| Article ID: | iaor2000213 |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Volume: | 398 |
| Issue: | 6726 |
| Start Page Number: | 367 |
| End Page Number: | 368 |
| Publication Date: | Apr 1999 |
| Journal: | Nature |
| Authors: | Nowak Martin A., Sigmund Karl |
| Keywords: | game theory |
The prisoner's dilemma is a classic of game theory in which acting for individual advantage is pitted against acting for collective benefit. An example has been identified among clones of a virus that infects bacteria.