Prisoner's Dilemma Strategies

Last Week in class we further discussed the prisoner's dilemma, and the different strategies one could use to approach the problem. The best strategy discussed was avoidance, which involves avoiding unnecessary conflicts by cooperating with the other party as long as they choose to cooperate. This option yields the best results, but heavily hinges on trust. Provocability involved becoming competitive in the face of opposition, instead of cooperating. This may work out once or twice, but this strategy leads to both parties losing in the end. Finally, forgiveness was a strategy that led one to one immediately becoming cooperative after provocability, in order to put the conflict aside and work toward a good final decision. After examining these strategies and how they affect the prisoner's dilemma, it become clear that it may seem like a simple process, but not being able to know the other party's exact thoughts and motivations can lead to a tense and tricky decision process.