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Uncertainty, efficiency and incentive compatibility: Ambiguity solves the conflict between efficiency and incentive compatibility

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  • De Castro, Luciano
  • Yannelis, Nicholas C.

Abstract

A fundamental result of modern economics is the conflict between efficiency and incentive compatibility, that is, the fact that some Pareto optimal (efficient) allocations are not incentive compatible. This conflict has generated a huge literature, which almost always assumes that individuals are expected utility maximizers. What happens if they have other kind of preferences? Is there any preference where this conflict does not exist? Can we characterize those preferences? We show that in an economy where individuals have complete, transitive, continuous and monotonic preferences, every efficient allocation is incentive compatible if and only if individuals have maximin preferences.

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  • De Castro, Luciano & Yannelis, Nicholas C., 2018. "Uncertainty, efficiency and incentive compatibility: Ambiguity solves the conflict between efficiency and incentive compatibility," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 177(C), pages 678-707.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jetheo:v:177:y:2018:i:c:p:678-707
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jet.2018.02.008
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    Cited by:

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    2. Liu, Zhiwei & Song, Xinxi & Yannelis, Nicholas C., 2020. "Randomization under ambiguity: Efficiency and incentive compatibility," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 1-11.
    3. Guo, Huiyi, 2019. "Mechanism design with ambiguous transfers: An analysis in finite dimensional naive type spaces," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 76-105.
    4. Zhiwei Liu & Nicholas C. Yannelis, 2022. "Mixed strategy implementation under ambiguity," Economic Theory Bulletin, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 10(1), pages 167-181, May.
    5. Julio Backhoff-Veraguas & Patrick Beissner & Ulrich Horst, 2019. "Robust Contracting in General Contract Spaces," Papers 1910.12516, arXiv.org, revised Mar 2021.
    6. Edwards, Robert A. & Routledge, Robert R., 2022. "Information, Bertrand–Edgeworth competition and the law of one price," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    7. Song, Yangwei, 2023. "Approximate Bayesian implementation and exact maxmin implementation: An equivalence," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 56-87.
    8. Grant, Simon & Stauber, Ronald, 2022. "Delegation and ambiguity in correlated equilibrium," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 487-509.
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    12. Pintér, Miklós, 2022. "How to make ambiguous strategies," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
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    14. Shafer, Rachel C., 2020. "Minimax regret and failure to converge to efficiency in large markets," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 281-287.
    15. Kocherlakota, Narayana R. & Song, Yangwei, 2019. "Public goods with ambiguity in large economies," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 182(C), pages 218-246.
    16. Huiyi Guo & Nicholas C. Yannelis, 2022. "Incentive compatibility under ambiguity," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 73(2), pages 565-593, April.
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    18. Ziyuan Sun & Man Wang & Weiwei Zhang & Yanli Li & Dan Wang & Feng Dong, 2019. "How Can We Improve the Transformation Success Rate of Research Results in the Pharmaceutical Industry? The Game Theoretic Model of Technology Transfer Subjects," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-30, May.
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    20. Song, Yangwei, 2022. "Approximate Bayesian Implementation and Exact Maxmin Implementation: An Equivalence," Rationality and Competition Discussion Paper Series 362, CRC TRR 190 Rationality and Competition.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Asymmetric information; Ambiguity aversion; Incentive compatibility; Mechanism design; First-best; Second-best;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D50 - Microeconomics - - General Equilibrium and Disequilibrium - - - General
    • D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
    • D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design

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