[EM] Range voting zero-info strategy simulation

Kevin Venzke stepjak at yahoo.fr
Wed Nov 15 08:42:45 PST 2006


Forest,

--- "Simmons, Forest" <simmonfo at up.edu> a écrit :
> However, there may be voters that wish to maximize the probability that
> their ballot will be positively pivotal, i.e. they might wish to maximize
> their voting power.  For these voters the "above median" approval
> strategy is better than the "above mean" strategy.

I'd say that these voters can't even determine what the mean *is*. The 
mean is based on utility estimates, which are made on the assumption
that a candidate's estimated utility corresponds to the voter's happiness
with the result when this candidate is elected. If the voter can't
estimate this independently, he has to use a different strategy.

> Given a free chance, would you rather have a fifty percent chance of
> winning a million dollars or a one percent chance of winning sixty
> million dollars?
>  
> Your answer tends to depend on whether or not you are already a
> millionaire.

This would affect the utilities of the choices.

What you should ask instead is "Given X free chances, would you rather
have a fifty-percent chance of 0.17 utility or a one-percent chance of
10 utility?"

The default prize is 0 utility. You should assume that the special value
(if any) of having some utility rather than no utility has already been
accounted for. Otherwise, I don't see what the 0.17 and 10 figures would 
be based on, or even what this question is asking.

Kevin Venzke


	

	
		
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