Influence: Are You a Defector (Freeloader), Punisher or Cooperator
by Kevin Hogan
Page 4
Now you'd think the Punishers would punish the people who take the money from
those who work.
But they don't.
Why?
Because the Punishers are the government. They are imbued with the full power
of ...well....weapons.... to make sure money is extracted from those that work, and
redistributed to those that don't, trying to make everything "equal." And when you let
that mess get a name like "government" you have a system that will die.
The government is a bunch of people who are OK'ed to run the show and get their jobs
by telling the people who don't pay taxes that they are not being treated EQUALLY
and that the government will FIX that. If you keep printing paper and promising
FREE stuff, you get elected.
Try telling the truth and getting elected.
Can't happen too often.
But, in the short-term it "works."
People want to feel equal and indeed the "Partyer" and "Player" don't care about
the "Producer" as long as the Producer subsidizes their lives when they run out
of money.
"Equal" is a strange phenomenon indeed.
Research just out sheds new light on Cooperators, Punishers and Defectors.
Research from The University of Nottingham has shed new light on the way in which
people co-operate for the common good -- and what happens when they don't.
What's particularly cool about this research is it highlights the HUGE
cultural differences from country to country in how these roles are played out.
In a new International study of 16 countries, published in the
journal Science, economists studied the extent to which some people
will sacrifice personal gain to benefit the wider public, while
'Freeloaders' try to take advantage of their generosity.
Marked national differences arose when Freeloaders were punished for
putting their own interests ahead of the common good. And whether
they accepted their punishment or retaliated in kind depended on what
kind of society they lived in, the researchers found.
In countries like the USA, Switzerland and the UK, Freeloaders
accepted their punishment and became much more co-operative. But in
countries based on more authoritarian and parochial social
institutions such as Oman, Saudi Arabia, Greece and Russia, the
Freeloaders took revenge -- retaliating against those who had
punished them.
Co-operation for the common good plummeted as a result.
Continue the article to learn more about revenge and cooperation...
Cool Article?
Get Coffee with Kevin.
Articles, events & more!
+ 2 Free e-books today!
E-zine delivered Mondays.
"Every week, Coffee with Kevin Hogan is a must read. I particularly liked your article on the Can-Doers and the No-Doers. Thanks!" Sharon McGann, Sydney
