Game Theory: Cooperation and Coordination

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Questions and Answers

What emotional states are associated with lower and higher levels of trust respectively?

Pride and guilt

Anger and gratitude (correct)

Guilt and anger

Gratitude and pride

Which principle prioritizes the distribution of resources based on individual contributions?

Principle of need

Principle of equality

Seniority system

Principle of equity (correct)

How does communication affect cooperation in social dilemmas?

It always reduces cooperation.

It has no effect on group solidarity.

It promotes group solidarity and commitment to cooperate. (correct)

It decreases nonverbal communication cues.

What is a characteristic of a meritocracy as mentioned in the content?

It breeds competition among workers. Signup and view all the answers

Which cultural perspective focuses on equal sharing of resources?

Principle of equality Signup and view all the answers

What societal factor can lead to the rejection of large gifts according to the authors?

The risk of creating an obligation to return the favor Signup and view all the answers

In the trust game, what happens to A's transfer during the decision phase?

A's transfer is multiplied by the experimenter before B's decision Signup and view all the answers

What role does the caudate play in the trust game according to the study?

It is involved in learning and responds to partner's choices Signup and view all the answers

How do people perceive their partners' moral character before the trust game?

Good partners are generally seen as more trustworthy Signup and view all the answers

What effect does cooperation have in repeated prisoner's dilemma games?

Cooperation increases when playing against the same person Signup and view all the answers

What behavior has been observed when people are placed under cognitive load in a task?

They verbalize task-relevant thoughts less and withdraw equally. Signup and view all the answers

In the context of the dictator game, how does the level of anonymity influence dictator behavior?

Dictators tend to behave more greedily when they feel anonymous. Signup and view all the answers

What best explains the behavior of altruistic punishment observed in anonymous public goods games?

It is often driven by a revenge motive rather than pure altruism. Signup and view all the answers

How does the desire for revenge correlate with brain activity among participants in economic games?

It shows increased activity in pain-related brain areas for unfair partners. Signup and view all the answers

Which social value orientation describes individuals who prioritize maximizing their own gains?

Individualists Signup and view all the answers

In a resource allocation task, what is the collectively rational action participants are expected to take?

Contribute to the resource pool. Signup and view all the answers

Which strategy is shown to be most likely to survive evolution in repeated games?

Tit for tat strategy. Signup and view all the answers

What effect does knowing an opponent's strategy have on cooperation in the prisoner's dilemma?

Increases cooperation only if the opponent cooperated. Signup and view all the answers

What was the defection rate among participants who empathized with the other player in the prisoner's dilemma task?

40% Signup and view all the answers

How does cognitive load affect cooperation in resource depletion tasks?

It decreases the ability to cooperate. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Cooperation and Coordination

Game theory analyzes interactions between rational agents with multiple strategies, considering payoffs contingent on other players' actions.
Game theory assumes common knowledge of rules and players' rationality to predict convergence toward rational solutions.
Ultimatum games involve a proposer offering a portion of a sum to a responder, who can accept or reject. Typically, offers below 20% are frequently rejected.
Behavioral game theory studies how individuals actually behave in interactive situations, contrasting with theoretical perfect rationality.
Prisoner's dilemma, a key game theoretical concept (definition skipped), often predicts defection as the Nash equilibrium where both players defect. However, individuals frequently cooperate more than predicted, particularly in repeated games.
Public goods games involve individuals contributing resources to a shared pool, leading to collective benefits with free-riding potential.
Tit-for-tat strategy (repeated games) is a successful cooperative strategy based on reciprocal cooperation.
Cooperation isn't always motivated by moral imperative, but rather is often influenced by awareness of other players' actions or perceived strategies.
Cooperation can decrease if a person's perspective is purely cognitive (focuses on how to benefit self, even if it is costly to others).

Fear, Greed, and Punishment

Fear of punishment/being a sucker influences cooperation in games.
Dictator games further demonstrate selfish behavior when fear is eliminated as compared with the Ultimatum game.
Revenge motives can drive cooperation in the absence of direct gain.
Experiencing another's suffering while defecting or cooperating affects the observer's behavior.
Differences in values amongst people's impact their cooperation level.

Differences in Values

Social value orientations categorize individuals based on how much they value joint outcomes vs. relative gains (e.g., prosocial, individualistic, competitive).
Upward counterfactual thinking (what could have been better) is correlated with increased future cooperation in public good games; while downward counterfactual thinking associated with less cooperation.
Prosocial people have a different emotional response to fair vs. unfair partners.

Cooperation and Economic Success

Societies where cooperation with non-immediate kin or trading is more common display higher cooperation.
Cooperative behavior depends on how people perceive the exchange.

Trust, Generosity and Communication

Trust games examine how individuals react when trusting another player with a potential reward.
Trust and trustworthiness vary based on reputation and individual differences; as well as culture.
Communication promotes cooperation, especially among non-trusting participants.

Economic Games and Fairness

Individuals exhibit fairness motivations in economic games even when they don't materially benefit.
Cultural variability significantly impacts fairness and cooperation in economic games, possibly due to factors such as market integration and religion.

Neural circuitry mediates social preferences by engaging brain areas linked to reward, emotional response and theory of mind.
The ventral striatum and other areas show heightened activation when cooperation, fairness, or trust is involved.
Oxytocin influences trust and cooperation by decreasing fear and promoting bonding.

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Description

This quiz delves into game theory, focusing on key concepts such as rationality, ultimatum games, and the prisoner's dilemma. Explore how individuals cooperate and coordinate in interactive scenarios, with insights into behavioral game theory and public goods games. Test your understanding of these essential concepts in rational decision-making.