GWD-7-Q7

For many years, theoretical
                    

economists characterized humans

as rational beings relentlessly bent

Line on maximizing purely selfish reward.

(5) Results of an experimental economics

study appear to contradict this view,

however. In the “Ultimatum Game,”

two subjects, who cannot exchange

information, are placed in separate

(10) rooms. One is randomly chosen to

propose how a sum of money, known

to both, should be shared between

them; only one offer, which must

be accepted or rejected without

(15) negotiation, is allowed.

If, in fact, people are selfish and

rational, then the proposer should offer

the smallest possible share, while the

responder should accept any offer,

(20) no matter how small: after all, even

one dollar is better than nothing. In

numerous trials, however, two-thirds

of the offers made were between

40 and 50 percent; only 4 percent

(25) were less than 20 percent. Among

responders, more than half who were

offered less than 20 percent rejected

the offer. Behavior in the game did not

appreciably depend on the players’

(30) sex, age, or education. Nor did the

amount of money involved play a

significant role: for instance, in trials

of the game that were conducted in

Indonesia, the sum to be shared was

(35) as much as three times the subjects’

average monthly income, and still

responders refused offers that they

deemed too small.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Q7:

The passage implies that the results of the Ultimatum Game undermine theoretical economists’ characterization of human beings by 

A.      demonstrating that most people are inclined to try to maximize their own advantage whenever possible

B.       indicating that people who do not have the option of negotiating might behave more generously than do those who have the option of negotiating

C.      illustrating how people’s economic behavior depends to some extent on how large a sum of money is involved

D.      showing that most people instinctively place their own economic self-interest ahead of the interest of strangers

E.       suggesting that people’s economic behavior might in part be motivated by factors other than selfishness

文章先说一种理论认为人类是自私的，后面都是在反驳。 不知道是从哪里看出  other than selfishness的？

作者并没有认为factors中包含selfishness啊？

主要是要看这句话，这是作者对于selfishness的诠释：

If, in fact, people are selfish and rational, then the proposer should offer the smallest possible share, while the responder should accept any offer,(20) no matter how small: after all, even one dollar is better than nothing.

按这个诠释，propose分赃方案的那个人应该留给自己尽量多而给别人尽量少，而接收的那个人应该是不管多少都接下来，毕竟一毛钱也比什么都没有强。但实验证明结果不是这样的。所以说了肯定有其他因素而不仅仅是selfishness在影响people's economic behavior。