Effects of emotion on the evolution of cooperation in a spatial prisoner’s dilemma game

• DOI: 10.1016/j.amc.2021.126497
• Publication Date: 2021-07-12T11:36:10Z
• Authors: Wei Chen; Jianwei Wang; Fengyuan Yu; Jialu He; Wenshu Xu; Rong Wang
• Keywords: Reciprocity; Value (mathematics); Social dilemma

Abstract Emotion emerges along with individuals’ interactions, and numerous experimental studies have shown that emotion plays an important role in individual decision making. However, how emotion affects the evolution of cooperation in structured population is largely unknown. Here we introduce emotion into network reciprocity, where emotion is considered quantifiable and cumulative, and then divide individuals into two types, namely non-competitive individuals whose social value orientation is mutually beneficial and competitive individuals whose social value orientation is maximizing outcomes for the self. Here, we explore the effects of the proportion of non-competitive individuals and emotional cumulative length on the evolution of cooperation. Simulation results show that the existence of non-competitive individuals promotes cooperation in the system. Furthermore, we also find that emotional cumulative length plays a key role in promoting overall cooperation, but surprisingly, the cooperation rate of competitive individuals peaks at an intermediate value of emotional cumulative length.