In short it can be described as: [^1] > When a person can enjoy the benefits of a group’s efforts whether they contribute or not, there’s an incentive to let others do the work. The problem was widely described in [Governing the Commons](https://www.amazon.pl/dp/1107569788): > Whenever one person cannot be excluded from the benefits that others provide, each person is motivated not to contribute to the joint effort, but to **free-ride** on the efforts of others. If all participants choose to **free-ride**, the [[Collective|collective]] benefit will not be produced. > > The temptation to **free-ride**, however, may dominate the decision process, and thus all will end up where no one wanted to be. I find the part `cannot be excluded` crucial and explaining why certain [[Collective|collectives]] are actually struggling, as the is no option of [[Ostracism|ostracism]] and individuals are aware of it. [^1]: first read on [Sketchplenations](https://sketchplanations.substack.com/p/the-free-rider-problem)