As we’re thinking about _intervention_, we’re hoping to _change_ something, or accomplish some _effect_. And in this vein, it’s interesting to note how the levels aren’t that independent.
For example, incentives tend to backpropagate from one level to the other. I expect that if you regularly give someone negative reinforcement for expressing half-formed ideas (Level 3 intervention), they might not just stop expressing ideas, but also stop _having_ original ideas altogether (Level 1 / 2 effect).
Or if you establish a meme of sharing the causes of your beliefs (Level 3 intervention), your community as a whole will run into fewer info-cascades (Level 5 effect).
Some of the most powerful interventions are those which create loops between levels. Helping people become stronger rationalists (Level 1 / 2) will enable them to make important changes to their and their community’s environment (Level 4 / 5) which will then feedback into their ability to think true thoughts and enact further important changes.
Similarly, bad equilibria emerge when Level 5 interventions change the optimal strategy at Level 3, and people doubling down on that then further entrenches those Level 5 changes.
As we’re thinking about _intervention_, we’re hoping to _change_ something, or accomplish some _effect_. And in this vein, it’s interesting to note how the levels aren’t that independent.
For example, incentives tend to backpropagate from one level to the other. I expect that if you regularly give someone negative reinforcement for expressing half-formed ideas (Level 3 intervention), they might not just stop expressing ideas, but also stop _having_ original ideas altogether (Level 1 / 2 effect).
Or if you establish a meme of sharing the causes of your beliefs (Level 3 intervention), your community as a whole will run into fewer info-cascades (Level 5 effect).
Some of the most powerful interventions are those which create loops between levels. Helping people become stronger rationalists (Level 1 / 2) will enable them to make important changes to their and their community’s environment (Level 4 / 5) which will then feedback into their ability to think true thoughts and enact further important changes.
Similarly, bad equilibria emerge when Level 5 interventions change the optimal strategy at Level 3, and people doubling down on that then further entrenches those Level 5 changes.