1 / 10

Rule Rationality vs. Act Rationality

Rule Rationality vs. Act Rationality. Robert Aumann The Center for Rationality The Hebrew University, Jerusalem The Fifth European Conference On Complex Systems Jerusalem, September 2008. a. Bees, flowers, and nectar. IRRATIONAL.

aspen-sanders
Download Presentation

Rule Rationality vs. Act Rationality

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Rule Rationality vs.Act Rationality Robert Aumann The Center for Rationality The Hebrew University, Jerusalem The Fifth European Conference On Complex Systems Jerusalem, September 2008

  2. a. Bees, flowers, and nectar IRRATIONAL (Andreas Bertch, circa 1985, unpublished) Q: Actually, why would you expect rationality from a bee? A: EVOLUTION – survival of the fittest (explain)

  3. b. The Ultimatum Game(Güth et al, 1981) Two people must divide DM 100.- They are in separate rooms, do not know each other, and interact only this one time. A designated one, theofferer, makes an offer. The other one, the responder, may either accept or reject. If he accepts, the amount is divided accordingly. If not, no one gets anything.

  4. Results: Most offers were 65-35 or more generous, and were accepted. Some offers were 80-20, and were rejected. This is Possible explanations: PRIDE,SELF-RESPECT,INSULT,REVENGE. Irrelevant explanations: REPUTATIONAL EFFECTS IRRATIONAL

  5. Rule Utilitarianismvs. Act Utilitarianism John Harsanyi John Stuart Mill Fyodor Dostoyevsky Jeremy Bentham In making ethical judgments, should one consider theRULE? (“Thou shalt not murder”) – or the ACT (“Is this murder justified?”) In either case, judgments are made on aUTILITARIANbasis (i.e., maximum welfare of society)

  6. Rule Rationalityvs. Act Rationality In making decisions, should one consider theRULE? (“Stick to what you’ve learned”) – or the ACT (“How do you get nectar?”) In either case, judgments are made on anEGOTISTICbasis (i.e., maximum individual welfare)

  7. In the Ultimatum Game: Should one consider the RULE? Don’t let people kick you in the stomach! – or the ACT Should I take DM 20 or nothing? Q: These are not ethical, philosophical issues. Why shouldn’t I just maximize my welfare? What’s the importance of the “RULE”? But

  8. A: Rule Rationality is aPOSITIVEnotion, not a NORMATIVE one (unlike Rule Utilitarianism). Rationality is an expression of evolutionary forces, which work by the RULE, not the exception, not the contrived situation. BEES & FLOWERS ULTIMATUM GAME Nature develops mechanisms that are RULE RATIONAL

  9. Mechanisms BEES & FLOWERS Learning window ULTIMATUM GAME PRIDE,SELF-RESPECT, INSULT,REVENGE

  10. Other Examples: • Hunger & enjoyment of food • Bees & orchids • Enjoyment of sex • Polls – giving the “right” answer (Yonatan) • Camerer’s taxi drivers • Arrow’s Pacific Island story • Room temperature • Probability matching – Choosing a route to get to work (Dreze) • Repeated prisoner’s dilemma • Recency • Professor Selten’s Umbrella

More Related