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Game Theory Help with Assignment

Can someone help me understand my assignment?

Write a briefing document aimed at a general audience, that identifies and
discusses strategic aspects of the topic specified below.

Topic: Neighbours and Communities
Our neighbours, and members of our local community, affect our lives in a variety of
ways. How is this interaction strategic, and what are the implications for cooperation
or conflict between neighbours and within communities?
In the course of addressing this broad question, you may wish to discuss some of the
following more specific issues: public spaces and local amenities, pollution, voluntary
associations, school quality, public safety and criminal deterrence, urban versus rural
communities, immigration, labour mobility, gentrification and neighbourhood decline,
leasehold arrangements, and the renter versus owner-occupier distinction. (Attempting
to discuss all of these issues is not recommended.)

Provide an original analysis of a strategic situation (1500 words), targeted at an audience
that has already studied elementary game theory.

The situation you examine may come from history, current affairs, your own personal
experience, or some other source; but it is important that your subject matter be original.
The situation can be hypothetical, but realism is valued and any invented scenario should
be compelling.

First, describe the relevant features of the situation and translate them into the form
of a game. In particular, think about the following questions:

• Who are the players in your game? Is there a role for “Nature”?
• What actions are available to the players, and in what sequence are these actions
taken? What information do the players have when they make their choices?
• What are the possible outcomes of the situation, and how do the players rank them?
If relevant, what are the players’ risk preferences over the outcomes?

You may need to simplify the interaction or impose assumptions in order to arrive at a
tractable model, but you should try to preserve the strategic essence of the situation.

Next, use any applicable game-theoretic tools to analyse your model, to uncover the
strategic dynamics of the situation, and to draw conclusions about the behaviour and
outcomes that might be expected. Here the goal is to demonstrate your mastery of the
concepts and techniques studied in the module, so you should select an application that
enables you to be ambitious—though without adding complications for their own sake.

Specifically, you may wish to consider the following questions:
• Can your model be enhanced by incorporating imperfect information or repeated
interaction, and if so what further understanding of the situation does this yield?
• Are you able to include one or more parameters (controlling preferences, beliefs,
chance events, technologies, costs, etc.) and carry out comparative statics analysis?
• Can your conclusions be sharpened by requiring subgame perfection or applying
iterative dominance?

Reply 1

cheadle

This isn't my subject area but I do think the way the assessment task as been written is not making it easy to grasp.

Is this for 100% of the module grade?

I've broken it up into what seem like distinct sections to me - is this correct?
(1) and (2) are different bits of the task? (1) is written for a general audience and (2) for
a specialist audience.
Why is there a word count for (2) but not for (1) and (3).
Is (3) a discrete section or part of (2)?
I can't help you with the content of the assignment but I do think it will help if you can break the whole thing down into its component parts.

An afterthought - It seems developmental to me - you start with the subject area, then take into gaming, then analyse the model?

(1) Write a briefing document aimed at a general audience, that identifies and
discusses strategic aspects of the topic specified below.
Topic: Neighbours and Communities
Our neighbours, and members of our local community, affect our lives in a variety of
ways. How is this interaction strategic, and what are the implications for cooperation
or conflict between neighbours and within communities?
In the course of addressing this broad question, you may wish to discuss some of the
following more specific issues: public spaces and local amenities, pollution, voluntary
associations, school quality, public safety and criminal deterrence, urban versus rural
communities, immigration, labour mobility, gentrification and neighbourhood decline,
leasehold arrangements, and the renter versus owner-occupier distinction. (Attempting
to discuss all of these issues is not recommended.)

(2) Provide an original analysis of a strategic situation (1500 words), targeted at an audience
that has already studied elementary game theory.
The situation you examine may come from history, current affairs, your own personal
experience, or some other source; but it is important that your subject matter be original.
The situation can be hypothetical, but realism is valued and any invented scenario should
be compelling.
First, describe the relevant features of the situation and translate them into the form
of a game. In particular, think about the following questions:
• Who are the players in your game? Is there a role for “Nature”?
• What actions are available to the players, and in what sequence are these actions
taken? What information do the players have when they make their choices?
• What are the possible outcomes of the situation, and how do the players rank them?
If relevant, what are the players’ risk preferences over the outcomes?
You may need to simplify the interaction or impose assumptions in order to arrive at a
tractable model, but you should try to preserve the strategic essence of the situation.

(3) Next, use any applicable game-theoretic tools to analyse your model, to uncover the
strategic dynamics of the situation, and to draw conclusions about the behaviour and
outcomes that might be expected. Here the goal is to demonstrate your mastery of the
concepts and techniques studied in the module, so you should select an application that
enables you to be ambitious—though without adding complications for their own sake.
Specifically, you may wish to consider the following questions:
• Can your model be enhanced by incorporating imperfect information or repeated
interaction, and if so what further understanding of the situation does this yield?
• Are you able to include one or more parameters (controlling preferences, beliefs,
chance events, technologies, costs, etc.) and carry out comparative statics analysis?
• Can your conclusions be sharpened by requiring subgame perfection or applying
iterative dominance?

(edited 1 year ago)