An equilibrium refinement provides a way of selecting one or a few equilibria from among many in a game.
Many games may contain several Nash equilibria, and thus offer no clear prediction about the likely outcome.
Each refinement attempts to define some equilibria as "more likely," "more rational" or "more robust" to deviations by players than others.
For example, if one equilibrium Pareto dominates another (results in all players earning more ), then it may be viewed as more likely to be chosen by the players.
updated: 8 December 2006 (previous version)
HOW TO CITE THIS ENTRY
- To learn more:
- Try the normal-form game solver to automatically calculate equilibria on the applets page.
- Take an online quiz on finding equilibria in games.