7: Reciprocity

Reciprocity is the psychological social glue that binds people together and is a powerful aspect of human behavior. Some theorists purport that it is what has helped human civilization survive (Bowles et al., 2011; Fehr et al., 2002). Its Latin origin is reciprocus, “returning the same way”; the definition of reciprocity is “the quality or state of being reciprocal, mutual dependence, action, or influence” with reciprocal meaning “shared, felt, or mutually corresponding” (Merriam Webster, n.d.c). I note this because there are many interpretations of reciprocity, and it should be understood within the context in which it is applied. For the purposes of the Regenerative Process and the Reciprocity Stage, it is interpreted as mutual exchange, and acts of contribution that are determined by the individual for themselves and the group, or by the group for the group. The type of exchange or contribution is not 50/50, meaning everyone contributes the same. Nor is it tit for a tat or quid pro quo, otherwise known as negotiated exchange where there is some expected return for the contribution or exchange.