Stability of the Cournot Process - Experimental Evidence [Dataset]

We report results of experiments designed to test the predictions of the best-reply process. In a Cournot oligopoly with four firms, the best-reply process should theoretically explode if demand and cost functions are linear. We find, however, no experimental evidence of such instability. Moreover, we find no differences between a market which theoretically should not converge to Nash equilibrium and one which should converge because of inertia. We investigate the power of several learning dynamics to explain this unpredicted stability.

本文报告了为检验最优反应过程（best-reply process）的理论预测所开展的实验结果。在涉及四家企业的古诺寡头垄断（Cournot oligopoly）市场中，若需求函数与成本函数均为线性形式，则最优反应过程在理论上应出现发散现象。然而，我们的实验并未观测到这类不稳定现象的相关证据。此外，我们未发现两类市场存在显著差异：一类是理论上无法收敛至纳什均衡（Nash equilibrium）的市场，另一类是因行为惯性理应收敛至均衡的市场。我们还探究了多种学习动态（learning dynamics）机制对这一未被预测的稳定现象的解释能力。