社会网络在协调网络成员博弈中的作用：实验研究

The proposed study investigates the effect of social network on coordinating decentralized activities of agents being networked. We consider two types of decentralized activities, herding / shirking, corresponding to the situation where a player’s incentive to take a certain action increases / decreases if more players connected to her in the network follow the same action. Typical applications include strategic customer’s adoption of compatible products under network effects (herding), and the supply of informational goods in P2P networks (shirking). We shall examine laboratory experiments on herding and shirking in which each player engages with an exogenously connected subset of the player population, the pattern of connections defining a social network. We address the question: How does the social network structure leverage the outcomes of herding and shirking, and foster socially beneficial behavior in strategic contexts? In theory, the player’s choice in equilibrium is influenced by both her local network and the global network, and the pattern of influence robust to the degree of rationality of the players involved. The laboratory experiments we designed aim to test the local and global network effects. We plan on gathering experimental data, and explaining the rationale of subjects behavior from the perspective of bounded rationality.

本项目旨在通过实验研究社会网络在协调网络成员自主性决策方面的作用。我们考察两类由自主性决策产生的博弈问题，从众(herding) / 规避(shirking)，分别指代决策者采取某一行动的动机随采取相同行动的网络邻居的数量增加而升高/降低的情形。典型的例子包括网络效应下消费者产品购买（从众），以及P2P网络中信息产品的提供（规避）。本研究的核心问题即是社会网络的结构如何决定网络中成员博弈的结果，以及何种社会网络能够促使个体作出符合整体利益的选择。在理论中，网络结构对个体决策影响可分解为个体网效应和整体网效应，且这些网络效应对不同理性程度的参与者均适用。我们计划以实验手段检验上述网络效应，并从被试的有限理性出发，解释实验现象背后的行为动因。