The likelihood of inefficiency,a prisoner's dilemma and suboptimality in games of binary voluntary provision of public goods

This paper focuses on one possible measure for the severity of the problems of inefficiency, suboptimality and the Prisoner's Dilemma in voluntary public-good provision. The proposed measure is the probability of the emergence of the respective problem in an impartial environment where all feasible combinations of the parameters of the voluntary public good provision game are equally likely. These probabilities are derived using the game of voluntary binary contributions to the provision of public goods recently analyzed by Gradstein and Nitzan (1990). The severity of the three problems (Prisoner's Dilemma, suboptimality and inefficiency) is computed, respectively for games with up to N=12, N=6 and N=4 players. The decreasing order of N reflects the increasing complexity of the problems and, in turn, computation of their likelihood. It turns out that the likelihoods of all three problems are increasing with the number of players, N. More importantly, social optimality is more likely than suboptimality when N2, efficiency is more likely than inefficiency when N3 and no Prisoner's Dilemma is more likely than a Prisoner's Dilemma when N5.     

Multiplexity,generalized exchange and cooperation in organizations: a case study

Cooperation in an organization can be studied empirically by examining the routine transfers or exchanges among members of various kinds of resources. We argue that local regularities in the form of these transfers and exchanges shape the structure of cooperation. Using a case study of resource networks in a corporate law firm, we model the structure of cooperation in a specific work environment, one that is characterized by multifunctional and sometimes multidisciplinary work groups in which `status competition' is argued to be a particularly strong motivation driving participation. Specific statistical tools, p* models, are used to identify local regularities in the interplay between exchanges and transfers of three types of social resource (coworkers' goodwill, advice and friendship). We propose that these regularities help to provide structural solutions for the problems of collective participation and status competition in such organizations.     

The fragility of therapists and clients as a generative context

This article describes our work at the interface between the legal and the psychosocial in relation to mental health needs arising in families. Working at the legal–psychosocial interface, interventions and treatment strategies are not given in advance but are built with all those involved, including the family and those who may be significant for the family as well as family therapists and judicial practitioners. In addition, psychology students from the UBA (Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina) who are engaged for their professional practice in the area of Justice—Working with Families in the Legal Field—observe and actively participate in this process. The work at the legal–psychosocial interface is interdisciplinary and requires a permanent dialogic effort among all practitioners of the different disciplines in order to promote alternatives that generate innovative solutions.     

Blumer’s dilemma: The critic as a tragic figure

Herbert Blumer criticized sociological research for its failure to confront obdurate, empirical reality. However, Blumer conducted little research of his own. An examination of his works on crowds, fashion, and social problems reveals some of the same problems he found in others’ works. Blumer illustrates how critics risk becoming tragic figures, wedded to theoretical principles that cannot be put into practice. Thanks to Irwin Deutscher, John Lofland, Kathleen Lowney, David Maines, and Robert Prus for helpful comments on earlier drafts of this paper.     

Integrating mailed personalized feedback and alcohol screening events: a feasibility study

This study characterized a sample of college students attending National Alcohol Screening Day (NASD), and tested the feasibility of using NASD as a platform for initiating the delivery of mailed personalized feedback forms. Participants (N = 153, 65% female) attended NASD and completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT [1]). A subset of at-risk drinkers completed additional questionnaires about their alcohol use and received personalized feedback through the mail. Thirty-four percent of the participants scored above the recommended clinical cutoff on the AUDIT. Men reported higher levels of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related negative consequences. The subset of at-risk drinkers reported frequent occasions of binge drinking and relatively high blood alcohol concentrations (BAC). NASD is an effective way of identifying college students with clinically significant levels of alcohol use, and provides an efficient mechanism for initiating the delivery of personalized feedback. More research on the combined effects of NASD and personalized feedback is warranted.     

A study of live supervisory phone-ins in collaborative family therapy: correlates of client cooperation

The behavior of five supervisors, 19 trainee family therapists, and 20 clients before, during, and after 88 live supervisory phone-in events was examined in this study to determine the correlates of client cooperation. Following supervisory phone-in conversations, client cooperation was associated exclusively with the presence and quality of the collaborative behavior shown by the therapist. Isomorphism between the behavior of the supervisor and therapist was not associated with subsequent client cooperation, nor was any particular category of supervisor behavior. Surprisingly, isomorphism between the quality of supervisor and therapist behavior preceded those events where client resistance occurred.     

The Fragility of a Nudge: the power of self-set norms to contain a social dilemma

Can self-set normative goals restrain free-riding in a social dilemma? In a first experimental study, we test the effect of two different types of self-set normative goals on people’s willingness to cooperate in a public good game. Focusing on the level of contributions that one can at least be expected to make proves effective at restraining the material incentive to free-ride. Yet in two later studies, with only a minimal change in the wording of the goal, the effect does not replicate. The mental process is still present. But if the overall level of cooperation is higher, the effect is not strong enough to significantly increase contributions. The nudge does not work if the context is too cooperative in the first place.     

Using national alcohol screening day to deliver personalized feedback: a pilot study

The current study tested the effectiveness of using National Alcohol Screening Day (NASD) to deliver personalized feedback via mail. At-risk NASD participants were assigned to either personalized or generic feedback conditions and attended a 4-week follow-up. Results failed to find any group differences on alcohol-related variables. However, participants in the personalized group reported a reduction in the maximum number of drinks consumed on one occasion. The personalized group also had a more accurate view of the amount of alcohol their peers consumed. NASD is a vehicle to efficiently deliver feedback to individuals about their alcohol use; however, more research is needed to determine the types of feedback that would be most effective.     

The stranger as seer or voyeur: A dilemma of the peep-show theory of knowledge

The belief that ‘the stranger’ (outsider, disinterested third party) sees things more clearly, i.e. is more “objective,” is seen to be a corner-stone of folk wisdom; underlying Western judicial thought and concepts of objectivity in the social sciences. The author raises the dilemma that both positivistic and humanistic sociologists accept this belief—suggesting 1) that it is a residue of positivism and a quest for certain knowledge, or 2) the possibility that ‘the stranger’ does gain deeper insight into group life than members. The paper examines the concept of the stranger, considering the aura of charisma that seems to have been attached to it in ordinary discourse as well as within the sociological dialogue. Two types of strangers are described: outsiders and enemies within. Finally, an attempt is made to examine the testimony of prominant strangers as they describe their marginal status and speculate on the ways that status has made them unusually perceptive observers of social phenomena.     

Professional competition and cooperation in the digital age: A pilot study of New Zealand practitioners

From early on, competition between professions has been identified as a major factor in the process of developing public relations as a profession. This paper updates consideration of the influence of inter-profession disputes by examining the interplay between public relations and advertising in the digital age. It attempts to assess how new technologies, especially social media, affect the relationships between them, with particular reference to two aspects: whether social media increases, or decreases, professional cooperation (or competition); and who takes charge in the new communication environment. In researching these issues, which form an important part of the professionalization process of public relations, the paper examined documents and online publications, and undertook interviews and a survey of public relations practitioners in New Zealand. The findings suggest that the responding public relations practitioners were not able to take advantage of the social technology in order to leverage their professional status and improve their position within the organization. In addition, it seems that while advertising and public relations are still looking for ways to benefit from social media, both are still in a process of adaptation.     

Negotiating with terrorists: The iterated game of the Taliban Korean hostage case

The purpose of this essay is to describe the Taliban Korean hostage situation in a theoretical perspective, and to suggest possible strategies of enhancing the negotiation power of the threatened. The results show that dealing with terrorists should be a constant dialectical process of firmness and softness. A government negotiator should be adamant about the principle, but at the same time seek alternative options to turn the current hostage negotiation into a route for possible agreements.     

The dilemma of recognition: Administrative categories and cultural diversity

Governments around the world combat inequality by means of group-specific redistribution. Some pursue redistribution that benefits groups, but also wish to avoid accentuating or even recognizing group distinctions. This poses a dilemma that they try to resolve by adjusting the category system used to target redistribution. There are three types of adjustment: accommodation (the multicultural approach), denial (the ideal-typical liberal solution), and replacement (a compromise). In replacement the targets of redistributive policies are constructed to avoid accentuation or recognition of inconvenient group distinctions, but still allow redistribution that benefits these groups. Replacement is increasingly in demand around the world because the disadvantages of multiculturalism are becoming apparent while denial is hard to sustain in the face of group inequality. The actual effect of replacement is little researched and less understood, however. Does it resolve the dilemma of recognition? Two examples–India and Nigeria–where replacement has been tried ever since the 1950s cast doubt on its viability.