prisoner

A Òsocial dilemmaÓ or Òsocial trapÓ in game theory between two subjects that presents one subject with the choice to act nobly or selfishly whereby their choice to act one way or the other in conjunction with the level of nobility demonstrated by their counterpart leads to respective payoffs (gains or losses) for both sides. It is called the prisonerÕs dilemma because this asocial game was initially written as a role play between two prisoners. (Howard Raiffa, The Art and Science of Negotiation [Harvard University Press, 1982], 346-47)

The following items are tagged prisoner.

In Dispute Resolution, Try Going to the Top

Posted by & filed under Dispute Resolution.

When two parties are attempting to resolve a contentious dispute, the most effective peacemakers may be those at the highest levels. That’s the lesson from recent productive talks between President Obama and Afghan leader Hamid Karzai on the issue of rules for detaining terrorism suspects.

Professor Mnookin participates in panel discussion on Shalit deal

Posted by & filed under International Negotiation, Middle East Negotiation Initiative.

Hostage negotiations are challenging in any situation, but the Israeli-Palestinian prisoner exchange involving Gilad Shalit in 2011 was more challenging than most.  Learning lessons from this exchange was the topic of a panel discussion, entitled “In the Aftermath of the Shalit Deal: Insights regarding Hostage-Barricade Situations and Hostage Negotiations,” held at Haifa University’s School of

The Shalit Deal: Opportunities for Negotiators

Posted by & filed under International Negotiation, Middle East Negotiation Initiative.

Last weekend’s violent deal between Israel and Islamic Jihad In Gaza was interpreted by some as proof that the Gilead Shalit prisoner exchange compromised Israeli security. Beyond these recent events it is indeed clear, as Professor Robert H. Mnookin and others warned, that the Shalit deal generated numerous risks for Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and

The Gilad Shalit-Palestinian prisoners exchange: the process, deal and implications

Posted by & filed under Events, International Negotiation, Middle East Negotiation Initiative.

The Middle East Negotiation Initiative at PON invites you to a panel discussion on
The Gilad Shalit-Palestinian prisoners exchange: the process, deal and implications
November 7, 2011 • 12:15 – 2 p.m.
Pound 100 • Harvard Law School
Please bring your lunch. Drinks and cookies will be served.
PANELISTS
Robert H. Mnookin is the Samuel Williston Professor of Law at Harvard

Professor Mnookin’s Op-Ed in The Wall Street Journal

Posted by & filed under Daily, International Negotiation, Middle East Negotiation Initiative, News.

In an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, Robert H. Mnookin, Professor at Harvard Law School and Chair of the Program on Negotiation, reflects on Israel’s recent decision to release 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the safe return of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier captured by Hamas.  From a negotiating standpoint, according to Mnookin,

The Big Question

Posted by & filed under Daily, Events, International Negotiation, PON Film Series.

A troubled man bursts into your child’s schoolhouse. Without warning, he chases out all the boys and lines the girls up. Then he begins to shoot them one by one. For decades your people’s backs have been broken by the oppressive yoke of Apartheid. Suddenly, the tables are turned and you and your friends are

Using Philosophy to Teach Dispute Resolution

Posted by & filed under Daily, Dispute Resolution, Pedagogy at the Program on Negotiation (Pedagogy @ PON).

Many negotiation and mediation instructors draw from other disciplines for a range of purposes. Insights from social psychology, for instance, can help students understand, explain, or predict certain interpersonal and inter-group dynamics. Ideas from economics and game theory can shed light on certain value-creation principles. The performing arts, including improvisational theater, can help negotiation students

Encounter Point

Posted by & filed under Events, PON Film Series.

“Sometimes I’m very angry with myself that I didn’t protect my child. So what do you do with this pain? Do you take it and look for revenge and keep the whole cycle of violence going, or do you choose another path to prevent further death and further pain to other parents.”
-Robi Damelin, Israeli
Sometimes I’m

Tough Tactics: Do ‘Death Threats’ Really Work?

Posted by & filed under Business Negotiations.

What would you do if someone threatened you? Strike back? Run away? Beg for mercy? Try to negotiate?

Last April, The New York Times in effect held a gun to the heads of Boston Globe employees – twice. The confrontation, say experts at the Harvard Program on Negotiation, offers valuable lessons in handling high-risk, high-stakes situations.

Background: Sixteen years earlier, The Times bought The Globe for $1.1 billion, the highest price ever paid for an American newspaper. The investment paid off at first, then the newspaper business started heading south. In 2008, The Globe lost $50 million; in 2009, it was on track to lose $85 million.

So The Times threatened to shut the paper down unless employee unions agreed to $20 million in pay cuts, lower severance pay, and an end to lifetime job guarantees for certain employees. Half the concessions – $10 million – were to come from The Globe’s largest labor union, the Boston Newspaper Guild.

social trap

Posted by & filed under Glossary.

A term used to describe the nature of the “prisoner’s dilemma” in game theory. It is used to highlight the competitive tension between the subjects involved. (Howard Raiffa, The Art and Science of Negotiation [Harvard University Press, 1982], 347)