title: Selfish punishment: altruism can be maintained by competition among cheaters.
abstract: Altruistic punishment refers to a class of behaviors that deters cheating at a cost to the punisher, making it a form of second-order altruism. Usually, it is assumed that the punishers are themselves "solid citizens" who refrain from cheating. We show in a simulation model that altruism and punishment paradoxically become negatively correlated, leading to a form of selfish punishment. Examples of selfish punishment can be found in organisms as diverse as wasps, birds, and humans.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY 13902-6000, USA. oeldakar@gmail.com
authors.forename: Omar Tonsi
authors.initials: OT
authors.lastname: Eldakar
authors.forename: Dene Leo
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Farrell
authors.forename: David Sloan
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Wilson
mesh_terms: D000533:Altruism; D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D003163:Competitive Behavior; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D006126:Group Processes; D006801:Humans; D008960:Models, Psychological; D009154:Mutation; D011156:Population Density; D011678:Punishment