The study of cooperation is one of the landmark applications of evolutionary game theory. The respective literature explores why individuals may cooperate even when there are strong incentives to defect. In a broader sense, this literature also explores related questions, such as how social norms evolve over time, or why human behavior is subject to certain quirks (such as: why do we value...
Humans are outstanding in their ability to cooperate with unrelated individuals, and punishment – paying a cost to harm others – is thought to be a key supporting mechanism. According to this view, cooperators punish defectors, who respond by behaving more cooperatively in future interactions. However, evidence from laboratory and real-world settings casts serious doubts on the assumption that...
