Terms Flashcards
(134 cards)
Cooperation
Any action which is intended to benefit others, regardless of whether the actor also benefits in the process
Fails more often than it works
Tendency to emphasize positive outcomes for self and other
Competition
Tendency to emphasize relative advantage over others
Interdependence
People can affect others’ outcomes and lives through actions
Social Dilemmas
Conflicts between short-term self interests and long-term collective interests
One behavior will produce the best outcome for the self and a reduced outcome for the collective, while another behavior will produce the best outcome for the collective and a reduced outcome for the self
Individual rationality leads to collective irrationality
If everyone chooses the best outcome for themselves, then everyone ends up with a worse outcome than if everyone had chosen the best outcome for the collective
Prisoner’s Dilemma
Basic and abstract
To get the most, take advantage of someone who cooperates
Worst outcome is to cooperate and be taken advantage of
Temptation to defect MUST be greater than the reward for cooperating
Talking to each other and deciding what to do in front of others changes one’s thought process
Social Trap
Situations where a positive outcome for the self leads to negative outcomes for the collective
Immediate, small positive outcome for self may have large, delayed, negative outcome for the collective
RESOURCE DILEMMA
Examples: pollution, overfishing
Social Fence
Actions with initial negative self-consequences and delayed collective positive consequences
Immediate negative cost to self but long-term positive benefit to collective
PUBLIC GOODS DILEMMA
Examples: donating to public radio, paying taxes
Public Goods Dilemma
Models real-world interactions by making a contribution to a dyad or group
Temptation to free-ride on other’s donations
Requires: Jointness of supply (no matter how many people use the public good, it will never be fully consumed) and impossibility of exclusion (people cannot be excluded from using the public good)
Step-level public goods
Require a minimum amount to be provided in full
Sometimes in best interest to cooperate, depending on what others choose
Examples: building a bridge
Continuous public goods
Resource is provided based on amount given; any amount contributes to enhancing the good’s quality and provision
Best strategy is to always defect regardless of others
Changing a continuous good to a step-level good may increase cooperation
Examples: a playground that can grow more as money is donated, public radio
Public goods lab based task
Give money to either a group fund, which gains interest, or a self fund
Group account is equally split among the group regardless of the donation amount
Temptation to defect (keep more money for self) but reward for cooperation (more money in group fund = more interest = more return)
Resource dilemma
People decide how much to take from a common resource
Temptation to take as much as possible for oneself
Requires: Resource replenishment rate; optimal harvest level at which resource is sustainable
Resource dilemma lab based task
There is a 4 person group where members consume from a shared resource over 15 trials
Limit on harvest amount each trial, and a standard replenishment rate
People tend to take as much as they can and then it crashes
Without communication, people take more than is sustainable
Cooperation Index
Degree to which there are conflicting interests in a situation
The degree to which interests influence the behavior of others varies across situations
Structural solutions to social dilemmas
changing the situation to promote cooperation
create situations where interests are more aligned (e.g., incentives)
Motivational solutions to social dilemmas
change the way an individual decides and behaves in certain situations
Affecting cognitive, affective, and motivational processes underlying individual behavior in the social dilemma
(e.g., communication, trust, self-efficacy, social identity)
Normative approach to social dilemmas
What should people do in these situations
Used in economics, game theory
Descriptive approach to social dilemmas
what people actually do in these situations
Used by social psychologists
Collective rationality
cooperative behavior by both individuals yields greater outcomes than does non-cooperative behavior by both
Evolutionary Theory
Assumes that humans have evolved behavioral strategies for social interactions
Outlines problems in past human environments that may have led to adaptations relevant to resolving conflicts
Rational Choice Theory
Assumes that humans are rational actors that seek to maximize their self-interests
Uses theoretical formulas to generate predictions about how perfectly rational actors should behave
Interdependence Theory
Assumes that the possible structural outcomes of social interactions can be understood and related according to six fundamental dimensions of the structure
Identifies the structure of the social interaction and makes predictions about how that structure affords particular person and situation variables to affect behavior
3 views on mixed-motive concepts
Epicurus: people should be driven by long-term goals, even if that means short-term pain
Pyrrho: People should give in to short-term pleasure because no cause and effect relationships are ever truly known (skepticism)
Zeno: People’s ultimate goal should be stable emotional reactions in everyday life (stoicism)
Give-some game
Each participant could give to the resource, but giving is not required for using
(Step-level and continuous public goods)