Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Bicchieri, Cristina
• Lev-On, Azi

Titel

Computer-mediated communication and cooperation in social dilemmas: an experimental analysis

Ist Teil von

• Politics, philosophy & economics, 2007-06, Vol.6 (2), p.139-168

Ort / Verlag

London, England: Sage Publications

Erscheinungsjahr

2007

Quelle

Worldwide Political Science Abstracts

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• One of the most consistent findings in experimental studies of social dilemmas is the positive influence of face-to-face communication on cooperation. The face-to-face `communication effect' has been recently explained in terms of a `focus theory of norms': successful communication focuses agents on pro-social norms, and induces preferences and expectations conducive to cooperation. 1 Many of the studies that point to a communication effect, however, do not further explore whether and to what extent the communication medium affects cooperative behavior. In this article, we ask if pro-social behavior can emerge and survive in computer-mediated environments. We show that, like face-to-face communication, computer-mediated communication also positively affects cooperation in social dilemmas, but cooperation is more difficult to establish and maintain. We argue that the discrepancy between the computer-mediated and the face-to-face communication effects is a consequence of the distinct capabilities of different media to focus agents on pro-social norms and to allow them to develop mutual expectations about future behavior.