Political Science
POSC015: Comparative Politics Problem Set I
1. (45 pts.) Solve problems 3 (10 pts), 9 (only last four statements, 10 pts), 11 (only the statement about the senators, 10 pts), and 13 (15 pts) in Chapter 2 of Clark, et al.
2. (40 pts.) Solve problems 2 (15 pts) & 4 (25 pts) in Chapter 3 of Clark, et al.
3. (10 pts.) Consider the extensive form game below.
(a) What are the strategies of each of the three players?
(b) What are the subgame perfect equilibria of the game?
P1
P2
(3,4,1)
C
(1,3,3)
D
(1,2,1)
E
A
P2
(6,1,1)
F
P3
(6,0,1)
I
(2,2,2)
H
G
B
Indridi H. Indridason Fall 2020
POSC015: Comparative Politics Problem Set I
4. (10 pts) Consider the extensive form game below.
(a) What are the subgame perfect equilibria of the game?
P1
P2
(3,4,1)
C
(1,3,3)
D
(1,2,1)
E
A
P2
(6,2,1)
F
P3
(6,0,1) I
(2,3,2)
H
G B
5. (15 pts.) Find the Nash equilibria of the games. [Note on best replies: If the best reply is not unique then all the actions that result in the highest payo� are best replies.]
(a) .
Candidate 2 L R
Candidate 1 U 0, 0 1, 1 D 1, 1 0, 0
(b) .
Candidate 2 L R
Candidate 1 U 0, 0 100, 100 D 1, 1 0, 0
Indridi H. Indridason Fall 2020
POSC015: Comparative Politics Problem Set I
(c) .
Candidate 2 L R
Candidate 1 U 1, 1 1, 1 D 1, 1 1, 1
6. (5 pts.) Watch these two clips from the British game show `Golden Balls’: Clip 1 and Clip 2. Draw the strategic form game of the second clip (the structure of the game in the two clips is identical only the money at stake di�ers). Does the game resemble any game that you are familiar with? The way the game is played in the second clip is a little may seem a little surprising? Consider the game you have just drawn can you make sense of why the players adopted their strategies?
7. (5 pts.) Can you think of a political situation that resembles the prisoner’s dilemma (the state of nature game)? That is, a situation where, e.g., both (all) actors have an incentive to choose a particular action when the actors would have been better o� not choosing that action. Brie�y explain why (bonus for sketching the game)
Make sure you explain how you arrive at your solution � you won’t receive partial credit for incorrect answers unless we can see that you have done a part of the problem correctly. It is your responsibility to convey the answers in a clear manner. The homework is due at the beginning of class on October 22.
Indridi H. Indridason Fall 2020