I think it's more than that. It's a factor of:

1. Having bad actors in the social group that will behave selfishly to the group's overall detriment. 2. Having ineffective mechanisms for punishing bad behavior.

I've been at a few different startup where we had a shortage of office space because of our growth. But instead of some reservation system and official corporate guidelines we all managed to share effectively.

I don't remember anyone hoarding the short space but even if they had I imagine that someone would have pulled them aside and pointed out their behavior.

if you plan for it in advance, you lower the desk count to where its useful so as to save money. My current employer has started talking about moving to a new office building and hot desking etc. I've already started looking for a new job.