When I consider examples of Schelling points I think of scenarios directly analogous to archetypal examples. The times when you notice that you are playing a coordination game and need to guess what other people will guess that you will guess. When you notice this and start to ask “What is the schelling point here?” you become even more likely to adhere to a common, predictable solution than to follow your own independent whims.
If I’m driving along an isolated dirt road (like those I grew up on) and I’m feeling philosophical I may well notice that the side of the road that I’m driving on is fundamentally arbitrary. Given that a lot of these roads are narrow enough that you drive in the center of the road it becomes a decision of which way to swerve when encountering the occasional oncoming traffic. And if there aren’t any cops around to enforce a legal coordination one way is pretty much the same as the other. In fact I know those wacky Americans drive on the wrong side of the road all the time. But when I notice that the situation is arbitrary and start to think about the Schelling point it makes me think “he’s going to swerve left and if I swerve right I’m going to @#@% die”. Follow the Schelling points, cut this independent thinking nonsense!
That’s because you recognize that what you’re dealing with is in fact a Schelling point. If one doesn’t realize this fact, one will weaken the Schelling point.
That’s because you recognize that what you’re dealing with is in fact a Schelling point. If one doesn’t realize this fact, one will weaken the Schelling point.
Yes, I think this is where we had most of our initial disagreement.
When I consider examples of Schelling points I think of scenarios directly analogous to archetypal examples. The times when you notice that you are playing a coordination game and need to guess what other people will guess that you will guess. When you notice this and start to ask “What is the schelling point here?” you become even more likely to adhere to a common, predictable solution than to follow your own independent whims.
If I’m driving along an isolated dirt road (like those I grew up on) and I’m feeling philosophical I may well notice that the side of the road that I’m driving on is fundamentally arbitrary. Given that a lot of these roads are narrow enough that you drive in the center of the road it becomes a decision of which way to swerve when encountering the occasional oncoming traffic. And if there aren’t any cops around to enforce a legal coordination one way is pretty much the same as the other. In fact I know those wacky Americans drive on the wrong side of the road all the time. But when I notice that the situation is arbitrary and start to think about the Schelling point it makes me think “he’s going to swerve left and if I swerve right I’m going to @#@% die”. Follow the Schelling points, cut this independent thinking nonsense!
That’s because you recognize that what you’re dealing with is in fact a Schelling point. If one doesn’t realize this fact, one will weaken the Schelling point.
Yes, I think this is where we had most of our initial disagreement.