IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/joevec/v26y2016i5d10.1007_s00191-016-0476-2.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Evolutionary learning and the stability of wage posting equilibria

Author

Listed:
  • Robert Jump

    (Kingston University)

Abstract

This paper presents results on the stability of the wage dispersion model presented in Mortensen (2003). Specifically, four learning processes are tested on a single parameterisation of the underlying model, and the most successful is submitted to a sensitivity analysis. The results illustrate an important problem in evolutionary dynamics first highlighted in Nelson and Winter (1982) - that to play a role in equilibrium, a strategy must be consistent with a previous disequilibrium. The results are ambiguous concerning the applicability of the equilibrium method of Mortensen (2003), as some of the learning processes are stable, whilst others are extremely unstable and exhibit complex dynamics.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert Jump, 2016. "Evolutionary learning and the stability of wage posting equilibria," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 26(5), pages 1117-1135, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:joevec:v:26:y:2016:i:5:d:10.1007_s00191-016-0476-2
    DOI: 10.1007/s00191-016-0476-2
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00191-016-0476-2
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s00191-016-0476-2?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Varian, Hal R, 1980. "A Model of Sales," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 70(4), pages 651-659, September.
    2. Ed Hopkins & Robert M. Seymour, 2002. "The Stability of Price Dispersion under Seller and Consumer Learning," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 43(4), pages 1157-1190, November.
    3. Cason, Timothy N. & Friedman, Daniel & Wagener, Florian, 2005. "The dynamics of price dispersion, or Edgeworth variations," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 801-822, April.
    4. Roger Waldeck & Eric Darmon, 2006. "Can boundedly rational sellers learn to play Nash?," Journal of Economic Interaction and Coordination, Springer;Society for Economic Science with Heterogeneous Interacting Agents, vol. 1(2), pages 147-169, November.
    5. Assenza, Tiziana & Delli Gatti, Domenico & Grazzini, Jakob, 2015. "Emergent dynamics of a macroeconomic agent based model with capital and credit," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 5-28.
    6. Burdett, Kenneth & Judd, Kenneth L, 1983. "Equilibrium Price Dispersion," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 51(4), pages 955-969, July.
    7. Alberto Russo & Luca Riccetti & Mauro Gallegati, 2016. "Increasing inequality, consumer credit and financial fragility in an agent based macroeconomic model," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 26(1), pages 25-47, March.
    8. Ratul, Lahkar, 2011. "The dynamic instability of dispersed price equilibria," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 146(5), pages 1796-1827, September.
    9. Burdett, Kenneth & Mortensen, Dale T, 1998. "Wage Differentials, Employer Size, and Unemployment," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 39(2), pages 257-273, May.
    10. Diamond, Peter A., 1971. "A model of price adjustment," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 3(2), pages 156-168, June.
    11. Roger Waldeck & Eric Darmon, 2006. "Can boundedly rational sellers learn to play Nash?," Post-Print hal-02312212, HAL.
    12. Gerard R. Butters, 1977. "Equilibrium Distributions of Sales and Advertising Prices," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 44(3), pages 465-491.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Chakrabarti, Anindya S. & Lahkar, Ratul, 2017. "Productivity dispersion and output fluctuations: An evolutionary model," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 137(C), pages 339-360.
    2. Ş. Akın & Brennan Platt, 2014. "A theory of search with deadlines and uncertain recall," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 55(1), pages 101-133, January.
    3. Sandholm, William H., 2015. "Population Games and Deterministic Evolutionary Dynamics," Handbook of Game Theory with Economic Applications,, Elsevier.
    4. Ratul, Lahkar, 2011. "The dynamic instability of dispersed price equilibria," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 146(5), pages 1796-1827, September.
    5. García-Gallego, Aurora & Georgantzís, Nikolaos & Jaramillo-Gutiérrez, Ainhoa & Pereira, Pedro & Pernías-Cerrillo, J. Carlos, 2014. "On the evolution of monopoly pricing in Internet-assisted search markets," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(5), pages 795-801.
    6. Atayev, Atabek, 2022. "Uncertain product availability in search markets," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 204(C).
    7. Benaïm, Michel & Hofbauer, Josef & Hopkins, Ed, 2009. "Learning in games with unstable equilibria," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 144(4), pages 1694-1709, July.
    8. Hämäläinen, Saara, 2018. "Competitive search obfuscation," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 38-63.
    9. Timothy N. Cason & Daniel Friedman & Ed Hopkins, 2021. "An Experimental Investigation of Price Dispersion and Cycles," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 129(3), pages 789-841.
    10. Rauh, Michael T., 2009. "Strategic complementarities and search market equilibrium," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 66(2), pages 959-978, July.
    11. Dirk Bergemann & Benjamin Brooks & Stephen Morris, 2021. "Search, Information, and Prices," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 129(8), pages 2275-2319.
    12. Kováč, Eugen & Schmidt, Robert C., 2014. "Market share dynamics in a duopoly model with word-of-mouth communication," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 178-206.
    13. Cason, Timothy N. & Friedman, Daniel, 2003. "Buyer search and price dispersion: a laboratory study," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 112(2), pages 232-260, October.
    14. Anania, Giovanni & Nisticò, Rosanna, 2014. "Price dispersion and seller heterogeneity in retail food markets," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 190-201.
    15. Glenn Ellison & Alexander Wolitzky, 2012. "A search cost model of obfuscation," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 43(3), pages 417-441, September.
    16. Carlos Carrillo‐Tudela & Guido Menzio & Eric Smith, 2011. "Job Search With Bidder Memories," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 52(3), pages 639-655, August.
    17. Timothy N. Cason & Shakun D. Mago, 2010. "Costly Buyer Search In Laboratory Markets With Seller Advertising," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(2), pages 424-449, June.
    18. Giovanni Sulis, 2008. "Wage Dispersion and Equilibrium Search Models: Some Evidence from Italy," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 22(4), pages 593-627, December.
    19. Brynjolfsson, Erik & Dick, Astrid Andrea & Smith, Michael D., 2004. "Search and Product Differentiation at an Internet Shopbot," Working papers 4441-03, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Sloan School of Management.
    20. Kyle Bagwell & Garey Ramey, 1992. "Coordination Economies," Discussion Papers 1034, Northwestern University, Center for Mathematical Studies in Economics and Management Science.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Price dispersion; Search market equilibrium; Reinforcement learning;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • B52 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Current Heterodox Approaches - - - Historical; Institutional; Evolutionary; Modern Monetary Theory;
    • C63 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Mathematical Methods; Programming Models; Mathematical and Simulation Modeling - - - Computational Techniques
    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:joevec:v:26:y:2016:i:5:d:10.1007_s00191-016-0476-2. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.