EVOLUTIONARY

GAME THEORY:
WHY MODERN PROBLEM SOLVING IS SO ESSENTIAL

BY HAFSA JAHAN
 EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY:
WHY MODERN PROBLEM SOLVING IS SO ESSENTIAL

BY HAFSA JAHAN
 GAME THEORY IS THE STUDY OF
MATHEMATICAL MODELS THAT LOOKS AT HOW
TO HANDLE COMPETITIVE SITUATIONS WHERE
ONE PLAYER'S DECISION TO DO A CERTAIN
ACTION HAS A SUBSTANTIAL IMPACT ON THE
ACTIONS OF OTHER PLAYERS. EACH AND
EVERY ONE OF US HAS OUR OWN OBJECTIVES,
DRIVES, AND INDIVIDUAL RATIONALES FOR
ACTING.

 WHEN MAKING DECISIONS, WE FREQUENTLY

HAVE A TENDENCY TO PUT ONLY OUR
PERSONAL INTERESTS INTO CONSIDERATION,
EVEN AFTER DISCUSSING THE BENEFITS AND
DRAWBACKS OF VARIOUS OUTCOMES. WE
TYPICALLY THINK ABOUT WHETHER THE
OUTCOME WILL LARGELY BENEFIT US OR NOT
BEFORE MAKING A DECISION. THE BEHAVIOR
OF SIZABLE GROUPS OF AGENTS WHO
FREQUENTLY INTERACT STRATEGICALLY IS
STUDIED BY EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY.

 EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY IS THE

APPLICATION OF GAME THEORY TO POPULATIONS
THAT ARE UNDERGOING BIOLOGICAL CHANGE.
EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY HAS BEEN
SUCCESSFULLY APPLIED BY EXPERTS IN THE FIELD
TO EXPLAIN BIOLOGICAL EVENTS, BUT IT MAY
ALSO BE USED TO REINTERPRET TRADITIONAL
GAMES. EITHER SHORTSIGHTED DECISION-MAKING
BY INDIVIDUAL AGENTS OR NATURAL SELECTION
THROUGH VARIATIONS IN BIRTH AND DEATH
RATES ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR BEHAVIOR CHANGES
IN THESE GROUPS.

GAME THEORY CAN BE USED TO SKETCH

REAL-WORLD SCENARIOS AND FORECAST
THEIR OUTCOMES. FURTHERMORE, WE
REGULARLY MAKE DECISIONS BASED ON
THE CIRCUMSTANCES OR WHAT WE
BELIEVE IS BEST FOR US AND,
SPORADICALLY, OTHER PEOPLE. BUT IN
THE END, FIGURING OUT WHAT IS BEST
FOR OURSELVES BECOMES OUR MAJOR
GOAL.

 THE REALIZATION THAT FREQUENCY

DEPENDENT FITNESS ADDS A STRATEGIC
ELEMENT TO EVOLUTION LED TO THE
DEVELOPMENT OF EVOLUTIONARY GAME
THEORY, WHICH IS A BIOLOGICAL
CONTEXT-SPECIFIC APPLICATION OF THE
MATHEMATICAL THEORY OF GAMES. IN
GAME THEORY, THE OUTCOME WILL BE
INFLUENCED BY THE DECISIONS AND
ACTIONS OF EACH PLAYER.

 ADDITIONALLY, IT IS EXPECTED THAT

THOSE WHO TAKE PART IN THE GAME
WILL USE COMMON SENSE TO MAXIMIZE
THEIR GAINS. IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO
KEEP IN MIND THAT WE FREQUENTLY
RESPOND TO THE ACTIONS OF OTHERS IN
A WHOLLY DISTINCT AND SELF-
INTERESTED MANNER. FUNDAMENTAL
IDEAS IN GAME THEORY STATE THAT
EACH PARTICIPANT MAKES A DECISION,
AND THAT EVERYONE'S CHOICES
TOGETHER DETERMINE THE OUTCOME.

EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY WAS

FOUNDED IN 1973 BY JOHN MAYNARD
SMITH AND GEORGE R. PRICE, WHO
CODIFIED COMPETITIONS, EVALUATED AS
STRATEGIES, AND THE MATHEMATICAL
RULES THAT COULD BE USED TO PREDICT
THE RESULTS OF COMPETING STRATEGIES.

 A SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGE IN GAME

THEORY IS PREDICTING THE CONDUCT
THAT PLAYERS WILL EXHIBIT IN A
PARTICULAR GAME. THERE, WE
FREQUENTLY ADDRESS THE DECISIONS
MADE BY PLAYERS WHO WOULD ONLY
THINK ABOUT THEMSELVES, BUT
EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY EXAMINES
THE BEHAVIOR OF SUBSTANTIAL
POPULATIONS OF AGENTS WHO
FREQUENTLY ENGAGE IN STRATEGIC
INTERACTIONS.

 IN IT, A FRAMEWORK OF RIVALRIES,

TACTICS, AND ANALYTICS IS LAID OUT
WITHIN WHICH DARWINIAN COMPETITION
CAN BE MODELED. INSTEAD OF
DETERMINING GAME PARAMETERS
DIRECTLY, POPULATIONS OF PLAYERS
EMPLOYING VARIOUS STRATEGIES ARE
SIMULATED, AND AN EVOLUTIONARY
PROCESS RESEMBLING NATURAL SELECTION
IS EMPLOYED TO ASCERTAIN HOW THE
POPULATION CHANGES.

 AN ALTERNATIVE METHOD TO THE

CONVENTIONAL ANALYSIS OF GAMES IS
EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY. CHANGES
IN BEHAVIOR IN THESE POPULATIONS ARE
EITHER BROUGHT ABOUT BY MYOPIC
DECISION-MAKING BY INDIVIDUAL AGENTS
OR BY NATURAL SELECTION AS SEEN BY
VARIATIONS IN BIRTH AND DEATH RATES.
AN ALTERNATE ANALYSIS OF GAMES IS
PROVIDED BY EVOLUTIONARY GAME
THEORY, WHICH INCORPORATES IDEAS
FROM BIOLOGY, GAME THEORY, AND
NONLINEAR DYNAMICS.

EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY HAS BEEN

USED TO SHED LIGHT ON THE PRINCIPLES
UNDERLYING ALTRUISTIC CONDUCT IN
DARWINIAN EVOLUTION. A MEASURE OF
FITNESS FOR VARIOUS STRATEGIES IS
NEEDED BY THE NATURAL SELECTION
PROCESS THAT CONTROLS POPULATION
EVOLUTION, AND THE PROCESS ITSELF
MUST BE CAREFULLY SELECTED.

EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY IS NOW A

TOPIC OF INTEREST TO ECONOMISTS,
SOCIOLOGISTS, ANTHROPOLOGISTS, AND
PHILOSOPHERS. THE MAIN CONCEPT
BEHIND GAME THEORY SOLUTIONS IS THE
NASH EQUILIBRIUM. A NASH EQUILIBRIUM
IS A PROFILE OF STRATEGIES (I.E., THE
ASSIGNMENT OF DIFFERENT STRATEGIES
TO EACH PLAYER) WHERE NO PLAYER IS
ENTICED TO CHANGE THEIR CHOSEN
STRATEGY. THERE ARE TWO APPROACHES
TO EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY,
THOUGH.

THE FIRST APPROACH, WHICH IS BASED ON

THE WORK OF MAYNARD SMITH & PRICE,
USES THE NOTION OF AN EVOLUTIONARILY
STABLE STRATEGY AS ITS PRIMARY
ANALYTICAL TOOL. THE SECOND METHOD
EXPLORES VARIOUS FACETS OF THE
MODEL'S EVOLUTIONARY DYNAMICS WHILE
EXPLICITLY MODELING THE PROCESS BY
WHICH THE POPULATION'S FREQUENCY OF
STRATEGIES VARIES.

IN GAME THEORY, WE WOULD FREQUENTLY

BE MORE CONCERNED WITH THE
INTERDEPENDENCE THAT COMPELS EACH
PLAYER TO CONSIDER THE DECISIONS OR
PLANS OF THE OTHER PLAYER WHILE
CREATING A STRATEGY. NASH EQUILIBRIA
WERE DISCOVERED TO BE RELATED TO
EVOLUTIONARY STABLE STRATEGIES,
ALTHOUGH THEIR ABSENCE OR NON-
UNIQUENESS IN OTHER GAMES RAISES
QUESTIONS.

 GAME THEORY CAN DIRECT

PARTICIPANTS TO THE BEST COURSE
OF ACTION WHEN FACED WITH
INDEPENDENT AND COMPETITIVE
ACTORS IN A STRATEGIC CONTEXT.
HOWEVER, MAYNARD SMITH CAME TO
THE CONCLUSION THAT AN
EVOLUTIONARY INTERPRETATION OF
GAME THEORY ONLY NECESSITATES
THAT PLAYERS HAVE A STRATEGY. THE
RESULT OF A GAME SHOWS HOW
SUCCESSFUL THAT STRATEGY WAS.

 IN EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY, THE

OUTCOMES OF A GAME CAN HELP US
DETERMINE HOW EFFECTIVE A STRATEGY
WAS SINCE THEY CAN HELP US CHOOSE
WHETHER TO USE THE SAME STRATEGY FOR
THE SAME DESIRED END IN THE FUTURE IN
DIFFERENT CONTEXTS. THE SUCCESS OF A
METHOD DEPENDS ON HOW WELL IT
PERFORMS IN COMPARISON TO RIVAL
STRATEGIES, INCLUDING ITS OWN, AND
HOW FREQUENTLY THOSE STRATEGIES ARE
USED.

 POPULATION, GAME, AND REPLICATOR

DYNAMICS ARE THE THREE FUNDAMENTAL
COMPONENTS OF THE SYSTEM MODEL
UTILIZED IN EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY
TO ANALYZE DARWINIAN MECHANISMS. IT
WOULD BE EXTREMELY CHALLENGING TO
APPLY EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY TO
BIGGER, MORE COMPLEX GAMES. BIOLOGY IS
AN AREA OF NATURAL SCIENCE THAT,
DESPITE HAVING A WIDE RANGE, IS
CONNECTED BY A NUMBER OF COMMON
THREADS.

EVERY CREATURE, FOR INSTANCE, IS MADE

UP OF CELLS THAT PROCESS GENETIC DATA
THAT WILL BE PASSED ON TO SUCCEEDING
GENERATIONS. HOWEVER, THE
FOUNDATION OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY
IS THE IDEA THAT AN ORGANISM'S GENES
SIGNIFICANTLY INFLUENCE ITS VISIBLE
FEATURES AND, SUBSEQUENTLY, ITS
FITNESS IN A GIVEN ENVIRONMENT.

 THE TOPIC OF ENVIRONMENT IS CRUCIAL IN THIS

SCENARIO SINCE ORGANISMS NEED TO BE IN A
FAVORABLE PLACE IN ORDER TO FLOURISH IN THE
BEST WAY POSSIBLE. GENES THAT INCREASE FITNESS
ARE MORE PREVALENT IN THE POPULATION BECAUSE
HEALTHIER ORGANISMS TYPICALLY PRODUCE MORE
OFFSPRING. FITTER GENES TEND TO PREDOMINATE
THROUGHOUT TIME BECAUSE THEY REPRODUCE
MORE FREQUENTLY. AFTER OBSERVING THE PATTERN
OF ELEVATED RATES OF OUTPUT, WE MAY ALSO BE
ABLE TO FORECAST THE RATE OF POPULATION
GROWTH OVER A GIVEN TIME FRAME.

 REFERENCES:

COWDEN, C. C. (2012) GAME THEORY, EVOLUTIONARY

STABLE STRATEGIES AND THE EVOLUTION OF
BIOLOGICAL INTERACTIONS. NATURE EDUCATION
KNOWLEDGE 3(10):6
AN INTRODUCTION TO EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY,
TIM REES, UBC DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE
CHAPTER 7, EVOLUTIONARY GAME THEORY, NETWORKS,
CROWDS, AND MARKETS: REASONING ABOUT A HIGHLY
CONNECTED WORLD. BY DAVID EASLEY AND JON
KLEINBERG. CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS, 2010.
POPULATION GAMES AND DETERMINISTIC
EVOLUTIONARY DYNAMICS, WILLIAM H. SANDHOLM, IN
HANDBOOK OF GAME THEORY WITH ECONOMIC
APPLICATIONS, 2015