I’m not sure of the actual game theory of the trolley scenario—I think I was more assuming that people would follow a “help near people, don’t help far people” heuristic.
“Far” people—people who are physically distant or not part of your community—have a strong incentive to run away if they owe you a big debt, rather than paying the debt off. You’re more likely to see “near” people again in the future, and both be forced to resume the iterated cooperate/punish game.
But as you point out, there needs to be more to “nearness” than this, as the problem doesn’t require the fat man to be someone you know. I think it comes down to the role of third-parties, who presumably play some game-theoretic role in regulating these cooperate/punish games.
What do you think a passer by would do if he saw you throw someone off a bridge? How sympathetic do you think he would be to your story of the train and the people tied to the tracks?
Then I’d point to them. If not, he’d find out after he starts hearing about five guys who got their lives saved when someone pushed someone onto a track.
I’m not sure of the actual game theory of the trolley scenario—I think I was more assuming that people would follow a “help near people, don’t help far people” heuristic.
“Far” people—people who are physically distant or not part of your community—have a strong incentive to run away if they owe you a big debt, rather than paying the debt off. You’re more likely to see “near” people again in the future, and both be forced to resume the iterated cooperate/punish game.
But as you point out, there needs to be more to “nearness” than this, as the problem doesn’t require the fat man to be someone you know. I think it comes down to the role of third-parties, who presumably play some game-theoretic role in regulating these cooperate/punish games.
What do you think a passer by would do if he saw you throw someone off a bridge? How sympathetic do you think he would be to your story of the train and the people tied to the tracks?
Why wouldn’t he be sympathetic? Someone like me is five times as likely to save his life than end it.
He doesn’t know that. He just saw you push someone off the bridge; he didn’t see the people on the track.
Then I’d point to them. If not, he’d find out after he starts hearing about five guys who got their lives saved when someone pushed someone onto a track.