Abstract
Altruistic punishment is suggested to explain observed high levels of cooperation among non-kin related humans. However, laboratory experiments as well as ethnographic evidence suggest that people might retaliate if being punished, and that this reduces the level of cooperation. Building on existing models on the evolution of cooperation and altruistic punishment, we explore the consequences of the option of retaliation. We find that cooperation and altruistic punishment does not evolve with larger population levels if the option of retaliation is included.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 541-545 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | Journal of Theoretical Biology |
| Volume | 254 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Oct 7 2008 |
Keywords
- Group selection
- Public good games
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Statistics and Probability
- Modeling and Simulation
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
- Immunology and Microbiology(all)
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences(all)
- Applied Mathematics
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Cite this
Janssen, M., & Bushman, C. (2008). Evolution of cooperation and altruistic punishment when retaliation is possible. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 254(3), 541-545. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtbi.2008.06.017