The Prisoners Dilemma
The Prisoner's Dilemma is a human behavior experiment that was created by game theorists (People who analyze mathematical models that break down strategic interaction between humans through decision making).
The Prisoners Dilemma analyzes decision making for humans when put in a situation that tests selflessness. The Prisoners Dilemma is a scenario where two people (Prisoner A, and prisoner B) are accused of a crime. Both are put in a detention center were they are interviewed about the case. Neither criminals has contact with the outside world or each other. and there is clear cut evidence proving them guilty of the crime they committed. At this point they have limited options. Both Prisoners have been
given the same options by the prosecution, they can either confess or remain silent. The prosecution also tells them by confessing they will drop all charges against you and if the accomplice stays silent the confessor's testimony will be used against the other prisoner to give them serious time. If they both confess than they both get time but they get early parole and if they both stay silent they get equal sentences.
The Dilemma
The dilemma for the prisoners is the same. No matter what the other does, they both are better off confessing. However, the outcome from both confessing is not as optimal as if they both stay silent. It is a tough decision because you have to make your decision based off of what you will think your accomplice will do.
Human Behavior:
This puzzle illustrates a conflict between individual and group rationality. Basically if a group of individuals together pursue self interest the payoffs may end up much worse than if they acted out of self interest. This puzzle helps analyze human behavior in situations of distress where we have two decisions that not only concern your well being but also the well being of the other prisoner. On top of that depending on the decision of the other, being selfish could end up not being the better decision anyways. This puzzle has not only been used in the real world regarding legal cases and scenarios much similar to this one put can also be applied to other scenarios where human selflessness comes into question especially when cooperating with another unpredictable human.
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The Prisoners Dilemma analyzes decision making for humans when put in a situation that tests selflessness. The Prisoners Dilemma is a scenario where two people (Prisoner A, and prisoner B) are accused of a crime. Both are put in a detention center were they are interviewed about the case. Neither criminals has contact with the outside world or each other. and there is clear cut evidence proving them guilty of the crime they committed. At this point they have limited options. Both Prisoners have been
The Dilemma
The dilemma for the prisoners is the same. No matter what the other does, they both are better off confessing. However, the outcome from both confessing is not as optimal as if they both stay silent. It is a tough decision because you have to make your decision based off of what you will think your accomplice will do.
Human Behavior:
This puzzle illustrates a conflict between individual and group rationality. Basically if a group of individuals together pursue self interest the payoffs may end up much worse than if they acted out of self interest. This puzzle helps analyze human behavior in situations of distress where we have two decisions that not only concern your well being but also the well being of the other prisoner. On top of that depending on the decision of the other, being selfish could end up not being the better decision anyways. This puzzle has not only been used in the real world regarding legal cases and scenarios much similar to this one put can also be applied to other scenarios where human selflessness comes into question especially when cooperating with another unpredictable human.
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ReplyDeleteThis is such an interesting experiment. I think the decisions of the prisoners also have a lot to do with morals and ethics. The entire situation is evidently very complex, though, because the most moral thing to do would probably be to confess if one is guilty of a crime, rather than lie or omit the truth. Nevertheless, it could be considered unethical for someone to throw someone else under the bus, even when doing so may be an important factor in the outcome. Further, when the sentences for each outcome are taken into consideration, human nature is obviously bound to play a complicated role in the decisions of the prisoners.
ReplyDeleteThis is fascinating because you, as the prisoner, are trusting your fate into someone else's hands. Because of this, I think that the outcome of the prisoner's decision could be very different depending on different situations. Whether a person will confess or stay silent all depends on what they think the other person will do. If they are close, they are "brothers" or "sisters," it is more likely they would stay silent. But, if they were two random people who were just in the wrong place at the wrong time then they would more likely confess.
ReplyDeleteThis is so interesting as it really tests your level of selflessness. This also strongly relates to our topic of morals and ethics as although you may have personal morals about confessing to a crime that you committed, it also tests your level of loyalty to the other person in the scenario. It also tests whether or not you would unethically sacrifice the other person and allow them to get more time in exchange for your freedom. I believe that in this decision there is always going to be a consequence, and it just depends on whether you would rather sacrifice yourself or the other person. This would be really interesting to study and to find out how other people's morals and ethics play a role in this dilemma.
ReplyDeleteThis is an incredibly interesting human behavior experiment as it deals with individual's rationality after being isolated and posed with a major dilemma. You must base your decision off the other person's morals; whether or not you believe they are the type to betray you or stay silent. I would be interested to see the percentages of people that fall into each category as well as experimenting to see how if simply having a relationship with the other person convicted effects whether or not you make the same decision, assuming they did not discuss what to say beforehand.
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