PSYC 3100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Stotting, Public Goods Game, Big-Game Hunting

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 3100
• Professor: Pat Barclay

Document Summary

In pairs, if one person defects, defecting back is retaliation against that individual. In groups, defecting back hurts everyone; it is hard to reciprocate to hurt only the individual that defected first. Public goods are costly to provide but everyone benefits, even if they did nothing to contribute to it: example: group projects. If you do all of the work, your group members get the same mark as you: big game hunting in small communities: the hunter doesn"t get any more meat than the rest of the community that didn"t hunt. Public goods is similar to prisoner"s dilemma but with more people involved: everyone has a private incentive to defect (not contribute to the public good). When everyone does this, the is no public good provided and everyone is punished. Not all members can follow their rational interests. Tragedy of the commons: when everyone follows their rational interest and does not contribute to the public good: example: overfishing.