Thanks a lot for the comment. Here are a few points:
1. You’re right that the simple climate change example it won’t always be a prisoner’s dilemma. However, I think that’s more due to the fact that I assumed constant returns to scale for all three causes. At the bottom of this write-up I have an example with three causes that all have log returns. As long as both funders value the causes positively and don’t have identical valuations, a pareto improvement is possible through cooperation (unless I’m making a mistake in the proof, which is possible). So I think the existence of collective action problems is more general than the climate change example would make it seem.
2. It’s a very nice point that the gains from cooperation may be small in magnitude, even if they’re positive. That is definitely possible. But I’m a little skeptical that large valuation differences between the 4 ‘schools’ of EA donors means that the gains to cooperation are likely to be small. I think even within those schools there are significant disagreements among causes. For example, within the long-termist school, disagreements on whether we’re living in an extremely influential time or on how to value population increases can lead to very large disagreements in valuation of causes. Also, when people have very large differences in valuations of direct causes, the opportunity for conflict on the advocacy front seems to increase (See Phil Trammell’s post here).
I agree that it would be useful to get more of an idea of when the prisoner’s dilemma is likely to be severe. Right now I don’t think I have much more to add on that.
At the bottom of this write-up I have an example with three causes that all have log returns. As long as both funders value the causes positively and don’t have identical valuations, a pareto improvement is possible through cooperation.
Thanks a lot for the comment. Here are a few points:
1. You’re right that the simple climate change example it won’t always be a prisoner’s dilemma. However, I think that’s more due to the fact that I assumed constant returns to scale for all three causes. At the bottom of this write-up I have an example with three causes that all have log returns. As long as both funders value the causes positively and don’t have identical valuations, a pareto improvement is possible through cooperation (unless I’m making a mistake in the proof, which is possible). So I think the existence of collective action problems is more general than the climate change example would make it seem.
2. It’s a very nice point that the gains from cooperation may be small in magnitude, even if they’re positive. That is definitely possible. But I’m a little skeptical that large valuation differences between the 4 ‘schools’ of EA donors means that the gains to cooperation are likely to be small. I think even within those schools there are significant disagreements among causes. For example, within the long-termist school, disagreements on whether we’re living in an extremely influential time or on how to value population increases can lead to very large disagreements in valuation of causes. Also, when people have very large differences in valuations of direct causes, the opportunity for conflict on the advocacy front seems to increase (See Phil Trammell’s post here).
I agree that it would be useful to get more of an idea of when the prisoner’s dilemma is likely to be severe. Right now I don’t think I have much more to add on that.
Very interesting, thank you.