A Coalition Formation Mechanism Based on Inter-Agent Trust Relationships

摘要

We study long-term coalitions of customer and vendor software agents based on trust relationships among the agents. We propose a coalition formation mechanism designed at microscopic (agent) level and analyzed at both microscopic and macroscopic (system) levels. The evaluation compares agent strategies (individual vs. social) and analyzes the system behavior under different circumstances. The advantages of the mechanism are that it is simple, scales up well and does not require communication between the agents. It reduces the dynamic of the system and is beneficial for the individual agents (ensures higher individual gain).