Reciprocity, Nepotism or Costly Signaling – Evidence from Mobile Phone Money Transfers in Nairobi

The purpose of this thesis is to test whether the theories of reciprocal altruism, nepotism due to kin selection and costly signaling can explain patterns of human altruism. A new way of investigating this has surfaced since the introduction of mobile phone money transfers in areas where social sharing is frequently exercised. Data was collected from 167 respondents in Nairobi, Kenya on their latest mobile phone money transfer, the recipient and themselves. Multivariate regression analysis concluded no significant effect of variables to support the strategies mentioned. Significant effects were however found in the variables of age and gender of the recipient, affecting generosity negatively. Control variables for relatedness however revealed that nepotism probably is exercised