That's the kicker though, and it's the lever the dilemma orchestrators (here, the Feds) have to force a result: smooth out any real-life considerations by making the payoff matrix more extreme. If the cost of failure is life in prison, "slightly increase" and "won't always work" isn't gonna cut it - they can practically guarantee the prisoners will make a specific choice.
That's the kicker though, and it's the lever the dilemma orchestrators (here, the Feds) have to force a result: smooth out any real-life considerations by making the payoff matrix more extreme. If the cost of failure is life in prison, "slightly increase" and "won't always work" isn't gonna cut it - they can practically guarantee the prisoners will make a specific choice.