Locomotion in Social Dilemmas: How People Adapt to Cooperative, Tit-for-Tat, and Noncooperative Partners

The authors address locomotion in social dilemmas, examining the influence of social value orientation (prosocial, individualistic, and competitive orientations) and partner's strategy (100% cooperation, tit for tat, and 100% noncooperation) on cooperative behavior and locomotion to enhanced or reduced levels of interdependence (tendencies toward approach vs. avoidance). Extending prior research on behavioral assimilation (e.g., H. H. Kelley & A. J. Stahelski, 1970), results revealed that a noncooperative partner elicited not only relatively low levels of cooperation but also locomotions to low interdependence. Also, relative to prosocials and individualists, competitors exhibited low levels of cooperation and locomotions to low interdependence with a tit-for-tat partner. This underscores the functionality of tit for tat, in that it moves away those who seek relative advantage, thus minimizing the costs following from noncooperative interactions.