Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 30, 2026

Field Collection and Laboratory Maintenance of Canopy-Forming Giant Kelp to Facilitate Restoration
Published on: June 7, 2024
The survival of the conformist: social pressure and renewable resource management
Alessandro Tavoni1, Maja Schlüter, Simon Levin
1Grantham Research Institute, London School of Economics, London WC2A2AZ, England. a.tavoni@lse.ac.uk
Abstract:
This paper examines the role of other-regarding behavior as a mechanism for the establishment and maintenance of cooperation in resource use under variable social and environmental conditions. By coupling resource stock dynamics with social dynamics concerning compliance to a social norm prescribing non-excessive resource extraction in a common pool resource, we show that when reputational considerations matter and a sufficient level of social stigma affects the violators of a norm, sustainable outcomes are achieved. We find large parameter regions where norm-observing and norm-violating types coexist, and analyze to what extent such coexistence depends on the environment.
Related Concept Videos
Conformity
Social Traps
Social Proof
Conservation of Declining Populations
Competition
Conservation of Small Populations

