique type of cultural and ethnic diversity that has significant impact on social and economic relations. Focusing on the traditional village governance systems that manage local justice and irrigation, he will undertake qualitative ethnographic research, including participant observation, focal individual follows, and targeted focus groups. Next, a sample of farmers from six villages, stratified by caste, will be interviewed on personal identity, caste interactions, irrigation, and demographic variables. A subset of these survey participants will be selected for voluntary participation in two specially tailored economic experiments, the dictator game and the public goods game. These experiments will provide additional, quantitative measures of the effect of caste identity on cooperation and resource sharing, and will be analyzed using multivariate statistical techniques.
This research will provide needed insight into how individuals in multi-ethnic societies interact over common resources. For the Indian case, a detailed understanding of the functioning of multi-caste cooperative irrigation management may help to avoid future resource conflicts, such as those that have fueled regional violence. More generally, this research linkage of ethnographic and experimental data will enrich theoretical and practical understanding of the role ethnic boundaries play in development and conflict wherever they occur. The research also will contribute to the education of a graduate student.
