Experiment research on the evolution of cooperation and network game theory

Abstract

<p indent=0mm>Focusing on the mechanisms of the evolution and emergence of cooperative behavior, this paper reviews the recent development of direct reciprocity and network reciprocity from perspectives of both theoretical and experimental research based on two-player Prisoner’s Dilemma and multi-player Public Goods games. Repeated interactions provide the necessary condition for the emergence of direct reciprocity. The zero-determinant strategy, which is a new theory in direct reciprocity, has been deeply investigated from both theory and experiment. The zero-determinant strategy is a kind of memory-one strategies, which can unilaterally determine the payoff relationship in repeated games and may provide a novel tool to explore human decision behavior. Investigations on networked game experiments revealed that dynamic networks can facilitate and maintain human cooperation, while the influence of static networks on cooperation remains controversial. Furthermore, it is summarized that networked game experiments provide an efficient approach to studying the formation mechanism of network structure and the emergence of cooperation in complex systems.