tragedy of the commons
Definition
Archetypical social phenomenon where an attempt to exploit others (or 'the system') in one way or the other eventually turns out to be self-defeating. In a welfare state with a safety net, for example, if a significantly high number of unemployed but eligible workers choose to live on the unemployment benefits, the whole social security structure will collapse because no money will be left to sustain it.
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tragedy of the commons is in the Decision Making, Problem Solving, & Strategy and Systems & Methodologies subjects.
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