4 ms·
The ironing example is being a hypocrite. One should lead by example, if they really care about saving energy they will change their behavior to save it.
by dantheman 17y ago
The ironing example is being a hypocrite. One should lead by example, if they really care about saving energy they will change their behavior to save it.
- cma 17y agoNope, it is a collective action problem. There is a simple game theory payoff matrix: (units: e=energy_savings, ss=social_standing) One guy's payoffs: one guy iron | no iron everyone iron 0ss - 0.1e = (-0.1) | -1ss + 0e = (-1.0) no iron 1ss - 0.1e = ( 0.9) | 0ss + 0e = ( 0.0) Society's payoffs (1000 people): one guy iron | no iron everyone iron 0ss - 100e = (-100.0) | 0ss - 99.9e = (-99.9) no iron 0ss - 0.1e = ( -0.1) | 0ss - 0.0e = ( 0.0) Ironing his clothes gives the person no greater benefit than not ironing their clothes--so long as no one else irons their clothes either. It isn't hypocritical to point this out and still iron your clothes.
- dantheman 17y agoI understand that that it's a collective action problem, but game theory only applies if things stay constant. By practicing what he preaches, and taking the hit to ss he shows that it is important, and he can use that to convince others to do it. As more people do it, the loss of ss per person goes down, and it might even invert (lose ss for ironing).