DOI: 10.11118/978-80-7701-073-3-0042

COOPERATING ON NATURAL RESOURCE COMMUNITIES: HOW INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURES INFLUENCE BELIEFS FORMATION

Alexandra Valencia Zapata¹, Erik Reimer Larsen¹, Dorthe Døjbak Håkonsson¹, Kyosuke Tanaka¹

¹ Department of Management, Fuglesangs Allé 4,DK-8210 Aarhus V, Denmark

This study demonstrates that the effectiveness of information infrastructures in fostering cooperation depends on their specific design, particularly the level of detail provided about others’ decisions. Across two different contexts, we found consistent patterns. Both feedback information infrastructures conditions prompted belief updating, as they provided information about the system’s state by revealing the outcomes of one’s own and others’ actions, which in turn shaped participants’ beliefs. Disaggregated feedback information led to shifts in beliefs in a less cooperative direction. In particular, disaggregated information may increase participants’ attention to discrepancies between their own beliefs and those of others, weakening their belief that cooperation (i.e., requesting a fair share) can adequately satisfy their own consumption needs. In contrast, aggregated information may reduce these differences and instead foster belief updating that promotes more cooperative decisions. These findings highlight underlying cognitive differences in how individuals attend to, process, and represent information about future alternatives, differences that align with early insights from the Carnegie School tradition.

Klíčová slova: common resources, information infrastructure, cooperation, belief

stránky: 42-43, online: 2025