Social Traps

Definition

Social traps refer to situations in which individuals or groups pursue immediate benefits that later result in negative consequences for the group as a whole.

Related terms

Tragedy of the Commons: This is a situation where individuals acting independently and rationally according to each's self-interest behave contrary to the best interests of the whole by depleting some common resource.

Zero-sum game: A situation in which one person's gain is equivalent to another's loss, so the net change in wealth or benefit is zero.

Groupthink:

This is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people, in which the desire for harmony or conformity results in an irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcome.