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Slowing COVID-19 transmission as a social dilemma: Lessons for government officials from interdisciplinary research on cooperation

Author

Listed:
  • Tim Johnson

    (Willamette University)

  • Christopher T. Dawes

    (New York University)

  • James H. Fowler

    (University of California, San Diego)

  • Oleg Smirnov

    (Stony Brook University)

Abstract

To reduce transmission of COVID-19, public officials must help their communities resolve a series of novel social dilemmas. For instance, when social distancing becomes widespread, the likelihood of COVID-19 exposure decreases, thus tempting individuals to leave their homes while others stay sheltered. Yet, if all indulge that temptation, then rates of transmission will increase: everyone would have fared better by cooperatively staying at home. Past research has studied such social dilemmas to understand why cooperation occurs despite incentives that conspire against it. In this narrative review, we select relevant insights from this literature to inform COVID-19 response and we structure those insights around the response stages that government officials face. Together, the measures that we identify can ameliorate the social dilemmas born from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Suggested Citation

  • Tim Johnson & Christopher T. Dawes & James H. Fowler & Oleg Smirnov, 2020. "Slowing COVID-19 transmission as a social dilemma: Lessons for government officials from interdisciplinary research on cooperation," Journal of Behavioral Public Administration, Center for Experimental and Behavioral Public Administration, vol. 3(1).
    • Handle: RePEc:bpd:articl:v:3:y:2020:i:1:jbpa.31.150
    DOI: 10.30636/jbpa.31.150
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Qing-Hua Mao & Jiang-Xiao Hou & Peng-Zhen Xie, 2022. "Dynamic Impact of the Perceived Value of Public on Panic Buying Behavior during COVID-19," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-15, April.
    2. Tobias Schütze & Philipp C. Wichardt & Philipp Christoph Wichardt, 2023. "A Real Effort vs. Standard Public Goods Experiment: Overall More All-or-Nothing, Lower Average Contributions and Men Become More Selfish in the Effort-Loss Frame," CESifo Working Paper Series 10444, CESifo.
    3. Francesco Bogliacino & Rafael Charris & Camilo Gómez & Felipe Montealegre & Cristiano Codagnone, 2021. "Expert endorsement and the legitimacy of public policy. Evidence from Covid19 mitigation strategies," Journal of Risk Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(3-4), pages 394-415, April.
    4. Maria Kleshnina & Christian Hilbe & Štěpán Šimsa & Krishnendu Chatterjee & Martin A. Nowak, 2023. "The effect of environmental information on evolution of cooperation in stochastic games," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-11, December.
    5. Mindy Shoss & Anahí Van Hootegem & Eva Selenko & Hans De Witte, 2023. "The job insecurity of others: On the role of perceived national job insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 44(2), pages 385-409, May.
    6. Rafael Robina-Ramírez & Marcelo Sánchez-Oro Sánchez & Héctor Valentín Jiménez-Naranjo & José Castro-Serrano, 2022. "Tourism governance during the COVID-19 pandemic crisis: A proposal for a sustainable model to restore the tourism industry," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(5), pages 6391-6412, May.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Social dilemma; Cooperation; COVID-19; Free-riding;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • Z00 - Other Special Topics - - General - - - General
    • D90 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - General

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