damiensnyder

The LessWrong coordination/cooperation tag describes coordination as: > the challenge of distinct actors being able to jointly choose their actions to achieve a favorable outcome. [...] A closely related concept is that of cooperation – multiple actors choosing their actions in ways that maximize collective value despite the temptation of greater short-term individual gain by acting to the detriment of the group/other actors. For the purposes of this post, I will define a "coordination problem" as a problem such that a coordinated group will likely create a good solution, but without coordination, an individual is unlikely to take steps toward that solution. A classic example of a coordination problem is a stag hunt, because the group can create a good solution (by all choosing stag), but until that problem is solved, an individual is more likely to choose rabbit. An example of a non-coordination problem is convincing people to get vaccinated. This is not a coordination problem, because most people are incentivized to get vaccinated regardless of coordination. (Those who reject vaccinates are still usually incentivized to get vaccinated, though they may believe otherwise.) Coordination problem is a useful category, but it describes several distinct types of obstacles, which require different approaches to solve. I have identified five types of obstacles, but this is not the only way to categorize them. I am open to suggestions for adding or amending categories. Taxonomy 1. Participants cannot communicate easily Some coordination problems could be easily solved if participants could more easily talk to one another. For example: If I tried to meet my friends at a restaurant, but we couldn't message or visit each other beforehand, it would be pretty hard. We wouldn't know where everyone else would go or when, so we would have to hope to get lucky. An obvious solution to problems like this is to facilitate communication better. If my friends and I could text, we