Bargaining on behalf of a constituency

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Cai, HB
• 署名单位: University of California System; University of California Los Angeles
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC THEORY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0022-0531
• DOI: 10.1006/jeth.1999.2631
• 发表日期: 2000
• 页码: 234-273
• 关键词: Bargaining; DELEGATION; Principal-agent; delay

摘要

We study bargaining situations in which one side consists of a group of people, who elect a representative to bargain with another party on their behalf. A two-phase bargaining model is developed in which a principal-agent problem between the constituency and its representative is embedded. With a natural refinement of sequential equilibrium, we characterize the set of equilibria and examine its efficiency properties. We show that agency problems in the delegation relationship rather than asymmetric information between the two bargainers can cause severe bargaining inefficiency (i.e., delay in reaching agreements). Extensions of the model and applications to union-firm bargaining are then discussed briefly. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: C78, D82, J52. (C) Academic Press.