S. Nageeb Ali Publications

This paper studies a simple model of observational learning where agents care not only about the information of others but also about their actions. We show that despite complex strategic considerations that arise from forward-looking incentives, herd behavior can arise in equilibrium. The model encompasses applications such as sequential elections, public good contributions, and leadership charitable giving.

This resurgence of interest in Condorcet’s approach was sparked by a key observation of David Austen-Smith and Jeffrey Banks (1996) that “naive” voting is generally not a Nash equilibrium of the voting game. That is, the optimal way to vote in a multiperson committee is not usually the same as the optimal way to vote in a committee of one, an issue overlooked by Condorcet and other nongame-theoretic analyses of his model. In fact, a voter’s strategic incentives generally depend on all the variables of the model: the size of the committee, the voting rule and procedure, the information structure, preferences, and so forth. Because such a simple model offers rich insights into the strategic considerations faced by voters, the CJM has played a prominent role in enhancing our understanding of voting mechanisms.