Who Will Do It? Volunteering to Change Cooperation Rules in a Heterogeneous Population

We study whether and when a second-order collective action problem, like the change of existing formal rules governing cooperation, can be resolved to ultimately solve first-order collective good dilemmas. We do so by examining the conditions under which individuals change cooperation rules when both their material incentives to cooperate and their social preferences for outcome distributions differ. Our experimental findings show that proselfs who benefit the most from cooperation are most likely to initiate a rule change to a higher minimum contribution level. Regarding prosocials, we find that their underlying motives in favour or against this rule change vary depending on their relative earnings' position. If they are 'wealthy', that is, they have a higher earnings potential, they are more concerned about equality. When they are relatively 'less wealthy', they seem to care more about enhancing collective outcomes.