MURI 14 Kickoff June 3, 2008 Multiplayer Games for collecting data on cultural factors in...

MURI 14 Kickoff June 3, 2008

Multiplayer Games for collecting data on cultural factors in

negotiation

Michael Lewis


Why data from online multiplayer games is needed

• Access to difficult to reach populations• Access to larger (perhaps demographically separable)

samples• Access to behavior in context and over time• Provides negotiation trace for modeling

– Reveals process parameters such as N exchanges to agreement, step choices in proposals, etc.

– Allows incremental development & testing• Provides validation environment for computational

models • Allows tests of theory with manipulations and

experimental control


Online games as basic research infrastructure

• Users play simple abstract games against known strategies

• Users select from among available decisions in thematic scenarios

• Users negotiate with other users• Agents developed to model user traces• Users negotiate with developed agents


population Internet users

Percent population

Israel 6,426,679 3,700,000 57.6 %

Palestine(West Bank)

2,535,927 266,000 10.5 %

Turkey 71,158,647 16,000,000 22.5 %

Morocco 34,343,219 7,300,000 21.3 %

Do the subjects we need have the skills for online/computerized data collection?

Dec 2007 internetworldstats.com


Other Possibilities

• Leave behind laptops for schools & rec centers– Individual attention & trust

• Experiments with Ex-pat communities in US


What is a “Cross-Cultural Internet Game”?

• We included these in the proposal in order to have some way to collect relatively large samples of negotiation traces

but• What should they look like?• How should they behave?• What are the important characteristics?• How will we attract participants?


What should they look like?

• Abstract– Cultural effects for neutral situations-

behavioral economics, simple games, resource use/sharing

Are there general cultural predispositions toward negotiations?

• Presume that these predispositions will extend to concrete problems.



• Concrete– Familiar/commonplace culturally relevant

situations

Should we investigate only commonplace situations in order to observe normal naturalistic decision making?



• Culturally challenging– Situations involving conflict/closely held

beliefs

Are cultural factors most prominent and of interest for closely held issues bearing on cultural identity and should data collection concentrate on such situations?


Abstract 2D gamesIn robocup rescue simulation players coordinate and command Fire brigades to stop the spread of fires.

Non threatening & relatively culturally neutral.


Chat?


Abstract GamesPros:Less likely to be culturally biasedMore easily programmed interfacesProvide data in more easily modeled form such as

bid or probability (econ) or move or action selection (sim)

Cons:Lack cultural contextMust be highly constrained to provide useful data

from free text


Concrete Games

• Formats & presentation styles• Example-1 (from Stitt Feld Handy)• Flash is awfully canned• Choice of alternatives limits responses to

those favored by culture of programmer• Would be difficult to script out for multiple

players


Serious Games with relevant story line?

from Global Conflicts Palestine


Game-engine based simulations

• Avatars are difficult to control without prior experience

• Maps are easy to get lost in• Focus on action may not bring out types of

negotiation behavior we are after


Online Games supply data to other parts of this MURI

• Collecting online game data addresses:– Cultural hypotheses developed in other parts

of the project– Parameters/interactions meaningful to the

computational models being developed– Provides complementary data, for example,

allow comparison between statements on surveys and actions taken


Common Problems

• How important is context & association with familiar situations/objects?

• How can we avoid problems with language and intelligibility?

• How can we design games that are not “unconsciously” culturally biased?


Prior work in Games & Simulations for Research

• Web-based data collection1997 web-based information visualization experiment2004 terrain analysis for IPB

• Agent aiding for human Teams1998 NEO scenario 19981999 MokSAF route planning2007 Team-based scavenger hunt

Game-based software2002 edited CACM special issue on Game Engines for research2003- CaveUT game-based cave software2004- USARSim 30,000+ download robotic simulation


Other Problems• IRB and online research

– Typical policies deal with solicitation• Approved ad OK• Spam & SMS closely regulated

– Consent• Looks pretty much like offline but submit/discard option

replaces signature– Confidentiality

• Most IRBs require use of SSL encryption

• International study– Host country approval/collaborator

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