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Self-other conflict

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Morality and Rational Choice

Part of the book series: Theory and Decision Library ((TDLA,volume 18))

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Abstract

I am now ready to deal with the difficult question of Self-other decisions. I shall base this discussion on the case of social dilemmas, situations in which each of several people face decisions that place their own utility in conflict with the total utility of all. For example, each farmer stands to gain from letting the family cows graze on the commons, the common pasture for the town, but if everyone did this the pasture would disappear (Hardin, 1968). The action that is best for all is called cooperation; the action best for the self is called defection. It is best for all (cooperative) not to overgraze the common pasture but best for each to do so.

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© 1993 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Baron, J. (1993). Self-other conflict. In: Morality and Rational Choice. Theory and Decision Library, vol 18. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8226-1_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8226-1_6

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-4270-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-015-8226-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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