On the mean convergence time of multi-parent genetic algorithms without selection

This paper investigates genetic drift in multi-parent genetic algorithms (MPGAs). An exact model based on Markov chains is proposed to formulate the variation of gene frequency. This model identifies the correlation between the adopted number of parents and the mean convergence time. Moreover, it reveals the pairwise equivalence phenomenon in the number of parents and indicates the acceleration of genetic drift in MPGAs. The good fit between theoretical and experimental results further verifies the capability of this model.