The Tragedy of the Commons - Concise Encyclopedia of Economics

The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics from the online Library of Economics and Liberty is a terrific source for clearly written brief essays on many topics in economics. Below is a portion of the essay on the tragedy of the commons written by Garrett Hardin, professor emeritus of human ecology at the University of California at Santa Barbara:

As James Madison said in 1788, "If men were angels, no Government would be necessary." That is, if all men were angels. But in a world in which all resources are limited, a single nonangel in the commons spoils the environment for all.

The spoilage process comes in two stages. First, the nonangel gains from his "competitive advantage" (pursuing his own interest at the expense of others) over the angels. Then, as the once noble angels realize that they are losing out, some of them renounce their angelic behavior. They try to get their share out of the commons before competitors do. In other words, every workable distribution system must meet the challenge of human self-interest. An unmanaged commons in a world of limited material wealth and unlimited desires inevitably ends in ruin. Inevitability justifies the epithet tragedy, which I introduced in 1968.

Whenever a distribution system malfunctions, we should be on the lookout for some sort of commons.

Read the whole thing.