Coordination is the challenge of distinct actors being able to jointly choose their actions to achieve a favorable outcome. An example of easy coordination is coordinating to drive on the same side of the road. A hard example is coordinating everyone to move a superior yet different social media platform. Many failures of civilization are failures of coordination. A closely related concept is that of cooperation – multiple actors choosing their actions in ways that maximize collective value despite the temptation of greater short-term individual gain by acting to the detriment of the group/other actors. The Prisoner's Dilemma is the canonical cooperation/defection game, but the term is used in other games too, e.g. Stag Hunt.
Coordination and cooperation are fundamental concepts in . LessWrong discussion has long been interested in overcoming the gnarly coordination and cooperation challenges that prevent many improvements to . There is also interest because failures to coordinate/cooperate are likely causes of such as or nuclear war.
See also: ,
Another related term in this space is collective action problem.
Related Sequences: Kickstarter for Coordinated Action