Game Theory and Marriage
The concept of game theory is an interesting one, as it has been applied to multiple facets of society. Ranging from politics to sports to scenes in famous films such as The Dark Knight, it’s amazing how society is in some manner linked with game theory. One way in which game theory has not been discussed in a broader context revolves around marriage. Specifically, how game theory can help people win arguments with their respective spouse.
Unlike Marshall and Lily from How I Met Your Mother, most marriages are not a happy union. To quote the proverbial saying, once the honeymoon ends, the marriage only goes downhill. This is especially true in modern society. Today, in America, the divorce rate is somewhere around 40-50 percent. This number grows even higher for subsequent marriages for people. One reason for the spike in divorce is constant bickering and lack of compromise between spouses. In a survey conducted by Paula Szuchman, Szuchman posed the question “What’s the hardest part of being married?” Unsurprisingly, a majority of the answers revolved around cooperation or lack thereof between spouses.
In her book, It’s Not You, It’s the Dishes, Szuchman asserts that game theory can help prevent spousal negotiations into becoming heated arguments, thus improving cooperation. There are many parallels with game theory and marriage, such as multiple players, cooperative strategies, and strategies that would benefit each other instead of being a detriment for each other. Szuchman believes that instead of focusing what would benefit the individual, spouses should focus on the best result possible. With this mentality, it becomes easier to attain compromise, as spouses will now begin to think as an economist would. Now, they would think of all the possibilities to improve the outcome, such as thinking ahead, learning from the past, and putting yourself in the respective spouse’s shoes.
With the application of game theory in marriage, spouses would have a happier marriage and would spend less time focusing their concentration and energy on negativity and spend more time appreciating the benefits their spouse provides for them. The best part, as Szuchman notes in a tongue-in-cheek manner, is that there is someone else to do the chores for you!
Sources:
http://www.apa.org/topics/divorce/
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/06/13/marriage-and-the-art-of-game-theory.html