By Martin Dufwenberg , Flora Li , and Alec Smith

We study the effect of communication on beliefs and behavior in a three-stage trust game with punishment. We propose a novel behavioral mechanism, frustrationdependent anger, that links unmet payoff expectations with the willingness to forgo material payoffs to punish others. We conjecture that communication works through this mechanism to raise expectations about the likelihood of belief-dependent costly punishment and to increase trust, cooperation, and efficiency. In an experiment we allow communication in the form of a single pre-play message. We measure beliefs and our design permits the observation of promises and deception. The results are consistent with the theory that costly punishment results from belief-dependent anger and frustration. Promises drive the effect of communication on beliefs and broken promises lead to higher rates of costly punishment.

Preliminary draft. September 13, 2018

By Victor Bailey

The history of English criminal justice has been my research focus for over forty years, yet a documentary history of the ‘long’ nineteenth century, covering the years from 1776 to 1914, was always likely to be a mite challenging for a single author. It is at such times that one is reminded of the value of the community of historians, whose scholarship is invaluable when ‘quick study’ is required. I have relied heavily on the research of historians Doug Hay and John Beattie, as well as the scholarship of those they so effectively supervised: Simon Devereaux, Allyson May, and Greg Smith. By the same token, this four-volume edifice rests heavily on the research of Peter King, Randy McGowen, David Philips, Marty Wiener, Sean McConville, and Vic Gatrell. Finally, we are all in debt to Robert Shoemaker, Tim Hitchcock, and Clive Emsley for their scholarly direction of the Old Bailey Proceedings Online.

Taylor & Francis Group, Volume II, Justice, Mercy, Death, 2022, 41p.