Dilemma elimination for achieving compliance

Drama theory provides a means of modelling pre-play communication: that is the exchanges which take place between parties as they collectively shape the confrontational arena within which they must eventually take decisive action. Participants communicate objects called ‘positions’ and ‘intentions’ and share their ‘doubts’ about each others’ declarations. On the basis of this ‘communicated common knowledge’ those involved, seeking to act rationally, normally experience dilemmas. These prompt them to devise frame-breaking changes that alter the form of the interaction, perhaps placing additional pressure upon some parties whilst relieving that experienced by others. At some point these changes cease and the participants play their actions, possibly using game theory to inform their individual strategies. Within this context, this paper explores the process of dilemma elimination, specifically seeing whether there may be favourable sequences that could be adopted: these would show a commander the most beneficial route for advantageously resolving confrontations with other parties. Such sequences would both reduce or eliminate the commander’s own dilemmas, whilst aggravating or otherwise engineering those facing other parties so as to render them more compliant. The paper uses a new version of drama theory (DT2) that offers a simpler but no less powerful formulation of the dilemmas which has as yet not been widely applied in any field.