Stochastic Game Analysis of Cooperation and Selfishness in a Random Access Mechanism

Ahmed Boujnoui, Abdellah Zaaloul, Luis Orozco-Barbosa and Abdelkrim Haqiq
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Ahmed Boujnoui: Albacete Research Institute of Informatics, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, 02071 Albacete, Spain
Abdellah Zaaloul: Computer, Networks, Mobility and Modeling Laboratory (IR2M), Faculty of Sciences and Techniques, Hassan First University of Settat, Settat 26000, Morocco
Luis Orozco-Barbosa: Albacete Research Institute of Informatics, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, 02071 Albacete, Spain
Abdelkrim Haqiq: Computer, Networks, Mobility and Modeling Laboratory (IR2M), Faculty of Sciences and Techniques, Hassan First University of Settat, Settat 26000, Morocco

Mathematics, 2022, vol. 10, issue 5, 1-21

Abstract: This paper introduces a general stochastic game analysis of a network scenario consisting of a mix of cooperative and non-cooperative players (i.e., users) under incomplete game information. Users access a shared channel using the Slotted ALOHA mechanism combined with ZigZag Decoding (SAZD). Cooperative players seek to optimize the global utility of the system (e.g., throughput, delay, loss rate) regardless of their individual interests, whereas non-cooperative players act selfishly and optimize their own benefits irrespective of the impact of this behavior on others and on the entire network system. The game equilibrium is characterized by the social optimum and the Nash equilibrium, where the former is adopted by cooperative players and the latter is the equilibrium strategy of non-cooperative players. We undertake a comparative study across two game scenarios with different levels of cooperation and selfishness. Our results generally show that the information possessed by a player can determine the outcome. Furthermore, our findings show that the network performance is strongly influenced by selfish behavior, which can lead to a significant disruption of the entire system. Finally, we show a possible scenario in which the network could greatly benefit from this selfish behavior thanks to the ZigZag scheme.

Keywords: cooperation; selfishness; stochastic games; mixed strategy; Nash equilibrium; social optimal (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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