Executive summary: The traditional one-shot Prisoner’s Dilemma presents an oversimplified and potentially misleading view of human behavior, emphasizing self-interest over cooperation; a better real-world model is the iterated version, which highlights the role of trust, reciprocity, and long-term consequences in decision-making.
Key points:
Framing Matters – The Prisoner’s Dilemma suggests rationality equals selfishness, which risks reinforcing a flawed narrative about human behavior.
Constraints of Game Theory – Real life includes external pressures, trust, and consequences that alter outcomes compared to abstract, constrained models.
Iteration and Cooperation – The iterated Prisoner’s Dilemma better reflects reality, showing that long-term cooperation is often the optimal strategy.
Rationality Reconsidered – Defining rationality as pure self-interest ignores how social norms and trust-based actions shape real-world behavior.
Trust and Social Systems – Cooperation is often enforced by societal structures, but taking this for granted can erode trust at a personal level.
Beyond the Prisoner’s Dilemma – Other game theory models (e.g., Stag Hunt, Ultimatum Game) may offer better insights into real-world negotiations and social behavior.
The Power of Stories – The way we present game-theoretical concepts influences public perception of human nature, making it crucial to include trust and cooperation in the narrative.
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Executive summary: The traditional one-shot Prisoner’s Dilemma presents an oversimplified and potentially misleading view of human behavior, emphasizing self-interest over cooperation; a better real-world model is the iterated version, which highlights the role of trust, reciprocity, and long-term consequences in decision-making.
Key points:
Framing Matters – The Prisoner’s Dilemma suggests rationality equals selfishness, which risks reinforcing a flawed narrative about human behavior.
Constraints of Game Theory – Real life includes external pressures, trust, and consequences that alter outcomes compared to abstract, constrained models.
Iteration and Cooperation – The iterated Prisoner’s Dilemma better reflects reality, showing that long-term cooperation is often the optimal strategy.
Rationality Reconsidered – Defining rationality as pure self-interest ignores how social norms and trust-based actions shape real-world behavior.
Trust and Social Systems – Cooperation is often enforced by societal structures, but taking this for granted can erode trust at a personal level.
Beyond the Prisoner’s Dilemma – Other game theory models (e.g., Stag Hunt, Ultimatum Game) may offer better insights into real-world negotiations and social behavior.
The Power of Stories – The way we present game-theoretical concepts influences public perception of human nature, making it crucial to include trust and cooperation in the narrative.
This comment was auto-generated by the EA Forum Team. Feel free to point out issues with this summary by replying to the comment, and contact us if you have feedback.