Autonomous actions are things that individuals have to be willing and able to do, but joint actions take the commitment of all the participants. I may be willing and able to ask a stranger on the street for his name, but he may be unwilling to tell me. I may be willing and able to ask him how to find City Hall, but he may be unable to tell me. When I propose these joint projects, I am committing myself, but that doesn't mean the stranger will commit himself too. Recall that joint projects require joint purposes, which have four conditions (Chapter 7):

For A and B to commit themselves to joint purpose r:

1. Identification. A and B must identify r

2. Ability. Itmustbepossiblefor Aand Btodotheir parts in fulfilling r

3. Willingness. A and B must be willing to do their parts in fulfilling r

4. Mutual belief. A and B must each believethat1,2,3, and 4 are part of theircommon ground

It is one thing to propose a joint project and quite another to establish a joint commitment to it.

This chapter is about reaching joint commitments in the transfer of goods, as in a request and its compliance. Reaching such a commitment isn't merely a matter of getting the mechanics right – establishing what is expected of whom and when. Transferring goods is a social process that requires the management of the participants' feelings, emotions, and identities. It is shaped by some of the most intimate features of social life.