Team Production and Distribution of Wealth

In the article titled, How to Get the Rich to Share the Marbles, the author touches on a political issue of equity distribution by using psychology concept characterized as “Share-the-Spoils,” or sharing the wealth. Although this piece is a bit out dated, it addresses the cries from individuals, specifically the Democratic Party, in the United States who complains about rising economic inequality. The margin of wealth between the wealthy and the poor seems to be growing; many are calling for an increase in taxes for the rich, which is a sort of “Share-the-Spoils” mentality. However, the author, Jonathan Haidt, concludes that this is not the answer to the economy’s troubles. Haidt’s believes that they should, “focus less on distributive fairness — which is about whether everyone got what they deserved — and more onprocedural fairness—which is about whether honest, open and impartial procedures were used to decide who got what.

It is interesting to take a look at this from a professional football player’s perspective. Generally, the highest paid players on a team roster are their high powered offensive weapons, but let’s just say that the quarterback is the highest paid player on the team. In order for a quarterback to be successful, they have to have a well-functioning offensive line in front of them. Without a good offensive line, the quarterback has no time to throw the ball, they can’t score, and they can’t win. The players on the line sacrifice their bodies every week so their team can win and are given very little praise from fans and sponsors. The amount of money a lineman makes is solely based on how much money is in their contract. Depending on the team’s performance, this can lead to bonuses, such as contract extensions or a higher salary. This is an example of a gift exchange between the organization and a player.

As stated in the paragraph above, offensive lineman put their bodies on the line, and as a result are the most injure prone players on the field. Since they are doing the most work why don’t they push for the organization to give them a bigger piece of the pie? The answer is simply based on their understanding of their role on the team compared to the quarterback, as well as concerned with the overall team production. They understand that the quarterback brings in the most money for the organization based on ticket and jersey revenue, broadcasting rights, and sponsorships. As a result, a quarterback is guaranteed to sign a bigger contract for a longer period of time. Many big time QBs will not settle for a mediocre contract. As long as the quarterback has the tools for the team to be successful and put points on the board, then the terms of his contract were honest and open.

Although the distribution of equity within the United States economy and the distribution of wealth between professional football players is not necessarily the best comparison, I believe that it does relate to Jonathan Haidt’s conclusion in the article. Individuals should focus less on the distributive fairness; instead they should put their heads down and strive for success and look at the big picture. Taking money or specifically targeting wealthy individuals will not improve the economy. The wealthy individuals are what drive the economy, just as a quarterback is what guides his team to a win. The more wealthy individuals can pump into the economy the more it will improve, so there is no reason to divide up wealth between people.