Backyard Housing And The Dynamics Of Collective Action

UCL Uncovering Politics · Oct 12, 2023 · 35m

Many people in South Africa live in very unsatisfactory so-called ‘backyard dwellings’. But few take part in collective action to improve their lot. Why not?

This puzzle centres on the broader idea known to social scientists as the ‘collective action problem’, that people often struggle to work together to achieve a common goal, leading to suboptimal outcomes. This has long been explored by scholars and is ever-present in our lives: in explanations, for example, of low voter turnout, depletion of natural resources, and foot-dragging in action to tackle climate change.

Yet collective action…