Re: [Marxism] The ultimatum game.

[Shane Mage <shmage@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Apr 12, 2008, at 1:35 PM, David Picón Álvarez wrote:

> This is a game in experimental economics. There are players A and B.  
> Player
> A gets an amount of money M, that he can split between himself and B  
> in
> whatever proportion he pleases. B gets A's proposal and can accept  
> it and
> get what A gave him, or refuse it, and neither A nor B get anything.  
> The
> basic version is played only once (no iteration) and anonymously.
>
> It turns out that a few of the expected "rational" responses are not
> followed, but there is a tendency towards even or near-even splits.  
> More
> information available here:
> http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ultimatum_game&printable=yes
>
> This one, together with the dictator game, seems to be a datum in  
> favour of
> inequity aversion, and certainly against the traditional utility
> maximization theory of rational actors, with purely endogenous utility
> functions.
>
> Do you think this kind of experiment has power to expose the  
> problematic
> with the capitalist assumptions about rational agent behaviour? To  
> what
> extent does it have explanatory power, or is it just a random game?


If its a billion dollars being divided at 1000/1 everybody, I'm sure,  
would take the one.
If its ten bucks, nobody would.  If the "experiment" involved a  
continuum of values reaching into real wealth and a fixed division  
ratio I'd bet that percentage of acceptance as a function of sum to be  
divided would increase monotonically.  In accordance with "traditional  
utility maximization theory" theory as well as with common sense.  But  
one can only ask, with Wittgenstein, "is this game actually played?"

Shane Mage

"Thunderbolt steers all things...it consents and does not consent to  
be called Zeus."

Herakleitos of Ephesos




________________________________________________
YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.
Send list submissions to: Marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Set your options at: 
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40archives.econ.utah.edu