Prisoner's dilemma illustrates how individual rationality can lead to collectively worse outcomes
Image: David McSpadden from Daly City, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Prisoner's dilemma
Prisoner's dilemma illustrates how individual rationality can lead to collectively worse outcomes
The prisoner's dilemma showcases the paradox where two rational agents choosing to defect results in a worse collective outcome compared to mutual cooperation. This paradox highlights the conflict between individual rationality and collective well-being.
Example
In a classic scenario, if both prisoners betray each other, they each receive a moderate sentence. However, if they had both cooperated, they would have received lighter sentences.
Remember this
Understanding this paradox is crucial for designing systems and policies that encourage cooperation and improve collective outcomes.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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