The teamwork choice
Story: You and a partner can go for a big reward together, or each take a smaller safe reward alone.
Imagine you and a friend are hunters. There are two things you can hunt today:
The Stag — a big deer worth 4 points to each of you. But you can only catch it if you both work together. One hunter alone can’t do it.
The Hare — a small rabbit worth 3 points to whoever catches it. You can get this alone, no teamwork needed.
Here’s the full picture:
| Partner hunts stag | Partner hunts hare | |
|---|---|---|
| You hunt stag | You: 4 pts, Partner: 4 pts | You: 0 pts, Partner: 3 pts |
| You hunt hare | You: 3 pts, Partner: 0 pts | You: 2 pts, Partner: 2 pts |
Play the Hunt
Two answers can both make sense
Here’s what’s interesting about this game — it has two perfectly good answers:
Answer 1: Both hunt stag → both get 4 points. This is the best possible result! But it only works if you trust each other.
Answer 2: Both hunt hare → both get 2 points. This is safe. No trust needed.
Big idea: the best group result is not always the choice that feels safest to each person.
The trust question
This game is really about trust and expectations:
- If you’re sure your partner goes for the stag, you should too. You’ll both get 4 points — great!
- If you’re not sure what your partner will do, hunting hare is safer. Even alone, you get 3 points.
- Hunting stag alone when your partner bails is the worst outcome: 0 points.
In real life, this shows up whenever teamwork creates a bigger reward:
- two classmates making a project together
- two players practicing a play together
- two friends saving for a shared goal
The hard part is usually not the math. It is building trust.
Practice
If both players hunt stag, what does each one get?
Both hunting stag → 4 points each. This is the highest reward in the game, but only works when both commit.
You hunt stag, your partner hunts hare. What do you get?
Hunting stag alone gets you 0 points — your effort is wasted without a partner. Your partner safely bags a hare for 3 points.
In the Stag Hunt, why might someone choose hare even if stag pays more when both cooperate?
If you're not sure your partner will show up for the stag hunt, hare gives you a guaranteed 3 points. Hunting stag alone gives 0 — the worst outcome. Safety first when trust is uncertain.
Both hunting hare gives 2 points each. Both hunting stag gives 4 points each. If you could talk to your partner before choosing, what would you suggest?
4 > 2 — if you can coordinate and trust each other, both hunting stag is the better deal for everyone.