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Asymmetric Power Boosts Extortion in an Economic Experiment
Christian Hilbe1,2, Kristin Hagel3, Manfred Milinski3
1Program for Evolutionary Dynamics, Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology and Department of Mathematics, Harvard University, Cambridge MA, United States of America.
Plos One
|October 5, 2016
Summary
Power imbalances can lead to the evolution of extortionate strategies, even when cooperation is expected. In experiments, individuals with strategic power exploited others, demonstrating how asymmetry transforms mutual benefit into exploitation.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary Game Theory
- Behavioral Economics
- Social Dilemmas
Background:
- Direct reciprocity is a key factor in the evolution of cooperation.
- Classical studies suggest humans adopt reciprocal strategies in repeated interactions.
- Zero Determinant (ZD) strategies theory predicts successful exploitation by extortioners.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the emergence of extortionate strategies in asymmetric power structures.
- To test whether extortion can evolve in realistic scenarios with differing strategic power.
- To analyze the impact of asymmetric partner choice on cooperation and payoff distribution.
Main Methods:
- A model and an economic experiment combining a repeated social dilemma with asymmetric partner choice.
- A treatment where one group member could unilaterally replace another group member every ten rounds.
- Analysis of cooperation probabilities and payoff distributions based on strategic power.
Main Results:
- Asymmetric replacement opportunities generally promoted cooperation but led to unequal payoff distributions.
- Nearly half of subjects in stronger strategic positions became extortioners, exploiting peers.
- Extortionate strategies yielded substantial net gains compared to non-extortionate play.
Conclusions:
- Power asymmetries readily facilitate the emergence of extortionate strategies.
- Extortion can transform mutually beneficial interactions into exploitative relationships.
- ZD theory-predicted extortionate strategies may be more prevalent in daily interactions than previously assumed.
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