984
ISSN 1064-2307, Journal of Computer and Systems Sciences International, 2007, Vol. 46, No. 6, pp. 984–1000. © Pleiades Publishing, Ltd., 2007.
Original Russian Text © V.I. Lukyanov, O.A. Maksakova, I.S. Men’shikov, O.R. Men’shikova, O.V. Sen’ko, A.N. Chaban, 2007, published in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Teoriya i
Sistemy Upravleniya, 2007, No. 6, pp. 150–166.
INTRODUCTION
The goal of this paper is to analyze the influence of
psychophysical factors on the process of economical
decisions made by an individual. Traditionally, in the
operation research it is assumed that the decision-mak-
ing process can be formalized as an optimization prob-
lem, which has to be solved. A psychological type of
the decision-making person (the DMP) and his/her cur-
rent condition are not taken into account. The situation
becomes more complicated if there are uncontrolled
factors, since the attitude of the DMP to the risk has to
be simulated. Here we have to apply the physiology of
decision making. In spite of yearly investigations in this
field, starting from the classical von Neumann and
Morgenstern utility function that allows defining the
relation of preference on the set of lotteries, and up to
the modern approach of Kahneman-Tversky (the Pros-
pect Theory), a universal model of attitude of an indi-
vidual to the risk while taking economical decisions has
not been created. The situation becomes more compli-
cated if there are several participants of an economic
situation. In spite of the success of the game theory, it
is clear that the game theory can give unambiguous rec-
ommendations on the decision making only in particu-
lar simple cases. The same can be said about the models
based on the notion of the Walras–Arrow–Debreu com-
petitive equilibrium. Thus, in a typical economic situa-
tion the decision has to be taken for a limited time, and
the optimal decision does not exist or there is no time
for searching it. What to do? An individual has to use
his nature, but not only the rationality. We would like to
study how different people do this.
A method of experimental economics gives great
opportunities for investigating this problem. This
method consists in creating an economic situation
under controlled laboratory conditions. Usually, in the
laboratory, a market is constructed by using a computer
network. The participants are invited and all rules are
explained; the financial motivation is announced to
them that is the conventional amount of money gained
on the laboratory market. This money is paid to each
participant in a real currency at the preconditioned cur-
rency rate. Sometimes the financial motivation is sub-
stituted by the educational one, the gained money are
converted into the points based on which the given
grade is determined. Financial motivation gives better
results, but it requires much experimental expenses. For
determination of a psychological type, all participants
pass as a minimum two complementary psychological
tests before starting the experiment. In the process of
the experiment the functional condition of each partic-
ipant is estimated by the kinetography method. For this
purpose special stabilographic chairs are used. The sig-
nals from all chairs are collected at the central computer
of the experiment dispatcher who controls the labora-
tory market from the neighbor computer. At the end,
after each experiment we have three groups of data:
(1) the results of psychological testing,
(2) the second-by-second record of all economic
actions of each participant,
(3) the data from the chairs (with the 50 times per
second frequency).
It is clear that on this stage we can hardly count on
creating an exact model of human behavior in the eco-
nomic decision making. Most likely, we can hope on
discovering regularities based on the analysis of heter-
ogeneous experimental data using the well elaborated
methods of processing. This program of investigations
CONTROL IN ORGANIZATIONAL
AND SOCIAL-ECONOMIC SYSTEMS
Functional Condition and Efficiency of the Participants
of Laboratory Market
V. I. Lukyanov
c
, O. A. Maksakova
c
, I. S. Men’shikov
a
, O. R. Men’shikova
b
,
O. V. Sen’ko
a
, and A. N. Chaban
b
a
Dorodnicyn Computing Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, ul. Vavilova 40, Moscow, 119991 Russia
b
Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Institutskii per. 9, Dolgoprudnyi, Moscow oblast, 141700 Russia
c
Burdenko Scientific Research Institute of Neurosurgery, 4th Tverskaya-Yamskaya 16, Moscow, 125047 Russia
Received May 24, 2007
Abstract—A method of analysis of the human factor influence in a market-type decentralized management
system is proposed. The method is based on the study of economic situation created under controlled laboratory
conditions. A relation of the efficiency of decisions made by the participants of laboratory markets to their psy-
chological type and to their functional condition measured during the experiment by using special equipment
is established.
DOI: 10.1134/S1064230707060111