Abstract
The structure and dynamics of ecosystems can affect the information available to resource users on the state of the common resource and the actions of other resource users. We present results from laboratory experiments that showed that the availability of information about the actions of other participants affected the level of cooperation. Since most participants in commons dilemmas can be classified as conditional cooperators, not having full information about the actions of others may affect their decisions. When participants had more information about others, there was a more rapid reduction of the resource in the first round of the experiment. When communication was allowed, limiting the information available made it harder to develop effective institutional arrangements. When communication was not allowed, there was a more rapid decline of performance in groups where information was limited. In sum, the results suggest that making information available to others can have an important impact on the conditional cooperation and the effectiveness of communication.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Article number | 04 |
| Journal | Ecology and Society |
| Volume | 18 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2013 |
Fingerprint
Keywords
- Common pool resource
- Communication
- Conditional cooperation
- Information
- Institutions
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Ecology
Cite this
The role of information in governing the commons : Experimental results. / Janssen, Marcus.
In: Ecology and Society, Vol. 18, No. 4, 04, 2013.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - The role of information in governing the commons
T2 - Experimental results
AU - Janssen, Marcus
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - The structure and dynamics of ecosystems can affect the information available to resource users on the state of the common resource and the actions of other resource users. We present results from laboratory experiments that showed that the availability of information about the actions of other participants affected the level of cooperation. Since most participants in commons dilemmas can be classified as conditional cooperators, not having full information about the actions of others may affect their decisions. When participants had more information about others, there was a more rapid reduction of the resource in the first round of the experiment. When communication was allowed, limiting the information available made it harder to develop effective institutional arrangements. When communication was not allowed, there was a more rapid decline of performance in groups where information was limited. In sum, the results suggest that making information available to others can have an important impact on the conditional cooperation and the effectiveness of communication.
AB - The structure and dynamics of ecosystems can affect the information available to resource users on the state of the common resource and the actions of other resource users. We present results from laboratory experiments that showed that the availability of information about the actions of other participants affected the level of cooperation. Since most participants in commons dilemmas can be classified as conditional cooperators, not having full information about the actions of others may affect their decisions. When participants had more information about others, there was a more rapid reduction of the resource in the first round of the experiment. When communication was allowed, limiting the information available made it harder to develop effective institutional arrangements. When communication was not allowed, there was a more rapid decline of performance in groups where information was limited. In sum, the results suggest that making information available to others can have an important impact on the conditional cooperation and the effectiveness of communication.
KW - Common pool resource
KW - Communication
KW - Conditional cooperation
KW - Information
KW - Institutions
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84891839403&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84891839403&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.5751/ES-05664-180404
DO - 10.5751/ES-05664-180404
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84891839403
VL - 18
JO - Ecology and Society
JF - Ecology and Society
SN - 1708-3087
IS - 4
M1 - 04
ER -