The most well-known example of this in philosophy is Immanuel Kant’s categorical imperative: “Act only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law.” This can be analogized to the prisoner’s dilemma. If we both agree to cooperate, to act morally, then we wind up collectively better off than if we just act selfishly. Indeed, much conventional morality comes from society’s need to discourage selfish behavior, and I worry about upending that artifice.[*16]
