Abstract :
Peer-to-peer systems are distributed systems, the functioning and performance of which implicitly requires coordination and cooperation between peers. The problem has a lot in common with the creation of public goods in social and economic systems. Therefore, we will study, what are mechanisms, which support spontaneous cooperation and the development of commonly shared behaviors ("norms"). In this connection, it is important to study the role of social mechanisms such as repeated interactions, group selection, community formation, costly punishment and group pressure, and how they allow to transform social dilemmas into interactive situations that promote collaboration and performance. It is also discussed, under what conditions social cooperation or system performance can suddenly break down. Moreover, when people stop agreeing on common norms, this is likely to produce conflict. These issues will be systematically studied within the framework of evolutionary game theoretical models. It is surprising that many aspects of complex collaboration systems, such as the outbreak and breakdown of cooperation, the formation of norms or communities, and the occurrence of conflicts can be described by a unified theoretical framework.
