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How Democracy Resolves Conflict in Difficult Games

In: Games, Groups, and the Global Good

Author

Listed:
  • Steven J. Brams

    (New York University)

  • D. Marc Kilgour

    (New York University)

Abstract

Democracy resolves conflicts in difficult games like prisoners’ dilemma and chicken by stabilizing their cooperative outcomes. It does so by transforming these games into games in which voters are presented with a choice between a cooperative outcome and a Pareto-inferior noncooperative outcome. In the transformed game, it is always rational for voters to vote for the cooperative outcome, because cooperation is a weakly dominant strategy independent of the decision rule and the number of voters who choose it. Such games are illustrated by 2-person and n-person public-goods games, in which it is optimal to be a free rider, and a biblical story from the book of Exodus.

Suggested Citation

  • Steven J. Brams & D. Marc Kilgour, 2009. "How Democracy Resolves Conflict in Difficult Games," Springer Series in Game Theory, in: Simon A. Levin (ed.), Games, Groups, and the Global Good, pages 229-241, Springer.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:spschp:978-3-540-85436-4_14
    DOI: 10.1007/978-3-540-85436-4_14
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Leeson, Peter T., 2010. "Rational choice, Round Robin, and rebellion: An institutional solution to the problems of revolution," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 73(3), pages 297-307, March.
    2. repec:cup:cbooks:9780521555838 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Robert Sugden, 2009. "Neither Self-interest Nor Self-sacrifice: The Fraternal Morality of Market Relationships," Springer Series in Game Theory, in: Simon A. Levin (ed.), Games, Groups, and the Global Good, pages 259-283, Springer.
    4. I. D. Hill, 2008. "Mathematics and Democracy: Designing Better Voting and Fair‐division Procedures," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 171(4), pages 1032-1033, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Tatsuyoshi Saijo & Takehito Masuda & Takafumi Yamakawa, 2018. "Approval mechanism to solve prisoner’s dilemma: comparison with Varian’s compensation mechanism," Social Choice and Welfare, Springer;The Society for Social Choice and Welfare, vol. 51(1), pages 65-77, June.
    2. Peter J. Wood, 2010. "Climate Change and Game Theory: A Mathematical Survey," CCEP Working Papers 0210, Centre for Climate & Energy Policy, Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.
    3. Brams, Steven J. & Kilgour, D. Marc, 2012. "Inducible Games: Using Tit-for-Tat to Stabilize Outcomes," MPRA Paper 41773, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Wood, Peter John, 2010. "Climate Change and Game Theory: a Mathematical Survey," Working Papers 249379, Australian National University, Centre for Climate Economics & Policy.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Nash Equilibrium; Public Good; Dominant Strategy; Free Rider; Vote Game;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D7 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making
    • D6 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics
    • C72 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - Noncooperative Games

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