Hope and love in sequential games

This paper discusses how hope and love help to facilitate cooperation in sequential games by removing conflicts of interests. Rationality combined with material self-love induces players to build institutions that ensure that interests run parallel by constraining people from obtaining material goods without compensating others. In complex situations, however, substantial transaction costs may prevent organizing reciprocity between receiving and giving material goods. Broader motivations based on faith, hope, and love may then help to create cooperation in sequential games. In particular, hope and love may motivate leaders to build up the collective good of a group's social capital through acts of service.