The Tendency to Taking Risks in Solving a Social Dilemma in the Context of Collective Interaction

An important role in decision-making is taking a risk, which can direct a person towards one of a number of alternatives. Research involving the study of risk-taking in the context of social dilemmas considers cooperation or non-cooperation as possible decision-making options. A classic example of this choice is the decision-making process in the context of the "Prisoner's Dilemma". The choice between cooperating or not cooperating is characterized by risk, since such decisions have uncertain consequences. Despite the widespread popularity of the "Prisoner's Dilemma," the influence of the factor of collective interaction on an individual's behavior in this context has not been sufficiently studied. The aim of this research is to investigate attitudes towards risk taking in solving social dilemmas, taking into account the process of social interaction. The research methods used were the "Iterated prisoner's dilemma", including a stage of socialization through the formation of small social groups, and economic games to identify emotional and cognitive indicators of attitudes of risks in conditions of uncertainty. The analyzed sample consisted of 124 individuals aged 18 to 36 years (M = 20.39, SD = 2.80), of whom, 100 were female (80.65%), and 24 were male (19.35%). The results of the study did not demonstrate a connection between risk-taking and decision- making in solving social dilemmas in collective action. However, there was a slight increase in risk tolerance in individuals who chose defection in most rounds prior to socialization. This indicates the need for anticipating the future decisions of others in order to maximize rewards. An additional analysis was also conducted on a female sample, which confirmed the existence of gender-specificity in solving a social dilemma under conditions of collective interaction.