This chapter investigates situations in which one decision maker is pitted against an opponent whose actions do not consider the payoffs that result from the combination of strategies chosen by the two players. For simplicity, the second player will be called “nature.” Clearly, the choice of strategy chosen by the “intelligent” or “rational” player (represented by us) against such an opponent will depend on the information we have about nature’s choice of strategies. The first section of this chapter introduces the basic elements of games against nature, including their components, certainty equivalents, and visualization. The second section provides a number of rules that we may wish to follow in the absence of much detailed information, and the third section investigates the value of certain types of information.

This chapter introduces games against nature, introduces basic elements, and provides rules for decision-making in situations where nature chooses strategies without considering payoffs.

Games Against Nature

Key Takeaway: This chapter introduces games against nature, introduces basic elements, and provides rules for decision-making in situations where nature chooses strategies without considering payoffs.