Groups of people perform acts that are subject to standards of rationality. A committee may sensibly award fellowships, or may irrationally award them in violation of its own policies. A theory of collective rationality defines collective acts that are evaluable for rationality and formulates principles for their evaluation. This book argues that a group's act is evaluable for rationality if it is the products of acts its members fully control. It also argues that such an act is collectively rational if the acts of the group's members are rational. Efficiency is a goal of collective rationality, but not a requirement, except in cases where conditions are ideal for joint action and agents have rationally prepared for joint action.
The people engaged in a game of strategy form a group, and the combination of their acts yields a collective act. If their collective act is rational, it constitutes a solution to their game. A theory of collective rationality yields principles concerning solutions to games. One principle requires that a solution constitute an equilibrium among the incentives of the agents in the game. In a cooperative game some agents are coalitions of individuals, and it may be impossible for all agents to pursue all incentives. Because rationality is attainable, the appropriate equilibrium standard for cooperative games requires that agents pursue only incentives that provide sufficient reasons to act. The book's theory of collective rationality supports an attainable equilibrium-standard for solutions to cooperative games and shows that its realization follows from individuals' rational acts.
By extending the theory of rationality to groups, this book reveals the characteristics that make an act evaluable for rationality and the way rationality's evaluation of an act responds to the type of control its agent exercises over the act. The book's theory of collective rationality contributes to philosophical projects such as contractarian ethics and to practical projects such as the design of social institutions.

Useful Tools to Help Solve Decision Making Problems Applied Game Theory and Strategic Behavior demonstrates the use of various game theory techniques to address practical business, economic, legal, and public policy issues. It also illustrates the benefits of employing strategic thinking that incorporates the uncertainty surrounding the behavior of other parties. Real-world applications of game theoryExploring a variety of games, the book outlines the process of modeling game theory questions while thinking strategically. It introduces core concepts through simple examples and case studies taken from the authors' consulting work in the automotive, beer, wine, and spirits industries as well as in debates over government regulation. The authors include newly developed software applications that can construct and solve game theory models and present strategic options in clear, visual diagrams. Out of the box and into the business worldStriking the right balance between necessary mathematics and practical applications, this book shows how game theory can be used in real life, not just in mathematical models. It helps readers improve their strategic thinking, define games based on actual situations, model games with payoffs and probabilities, and make strategically sound decisions.

Focal Points in Negotiation is the first work of its kind to analyze the use of focal points beyond the controlled setting of the laboratory or the stylized context of mathematical game theory, in the real world of negotiation. It demonstrates that there are many more ways focal points influence real life situations than the specific, predetermined roles ascribed to them by game theory and rational choice. The book establishes this by identifying the numerous different, often decisive, modes in which focal points function in the various phases of complex negotiations. In doing so, it also demonstrates the necessity of a thorough understanding of focal points for mediators, negotiators, and others. A scholarly work in nature, Focal Points in Negotiation is also suitable for use in the classroom and accessible for a multidisciplinary audience.

This textbook for master programs in economics offers a comprehensive overview of microeconomics. It employs a carefully graded approach where basic game theory concepts are already explained within the simpler decision framework. The unavoidable mathematical content is supplied when needed, not in an appendix. The book covers a lot of ground, from decision theory to game theory, from bargaining to auction theory, from household theory to oligopoly theory, and from the theory of general equilibrium to regulation theory. Additionally, cooperative game theory is introduced. This textbook has been recommended and developed for university courses in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

This book addresses complex real-world problems with recent techniques. It comprises selected papers from the XX. congress APDIO held in Tomar, Portugal, in July 2019. The subject of the book is the application of operational research methodologies and techniques to address complex real problems. Readers will find interesting results and applications of operational research methods and techniques in the wide variety of the addressed problems. Of particular interest are the applications of, among others, linear, nonlinear and mixed-integer programing, multiobjective optimization, metaheuristics and hybrid heuristics, multicriteria decision analysis, data envelopment analysis, clustering techniques and decision support systems, in different areas such as supply chain management, scheduling problems, production management, logistics, energy, telecommunications and finance and health. In most chapters of the book, the described problems, methods and methodologies will be illustrated by auxiliary figures and tables, as well as algorithms. The main benefit of this book is to present the latest trends in operational research methods and methodologies by top Portuguese and international researchers. The book will present a wide scope of complex real-world applications addressed by recent theoretical techniques that aim to narrow the gap between academic researchers and practitioners.

This book is devoted to problems of stochastic control and stopping that are time inconsistent in the sense that they do not admit a Bellman optimality principle. These problems are cast in a game-theoretic framework, with the focus on subgame-perfect Nash equilibrium strategies. The general theory is illustrated with a number of finance applications.In dynamic choice problems, time inconsistency is the rule rather than the exception. Indeed, as Robert H. Strotz pointed out in his seminal 1955 paper, relaxing the widely used ad hoc assumption of exponential discounting gives rise to time inconsistency. Other famous examples of time inconsistency include mean-variance portfolio choice and prospect theory in a dynamic context. For such models, the very concept of optimality becomes problematic, as the decision maker's preferences change over time in a temporally inconsistent way. In this book, a time-inconsistent problem is viewed as a non-cooperative game between the agent's current and future selves, with the objective of finding intrapersonal equilibria in the game-theoretic sense. A range of finance applications are provided, including problems with non-exponential discounting, mean-variance objective, time-inconsistent linear quadratic regulator, probability distortion, and market equilibrium with time-inconsistent preferences. Time-Inconsistent Control Theory with Finance Applications offers the first comprehensive treatment of time-inconsistent control and stopping problems, in both continuous and discrete time, and in the context of finance applications. Intended for researchers and graduate students in the fields of finance and economics, it includes a review of the standard time-consistent results, bibliographical notes, as well as detailed examples showcasing time inconsistency problems. For the reader unacquainted with standard arbitrage theory, an appendix provides a toolbox of material needed for the book.

This book presents an interdisciplinary approach to conflict solution focusing on a very specific type of conflict, retributive conflicts . It is unique in the treatment of these and how relative measurement is used to find equilibrium solutions. The authors present an alternative process to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They do so in two ways that are different from past efforts. The first is by formally structuring the conflict and the second is the manner in which discussions were conducted and conclusions drawn. The approach will help create a solution and provide negotiators with a unique pathway to consider the thorny issues and corresponding concessions underlying the deliberations, together with their implementation. The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) provides a way to conflict solution with the participation of negotiators for the parties. It is a positive approach that makes it possible to reason and express feelings and judgments with numerical intensities to derive priorities. With the assistance of panels of Israeli participants and Palestinian participants brought together in 2006 to 2017, AHP was applied for the first time in a group setting to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The process makes it clear that moderation in different degrees by both sides is essential to arrive at acceptable agreements on concessions proposed and agreed upon by both sides.

Focusing on deterministic models in discrete time, this concise yet rigorous textbook provides a clear and systematic introduction to the theory and application of dynamic economic models. It guides students through the most popular model structures and solution concepts, from the simplest dynamic economic models through to complex problems of optimal policy design in dynamic general equilibrium frameworks. Chapters feature theorems and practical hints, and seventy-five worked examples highlight the various methods and results that can be applied in dynamic economic models. Notation and formulation is uniform throughout, so students can easily discern the similarities and differences between various model classes. Chapters include more than sixty exercises for students to self-test their analytical skills, and password-protected solutions are available for instructors on the companion website. Assuming no prior knowledge of dynamic economic analysis or dynamic optimization, this textbook is ideal for advanced students in economics.

In recent decades game theory - the mathematics of rational decision-making by interacting individuals - has assumed a central place in our understanding of capitalist markets, the evolution of social behavior in animals, and even the ethics of altruism and fairness in human beings. With game theory's ubiquity, however, has come a great deal of misunderstanding Critics of the contemporary social sciences view it as part of an unwelcome trend toward the marginalization of historicist and interpretive styles of inquiry, and many accuse its proponents of presenting a thin and empirically dubious view of human choice. The World the Game Theorists Made seeks to explain the ascendency of game theory, focusing on the poorly understood period between the publication of John von Neumann and Oscar Morgenstern's seminal Theory of Games and Economic Behavior in 1944 and the theory's revival in economics in the 1980s. Drawing on a diverse collection of institutional archives, personal correspondence and papers, and interviews, Paul Erickson shows how game theory offered social scientists, biologists, military strategists, and others a common, flexible language that could facilitate wide-ranging thought and debate on some of the most critical issues of the day.

This book, following the three published volumes of the book, provides the main purpose to collect research papers and review papers to provide an overview of the main issues, results, and open questions in the cutting-edge research on the fields of modeling, optimization, and dynamics and their applications to biology, economy, energy, industry, physics, psychology and finance. Assuming the scientific relevance of the presenting innovative applications as well as merging issues in these areas, the purpose of this book is to collect papers of the world experts in mathematics, economics, and other applied sciences that is seminal to the future research developments. The majority of the papers presented in this book is authored by the participants in The Joint Meeting 6th International Conference on Dynamics, Games, and Science - DGSVI - JOLATE and in the 21st ICABR Conference. The scientific scope of the conferences is focused on the fields of modeling, optimization, and dynamics and their applications to biology, economy, energy, industry, physics, psychology, and finance. Assuming the scientific relevance of the presenting innovative applications as well as merging issues in these areas, the purpose of the conference is to bring together some of the world experts in mathematics, economics, and other applied sciences that reinforce ongoing projects and establish future works and collaborations.

Insurance Economics brings together the economic analysis of decision making under risk, risk management and demand for insurance among individuals and corporations, objectives pursued and management tools used by insurance companies, the regulation of insurance, and the division of labor between private and social insurance. Appropriate both for advanced undergraduate and graduate students of economics, management, and finance, this text provides the background required to understand current research. Predictions derived from theoretical arguments are not merely stated, but also related to empirical evidence. Throughout the book, conclusions summarize key results, helping readers to check their knowledge and comprehension. Issues discussed include paradoxes in decision making under risk and attempts at their resolution, moral hazard and adverse selection including the possibility of a "death spiral", and future challenges to both private and social insurance such as globalization and the availability of genetic information. This second edition has been extensively revised. Most importantly, substantial content has been added to represent the evolution of risk-related research. A new chapter, Insurance Demand II: Nontraditional Approaches, provides a timely addition in view of recent developments in risk theory and insurance. Previous discussions of Enterprise Risk Management, long-term care insurance, adverse selection, and moral hazard have all been updated. In an effort to expand the global reach of the text, evidence and research from the U.S. and China have also been added.

This book, published in honor of Professor Laurent Praly on the occasion of his 65th birthday, explores the responses of some leading international authorities to new challenges in nonlinear and adaptive control. The mitigation of the effects of uncertainty and nonlinearity - ubiquitous features of real-world engineering and natural systems - on closed-loop stability and robustness being of crucial importance, the contributions report the latest research into overcoming these difficulties in: autonomous systems; reset control systems; multiple-input-multiple-output nonlinear systems; input delays; partial differential equations; population games; and data-driven control. Trends in Nonlinear and Adaptive Control presents research inspired by and related to Professor Praly's lifetime of contributions to control theory and is a valuable addition to the literature of advanced control.

Game theory explains how to make good choices when different decision makers have conflicting interests. The classical approach assumes that decision makers are committed to making the best choices for themselves regardless of the effect on others, but such an approach is less appropriate when cooperation, compromise and negotiation are important. This book describes conditional games, a form of game theory that accommodates multiple stakeholder decision-making scenarios where cooperation and negotiation are significant issues and where notions of concordant group behavior are important. Using classical binary preference relations as a point of departure, the book extends the concept of a preference ordering that permits stakeholders to modulate their preferences as functions of the preferences of others. As these conditional preferences propagate through a group of decision makers, they create social bonds that lead to notions of group concordance. This book is intended for all students and researchers of decision theory and game theory.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 22nd International Conference on Group Decision and Negotiation, GDN 2022, which was held virtually during June 12-16, 2022. The field of Group Decision and Negotiation focuses on decision processes with at least two participants and a common goal but conflicting individual goals. Research areas of Group Decision and Negotiation include electronic negotiations, experiments, the role of emotions in group decision and negotiations, preference elicitation and decision support for group decisions and negotiations, and conflict resolution principles. This year's conference focusses on methodological and practical issues. The 9 full papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 68 submissions. They were organized in the following topical sections: Preference modeling for group decision and negotiation; conflict resolution; collaborative decision making processes.

This book contains international perspectives that unifies the themes of strategic management, decision theory, and data science. It contains thought-provoking presentations of case studies backed by adequate analysis adding significance to the discussions. Most of the decision-making models in use do take due advantage of collection and processing of relevant data using appropriate analytics oriented to provide inputs into effective decision-making. The book showcases applications in diverse fields including banking and insurance, portfolio management, inventory analysis, performance assessment of comparable economic agents, managing utilities in a health-care facility, reducing traffic snarls on highways, monitoring achievement of some of the sustainable development goals in a country or state, and similar other areas that showcase policy implications. It holds immense value for researchers as well as professionals responsible for organizational decisions.

The Price is Right is television’s longest-running game show. Since its inception in 1956, contestants have won cars, tropical vacations, diamond jewelry, even a live horse, and the hosts’ excited catchphrase “come on down!” has become part of our everyday vernacular. Part of the program’s enduring appeal is the apparent ease of the game, guessing the cash value of certain prizes. But, if that’s the case, then why do so many contestants come away from the show empty-handed? Solving The Price is Right is an in-depth exploration of the underlying probability theory of the popular television program that explores how biases and behavioral pitfalls limit our ability to successfully apply logic and math both on and off the show. With rigorous data and analysis compiled from Seasons 47 and 48 (356 total episodes), economist and popular mathematician Justin L. Bergner draws strategic and mathematical insights from all facets of the show, from Contestant’s Row bidding to the Showcase Showdown, and all 77 Pricing Games, using a combination of game theory, probability theory, statistics, and pattern recognition. In each section, Bergner summarizes contestant performance, highlights the biases leading to sub-par outcomes, and shows how outcomes can be improved by executing the right strategies while avoiding cognitive biases. Throughout, Bergner applies the lessons learned to the fields of business, finance, and our real lives, shedding light on themes of reverse psychology, strategic patience, and the importance of establishing what is sufficient for success in our pursuits. The result is a truly unique and meticulously researched book that uses Solving The Price is Right as a lens to examine our own choices – and how to make better ones.

This book presents the fundamentals of evolutionary game theory and applies them to the analysis of epidemics, which is of paramount importance in the aftermath of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. The primary objective of this monograph is to deliver a powerful tool to model and analyze the spread of an infectious disease during a pandemic as well as the human decision dynamics. The book employs a variant of the "vaccination game," in which a mathematical epidemiological model dovetails with evolutionary game theory. From a social physics standpoint, this book introduces an extended concept of the vaccination game starting from the fundamental issues and touching on the newest practical applications. The book first outlines the fundamental basis of evolutionary game theory, in which a two-player and two-strategy game, the so-called 2 x 2 game, and a multi-player game are concisely introduced, and the important issue of how social dilemmas are quantified is highlighted. Subsequently, the book discusses various recent applications of the extended concept of the vaccination game so as to quantitatively evaluate provisions other than vaccination, including practical intermediate protective measures such as mask-wearing, efficiency of quarantine compared with that of isolation policies for suppressing epidemics, efficiency of preemptive versus late vaccination, and optimal subsidy policies for vaccination.

This book includes the best studies on the results of the International Scientific and Practical Conference "New behaviors of market players in the digital economy," which was held by the Institute of Scientific Communications on July 8, 2021, online, in YouTube format. This book is devoted to the study of digital economy markets from the standpoint of various market players-society (consumers), entrepreneurship, and the state-from the standpoint of various sciences-economic, managerial, social, and legal-which ensures the multidisciplinarity of the book. The uniqueness of the book lies in the application of a new scientific and methodological approach to the study of digital economy markets-simulation modeling. The advantages of a game-based scientific and methodological approach to reducing the uncertainty of economic processes and systems-a combination of quantitative and qualitative analytical methods, a systematic consideration of economic processes and systems from a socio-economic point of view-make it especially suitable for studying digital economy markets. The book identifies the impact of globalization and digitalization on the modern economy and industry markets. The trends and features of the use of advanced technologies in the digital economy markets are studied. The modern practices of business management and business integration in the digital economy are considered. The foundations of economic security and sustainable development of markets and enterprises in the digital economy are revealed. The book is suitable for scientists studying the markets of the digital economy, who will find in it scientific and methodological recommendations and developments on the application of game theory, as well as ready simulation models of the digital economy markets.

An exposition of modern game theory suitable for advanced undergraduates. The book emphasizes the ideas behind the theory rather than their mathematical expression, but defines all concepts precisely. Covers strategic, extensive, and coalitional games, and includes the topics of repeated games, bargaining theory, and evolutionary equilibrium.

An authoritative textbook based on the legendary economics course taught at the University of Chicago Price theory is a powerful analytical toolkit for measuring, explaining, and predicting human behavior in the marketplace. This incisive textbook provides an essential introduction to the subject, offering a diverse array of practical methods that empower students to learn by doing. Based on Economics 301, the legendary PhD course taught at the University of Chicago, the book emphasizes the importance of applying price theory in order to master its concepts. Chicago Price Theory features immersive chapter-length examples such as addictive goods, urban-property pricing, the consequences of prohibition, the value of a statistical life, and occupational choice. It looks at human behavior in the aggregate of an industry, region, or demographic group, but also provides models of individuals when they offer insights about the aggregate. The book explains the surprising answers that price theory can provide to practical questions about taxation, education, the housing market, government subsidies, and much more. Emphasizes the application of price theory, enabling students to learn by doing Features chapter-length examples such as addictive goods, urban-property pricing, the consequences of prohibition, and the value of a statistical life Supported by video lectures taught by Kevin M. Murphy and Gary Becker The video course enables students to learn the theory at home and practice the applications in the classroom

This textbook provides a short introduction to auction theory through exercises with detailed answer keys. Focusing on practical examples, this textbook offers over 80 exercises that predict bidders' equilibrium behaviour in different auction formats, along with the seller's strategic incentives to organize one auction format over the other. The book emphasizes game-theoretic tools, so students can apply similar tools to other auction formats. Also included are several exercises based on published articles, with the model reduced to its main elements and the question divided into several easy-to-answer parts. Little mathematical background in algebra and calculus is assumed, and most algebraic steps and simplifications are provided, making the text ideal for upper undergraduate and graduate students. The book begins with a discussion of second-price auctions, which can be studied without using calculus, and works through progressively more complicated auction scenarios: first-price auctions, all-pay auctions, third-price auctions, the Revenue Equivalence principle, common-value auctions, multi-unit auctions, and procurement auctions. Exercises in each chapter are ranked according to their difficulty, with a letter (A-C) next to the exercise title, which allows students to pace their studies accordingly. The authors also offer a list of suggested exercises for each chapter, for instructors teaching at varying levels: undergraduate, Masters, Ph.D. Providing a practical, customizable approach to auction theory, this textbook is appropriate for students of economics, finance, and business administration. This book may also be used for related classes such as game theory, market design, economics of information, contract theory, or topics in microeconomics.

All of life is a game, and evolution by natural selection is no exception. The evolutionary game theory developed in this 2005 book provides the tools necessary for understanding many of nature's mysteries, including co-evolution, speciation, extinction and the major biological questions regarding fit of form and function, diversity, procession, and the distribution and abundance of life. Mathematics for the evolutionary game are developed based on Darwin's postulates leading to the concept of a fitness generating function (G-function). G-function is a tool that simplifies notation and plays an important role developing Darwinian dynamics that drive natural selection. Natural selection may result in special outcomes such as the evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS). An ESS maximum principle is formulated and its graphical representation as an adaptive landscape illuminates concepts such as adaptation, Fisher's Fundamental Theorem of Natural Selection, and the nature of life's evolutionary game.

Dieses Lehr-, Arbeits- und UEbungsbuch ist vorrangig zum Selbststudium sowie als Begleitlekture zu Vorlesungen "Mathematik fur Wirtschaftswissenschaftler" konzipiert. Das Buch zielt vor allem auf nachhaltiges Verstehen ab und ist daher fur Studienanfanger und Praktiker gleichermassen geeignet: Mathematische Grundelemente und oekonomisch relevante mathematische Techniken werden ausfuhrlich dargestellt, begrundet und eingeubt. Zugunsten der Verstandlichkeit wird dabei punktuell auf theoretischen Ballast - etwa mathematische Details und einzelne Beweise - verzichtet. Im Anschluss werden die zunachst abstrakten Techniken zielgerichtet und sinnvoll fur oekonomische Anwendungen nutzbar gemacht. Zahlreiche Beispiele und UEbungsaufgaben sowie UEbersichtsdarstellungen runden das Gesamtpaket ab. Fur einen gelungenen Einstieg enthalt das Buch zusatzlich einen Intensiv-Bruckenkurs zur elementaren Algebra mit mehr als 500 UEbungsaufgaben, Selbstkontroll-Tests, Eingangs- und Schlusstests. Loesungshinweise zum Bruckenkurs sowie zu allen weiteren UEbungsaufgaben sind im separaten Loesungsanhang zu finden. Fur die vorliegende 18. Auflage wurde das Buch vollstandig aktualisiert und korrigiert.

In everyday life we must often reach decisions while knowing that the outcome will not only depend on our own choice, but also on the choices of others. These situations are the focus of epistemic game theory. Unlike classical game theory, it explores how people may reason about their opponents before they make their final choice in a game. Packed with examples and practical problems based on stories from everyday life, this is the first textbook to explain the principles of epistemic game theory. Each chapter is dedicated to one particular, natural way of reasoning. The book then shows how each of these ways of reasoning will affect the final choices that can rationally be made and how these choices can be found by iterative procedures. Moreover, it does so in a way that uses elementary mathematics and does not presuppose any previous knowledge of game theory.

Game theory is concerned with strategic interaction among several decision-makers. In such strategic encounters, all players are aware of the fact that their actions affect the other players. Game theory analyzes how these strategic, interactive considerations may affect the players' decisions and influence the final outcome. This textbook focuses on applications of complete-information games in economics and management, as well as in other fields such as political science, law and biology. It guides students through the fundamentals of game theory by letting examples lead the way to the concepts needed to solve them. It provides opportunities for self-study and self-testing through an extensive pedagogical apparatus of examples, questions and answers. The book also includes more advanced material suitable as a basis for seminar papers or elective topics, including rationalizability, stability of equilibria (with discrete-time dynamics), games and evolution, equilibrium selection and global games.