SIMULTANEOUS VS SEQUENTIAL REQUESTS IN RESOURCE DILEMMAS WITH INCOMPLETE INFORMATION

We consider a class of resource dilemmas of the following form: members of groups of size n are asked to share a common resource pool whose exact size, x, is not known. Rather, x is sampled randomly from a probability distribution which is common knowledge. Each group member j (j = 1,...,n) requests r(j) from the resource pool. Requests are made either simultaneously or sequentially. If (r1 + r2 + ... + r(n)) less-than-or-equal-to x all members are granted their requests; otherwise, group members get nothing. For each protocol of play we present two alternative models - a game theoretical equilibrium solution and a psychological model incorporating the notion of focal points. We then report the results of two experiments designed to-compare the two models under the two protocols of play.