Paradoxical effects of social behavior

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In the history of science, "paradoxes" serve as both intriguing puzzles and catalysts for scientific progress. The concept of "paradox" is closely linked to "contradiction." Logical paradoxes enable the derivation of contradictory statements, such as Russell's set of all sets that do not contain themselves, or the classic "I am lying" proposition. Normative paradoxes involve contradictions among well-accepted normative principles, exemplified by Arrow's impossibility theorem and Sen's impossibility of a Paretian liberal. Factual paradoxes highlight conflicts between widely accepted empirical theories and contradictory evidence, like the St. Petersburg paradox or the Allais paradox in decision theory. All types of paradoxes challenge our intuitions, a counter-intuitive aspect that is particularly significant in empirical social sciences. This is especially evident in the tradition of examining the unintended consequences of purposeful actions. Naive theories that overlook interdependencies between individual actions often clash with surprising empirical evidence regarding collective social behavior. Numerous examples illustrate this, from panic situations and individual status struggles leading to collective deprivation, to the suboptimal provision of public goods and global issues like the arms race and mismanagement of shared resources.