Collaborative Research: IT-Enhanced Market Design and Experiments

本研究目的在于找出在现实资讯科技（IT）环境中，最能促进经济繁荣的市场模式、代理设计及复合资讯服务规范。在信息技术创新和互联网爆炸式增长的推动下，全球经济正处于大规模转型之中。IT正在重塑市场、消费者和企业行为，同时业务现实决定了哪些IT创新是可行的。人们对这种转变的经济和社会影响知之甚少。需要对各种类型的信息技术增强的经济环境进行重要的新研究，包括：异步参与的市场；设有自动代理的市场；资讯科技催生新的市场模式；以及新的复合信息服务。自动交易代理在it驱动的市场中扮演着越来越重要的角色，它们与人类交易者的互动需要密切关注。本项目将采用的方法包括开发新的理论模型，以及在人体受控实验中对模型进行测试和改进。迄今为止，关于交易者行为和市场表现的最详细的科学知识仅限于经典的市场形式和非常简单的商品。本研究将扩展这一经典知识，测试其稳健性，并通过考虑更广泛的市场形式（单边拍卖、双边市场和新的混合市场）、更广泛的商品（包括新的复合IT服务产品）和更广泛的行为（包括人类与自动代理的互动），开辟新的探究路线。这项研究所产生的科学知识，将会迅速在电子商贸业界传播，并为资讯科技融入世界经济提供更坚实的基础。运行各种市场格式和自动化代理的平台将纳入国家科学数字图书馆，加强教学和研究基础设施。将直接促进众多担任研究助理和程序员的研究生的教学、培训和学习；一些本科生也将帮助编写程序，数百人将作为实验对象，成为市场交易和控制市场代理的经验丰富的人。考虑到校园里学生的种族，以及实验室的就业历史，很大一部分教育利益可能会流向女性和少数族裔。

The objective of this research is to identify the market formats, agent designs, and composite information service specifications that, in realistic information technology (IT) environments, best promote economic prosperity. The global economy is in the midst of large-scale transformation driven by innovations in IT and the explosive growth of the Internet. IT is reshaping markets and consumer and enterprise behavior, while at the same time business realities determine which IT innovations are viable. Little is yet known about the economic and social impacts of this transformation. Significant new research is needed on various types of IT-enhanced economic environments, including: markets with asynchronous participation; markets with automated agents; new market formats enabled by IT; and new composite information services. Automated trading agents play an increasing role in the IT-enabled markets, and their interaction with human traders demands close scrutiny.The methods to be employed in this project include the development of new theoretical models and the testing and refinement of the models in controlled experiments with human subjects. To date, the most detailed scientific knowledge of trader behavior and market performance is confined to classic market formats and to very simple goods. This research will expand that classical knowledge, test its robustness, and open new lines of inquiry by considering a broader range of market formats (one-sided auctions, two-sided markets and new hybrids), a broader range of goods (including new composite IT service products), and a broader range of behavior (including human interaction with automated agents).The scientific knowledge generated by the research will disseminate swiftly into the community of e-commerce practitioners, and will help provide a sounder basis for integrating IT into the world economy. The platforms for running the various market formats and automated agents will be incorporated into the National Science Digital Library, enhancing infrastructure for teaching and research. Teaching, training and learning will be promoted directly for numerous graduate students who serve as research assistants and programmers; some undergraduates will also help with the programming and hundreds will serve as laboratory subjects who become experienced in market trading and controlling market agents. Given the ethnicity of students at the campuses, and given the history of employment at the labs, a large share of the educational benefits are likely to accrue to women and members of minority groups.