Prisoner’s Dilemma

Facts for Prelims

Prisoner’s Dilemma

News: Recently, the Defence Minister mentioned the concept of “Prisoner’s Dilemma” to highlight the importance of countries collaborating instead of working against each other in international relations.

What is the Prisoner’s Dilemma?
• It is a fundamental concept in game theory that illustrates a situation where individuals can make rational choices that lead to a suboptimal outcome for both. It involves two suspects (prisoners) who can either cooperate by remaining silent or betray each other by confessing to a crime.

What are the possible outcomes?
• If both remain silent (cooperate), they both get a minimal sentence for a lesser offence.
• If both confess (betray), they both receive a moderate sentence.
• If one remains silent while the other confesses, the one who confesses goes free, and the silent one receives a heavy sentence.

Application in International relations
• The Prisoner’s Dilemma concept is often applied to international relations to understand situations where countries face choices with conflicting interests. It helps explain why nations may not always cooperate for the best collective outcome. For example, in arms races, two countries may each choose to arm themselves (confess) to gain a competitive advantage, even though disarmament (remaining silent) would be collectively better by reducing the risk of war and saving resources.