Learning about learning in games through experimental control of strategic interdependence

Jason Shachat and J. Swarthout

Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, 2012, vol. 36, issue 3, 383-402

Abstract: We report results from an experiment in which humans repeatedly play one of two games against a computer program that follows either a reinforcement or an experience weighted attraction learning algorithm. Our experiment shows these learning algorithms detect exploitable opportunities more sensitively than humans. Also, learning algorithms respond to detected payoff-increasing opportunities systematically; however, the responses are too weak to improve the algorithms' payoffs. Human play against various decision maker types does not vary significantly. These factors lead to a strong linear relationship between the humans' and algorithms' action choice proportions that is suggestive of the algorithms' best response correspondences.

Keywords: Learning; Repeated games; Experiments; Simulation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C72 C81 C92 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165188911001801
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
Working Paper: Learning about learning in games through experimental control of strategic interdependence (2013)
Working Paper: Learning about learning in games through experimental control of strategic interdependence (2011)
Working Paper: Learning about Learning in Games through Experimental Control of Strategic Interdependence (2008)
Working Paper: Learning about Learning in Games through Experimental Control of Strategic Interdependence (2003)
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:dyncon:v:36:y:2012:i:3:p:383-402

DOI: 10.1016/j.jedc.2011.09.007

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control is currently edited by J. Bullard, C. Chiarella, H. Dawid, C. H. Hommes, P. Klein and C. Otrok

More articles in Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().