Escalation archetype
Open-knowledge reference entry
The escalation archetype is one of possible types of system behaviour that are known as system archetypes.
The escalation archetype is common for situations of non-cooperative games where each player can make own decisions and these decisions lead to the outcome for the player. However, when both players try to maximize their output (at the expense of the other one) they can get into a loop where each player will try harder and harder to surpass the opponent. While it can have favourable consequences it can also lead to self-destructive behaviour.
Structure
Elements of archetype
Escalation archetype system can be described using causal loop diagrams which may consist of balancing and reinforcing loops.
Balancing loop
Balancing loop is a structure representing negative feedback process. In such a structure, a change in system leads to actions that usually eliminate the effect of that change which means that the system tends to remain stable in time.
Reinforcing loop
Balancing loop is a structure representing positive feedback process. This reinforcing feedback causes that even a small change in the system can lead to huge disturbances, e.g. variable A is increased which leads to an increase of variable B which leads to another increase of A and so there might be an exponential growth over time.
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This entry incorporates text from “Escalation archetype” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.