Decision-induced focusing in social dilemmas: give-some, keep-some, take-some, and leave-some dilemmas.

Abstract

Previous research on asymmetric social dilemmas has suggested that public good dilemmas evoke different choice behaviors than do resource dilemmas. The authors propose that these differences reflect a differential focus that is dependent on the way decisions are generally presented in the dilemma types. In agreement with this, the results of 2 experimental studies suggest that, in public good dilemmas, group members are less focused on the consequences of their actions for the final outcome distribution when deciding how many endowments they give to the public good than when deciding how many endowments they keep for themselves. In resource dilemmas, group members are less focused on the final outcome distribution when deciding how many endowments they leave in the collective resource than when deciding how many endowments they take.