A laboratory-based dilemma often involves computer simulations with several participants (or one participant and several simulated participants). The common pool used in these artificial contexts is often (real) money. If you were a participant, you would be told the size of the pool and how many users there were, and how much you could each take without depleting the resource. You would then have to decide whether to cooperate or take more than your fair share, based partly on your estimate of how likely you think others are to cooperate. Usually all participants decide independently and then are told how much of the pool is left. The experimenters can manipulate factors such as the size of the resource and number of participants, the rate at which the resource becomes depleted and can be replenished and the number of occasions on which the resource can be harvested. Sometimes the experiment may involve a monetary reward, for example if everyone cooperates and the pool is not depleted. The experimenters measure how the participants’ behaviour changes as the simulation continues, depending on what others do. For example, if few cooperate, participants may become more selfish as the simulation continues. In public goods dilemmas, participants are given an initial endowment, which can vary in size; and there may be a minimum collective contribution before the public good can become a reality. Once it does, participants can choose how much to keep contributing to keep the public good going, and again may be rewarded for doing so.
defined by Rachel New