dilemma

A dilemma (from ancient Greek διλήμματος dilēmmatos “consisting of two sentences”; late Greek as a neuter or its own word δίλημμα dílemma “a kind of ending by which the opponent is caught from two sides, he may admit it or not”; plural dilemmas or Germanized dilemmas ), also called a dilemma , describes a situation that offers two choices, both of which lead to an undesirable result. It is perceived as paradoxical due to its hopelessness . Being forced to choose between two positive options can also be a dilemma. If there are three possibilities one speaks of a trilemma , if there are more than three possibilities of a polylemma . The mistaken assumption that you are in a dilemma is called a false dilemma .

Types

The positive dilemma (also the constructive dilemma ) leads to the same result for every decision chosen.

In the notation of Boolean algebra this can be represented as follows:

{\ displaystyle p \ Rightarrow q; \, r \ Rightarrow q; \ qquad p \ lor r \ Rightarrow q}

(In words: p leads to q; r leads to q; p or r leads to q.)

Example: Two different therapy methods, each leading to recovery. Regardless of which method is chosen - the patient gets well.

The negative dilemma (also destructive dilemma ) destroys itself through the impossibility of a decision.

{\ displaystyle p \ Rightarrow q; \, p \ Rightarrow r; \ qquad (\ neg q) \ lor (\ neg r) \ Rightarrow \ neg p}

(In words: p leads to q; p leads to r; not -q or not-r implies not-p.)

Example: Two patients and only one dose of the antidote for their disease. Now the question or the dilemma is: who do you give the antidote and who do you let die? (See triage .)

Examples

A classic dilemma: Johann Heinrich Füssli : Odysseus between Scylla and Charybdis , around 1794/96, Aargauer Kunsthaus Aarau

Prisoner's Dilemma

A classic example from the history of philosophy is the " Prisoner's Dilemma " (Original: Prisoner's dilemma ): A public prosecutor proposes a deal to two detainees on remand. They have already been proven to have committed a minor crime, but are charged with another jointly committed one. If both are silent, they will only be punished for the proven crime (e.g. one year). However, if one of them confesses the main offense, which has not yet been proven, he or she is rewarded with impunity, while the other receives a much higher sentence (e.g. ten years). If both confess, then both will receive a heavy sentence (e.g. five years).

The paradox is the divergence between individual and social rationality : It is socially rational when both prisoners are silent (and only have to serve one year each). On the other hand, it is individually rational for each of the two prisoners to make a confession, regardless of how the other decides. If the other confesses, it is better to confess too. If the other is silent, it is better to confess. Together, they both receive a ten-year sentence.

However, this strategy is also only rational for a single encounter. If the two participants are likely to come into the same situation several times, it can make sense to behave cooperatively and thus give the other a reason to do the same. This was shown, among other things, by a computer simulation in which the strategy won tit for tat .

The Prisoner's Dilemma exists in a number of variations; The underlying system has also gained importance in economics as an explanatory model in duopoly and game theory . It makes a contribution to understanding and predicting the price-setting behavior of two (competing) providers.

Buridan's donkey

A dilemma can also arise from the fact that one cannot choose between two positive options because the necessity of choosing makes a result impossible. A classic example is the dilemma of Buridan's donkey, which stood between two exactly the same haystacks and starved to death, since it could not decide for either of the two for lack of a plausible reason to eat either from the left or from the right.

literature

Martin Cohen: 99 Moral Dilemmas - An entertaining introduction to the philosophy of right action. Piper Verlag GmbH, Munich 2005, ISBN 3-492-24515-3 .
William Poundstone: Prisoner's Dilemma: John von Neumann , Game Theory and the Puzzle of the Bomb. Anchor Books, US; Reprint (February 1993). ISBN 038541580X .

Web links

Wiktionary: Dilemma - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Didactic advice on promoting ethical judgment with the help of the dilemma method in the classroom: dilemma methods , teaching unit

Individual evidence

^ Wilhelm Pape : Wilhelm Pape, Max Sengebusch (arr.): Concise dictionary of the Greek language. 3rd edition, 6th impression, Vieweg & Sohn, Braunschweig 1914. 1914, accessed on May 3, 2016 .

[1] Wilhelm Pape : Wilhelm Pape, Max Sengebusch (arr.): Concise dictionary of the Greek language. 3rd edition, 6th impression, Vieweg & Sohn, Braunschweig 1914. 1914, accessed on May 3, 2016 .