Abstract
In this paper, we present AutoMed, an automated mediator for multi-issue bilateral negotiation under time constraints. AutoMed elicits the negotiators preferences and analyzes them. It monitors the negotiations and proposes possible solutions for resolving the conflict. We conducted experiments in a simulated environment. The results show that negotiations mediated by AutoMed are concluded significantly faster than non-mediated ones and without any of the negotiators opting out. Furthermore, the subjects in the mediated negotiations are more satisfied with the resolutions than the subjects in the non-mediated negotiations.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bellucci, E., & Zeleznikow, J. (2001). Family_winner: A computerised negotiation support system which advises upon australian family law. In ISDSS2001 (pp. 74–85). London.
Blum A., Jackson J., Sandholm T., Zinkevich M. (2004) Preference elicitation and query learning. Journal of Machine Learning Research 5: 649–667
Bonnet V., Boudaoud K., Gagnebin M., Harms J., Shultz T. (2004) Online dispute resolution systems as web services. ICFAI Journal of Alternative Dispute Resolution, 3: 57–74
Boutilier, C., Brafman, R., Geib, C., & Poole, D. (1997). A constraint-based approach to preference elicitation and decision making. In AAAI Spring Symposium (pp. 19–28).
Boutilier, C., Brafman, R. I., Hoos, H. H., & Poole, D. (1999). Reasoning with conditional ceteris paribus preference statements. In UAI 1999 (pp. 71–80).
Boutilier C., Brafman R., Domshlak C., Hoos H. H., Poole D. (2004) Preference-based constrained optimization with cp-nets. Computational Intelligence 20(2): 137–157
Bratu, M., Andreoli, J. M., Boissier, O., & Castellani, S. (2002). A software infrastructure for negotiation within inter-organisational alliances. In J. A. Padget, O. Shehory, D. C. Parkes, N. M. Sadeh & W. E. Walsh (Eds.), Agent-Mediated Electronic Commerce IV (AMEC-IV): Designing mechanisms and systems. Proceedings of the Workshop held at the First International Joint Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (AAMAS-02), Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence 2531 (pp. 161–179). Berlin, Germany: Springer.
Chajewska, U., Getoor, L., Norman, J., & Shahar, Y. (1998). Utility elicitation as a classification problem. In Proceedings of the Fourteenth Conference on Uncertainty in Artificial Intelligence (pp. 79–88).
Chalamish, M. (2008). Automated agents for mediated negotiations and simulation. PhD Thesis, Computer Science Department, Bar Ilan University, Israel.
eBay’s mediation room. http://www.themediationroom.com/.
Fisher R., Ury W. (1981) Getting to yes: Negotiating agreement without giving in. Houghtonn Mifflinn, New York
Gelfand, M., & Weingart, L. (June 2010). Combining computational and social science approaches to negotiation: Opportunities and challenges. In IACM Symposium, Boston, USA.
Gordon, T. F., & Karacapilidis, N. (1997). The Zeno argumentation framework. In Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference on AI and Law (pp. 10–18). New York, NY: ACM Press.
Gordon, T. F., Karacapilidis, N., Voss, H., & Zauke, A. (1997). Computer-mediated cooperative spatial planning. In H. Timmermans (Ed.), Decision support systems in urban planning (pp. 299–309). London: E and F. N. Spon.
Hattotuwa, S. Y. (Spring 2006). Transforming landscapes: Forging new ODR systems with a human face. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 23(3, Special Issue on Online Dispute Resolution), 371–382.
Karacapilidis N., Papadias D. (2001) Computer supported argumentation and collaborative decision making: the HERMES system. Information Systems 26(4): 259–277
Karacapilidis N., Papadias D., Gordon T., Voss H. (1997) Collaborative environmental planning with GeoMed. European Journal of Operational Research 102(2): 335–346
Katsh, E., & Gaitenby, A. (2003). Technology as the “fourth party”. In Proceedings of the UNECE Forum on ODR. An introductory talk.
Katsh E., Rifkin J. (2001) Online dispute resolution: Resolving disputes in cyberspace. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA
Katsh E., Wing L. (2006) Ten years of online dispute resolution (ODR): Looking at the past and constructing the future. University of Toledo Law Review 38(1): 101–126
Kaufmann-Kohler G., Schultz T. (2004) Conflict resolution in the age of the internet online dispute resolution: Challenges for contemporary justice. Kluwer Law International, Hague
Kraus S. (2001) Strategic negotiation in multi-agent environments. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA
Lai S. K. (2001) An empirical study of equivalence judgments vs. ratio judgments in decision analysis. Decision Sciences 32(2): 277–302
Lin, R., Kraus, S., Wilkenfeld, J., & Barry, J. (2006). An automated agent for bilateral negotiation with bounded rational agents with incomplete information. In Proc. of the 17th European Conference on Artificial Intelligence (ECAI) (pp. 270–274). Riva del Garda, Italy, August 2006.
Lin R., Kraus S., Wilkenfeld J., Barry J. (2008) Negotiating with bounded rational agents in environments with incomplete information using an automated agent. Artificial Intelligence 172(6–7): 823–851
Myerson R. (1990) Game theory. Analysis of conflict. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA
Nash J. F. (1953) Two-person cooperative games. Econometrica 21: 128–140
Oliva E., McBurney P., Omicini A., Viroli M. (2010) Argumentation and artifacts for negotiation support. International Journal of Artificial Intelligence 4(S10): 90–117
Oliva, E., Viroli, M., Omicini, A., & McBurney, P. (2008). Argumentation and artifact for dialog support. In I. Rahwan & P. Moraitis (Eds.), Proceedings of the Fifth International Workshop on Argumentation in Multi-Agent Systems (ArgMAS 2008), Lisbon, Portugal.
Osborne M., Rubinstein A. (1994) A course in game theory. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA
Öztürk, M., & Tsoukiàs, A. (2006). Preference representation with 3-points intervals. In Proc. of the 17th European Conference on Artificial Intelligence (ECAI) (pp. 417–421). Riva del Garda, Italy, August 2006.
Rabinovich-Einy, O. (2003–2004). Balancing the scales: The ford-firestone case, the internet, and the future dispute resolution landscape. Yale Journal of Law & Technology, 6, 1–53.
Royalty, J., Williams, D., Holland, R., Goldsmith, J., & Dekhtyar, A. (2002). Poet: The online preference elicitation tool. In AAAI Workshop on Preferences in AI and CP: A Symbolic Approach, July 2002.
Sánchez-Antón, M. (1996). Rationality of bargaining solutions. Alicante, Spain: University of Alicante (Mimeo).
Sycara K. (1988) Utility theory in conflict resolution. Annals of Operations Research 12: 65–84
Sycara, K. (Oct 1991). Problem restructuring in negotiation. Management Science, 37(10), 1248–1268.
Thiessen, E. M., & McMahon, J. P. Jr (1999). Beyond win–win in cyberspace. ADR in Cyberspace Symposium. http://www.smartsettle.com/.
Thompson, L. Student project scenario. http://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/drrc/teaching/deal_making.htm.
Thomson W. (1987) Monotonicity of bargaining solutions with respect to the disagreement point. Journal of Economic Theory 42(1): 50–58
Touval S., Zartman I. W. (1985) International mediation in theory and practice. Westview Press, Boulder, CO
Turel O., Yuan Y. (2007) Online dispute resolution services for electronic markets: a user centric research agenda. International Journal of Electronic Business 5(6): 590–603
Wellman, M. P., & Doyle, J. (1991). Preferential semantics for goals. In Proceedings of the Ninth National Conference on Artificial Intelligence (Vol. 2, pp. 698–703).
Wong S. K. M., Lingras P. (1994) Representation of qualitative user preference by quantitative belief functions. IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering 6(1): 72–78
Yoon K. P., Hwang C.-L. (1995) Multiple attribute decision making: An introduction. Sage Publications, Inc., Thousand Oaks, CA
Young H. (1994) Equity in theory and practice. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ
Zartman I. W., Touval S. (1996) Managing global chaos, chapter international mediation in the post-cold war era. United States Institute of Peace, Washington, DC
Zinkevich, M. A., Blum, A., & Sandholm, T. (2003). On polynomial-time preference elicitation with value queries. In Proceedings 4th ACM Conference on Electronic Commerce (EC-2003) San Diego, CA, June 9–12, pp. 176–185.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Preliminary results of this work have been presented in ICCCD 2009.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Chalamish, M., Kraus, S. AutoMed: an automated mediator for multi-issue bilateral negotiations. Auton Agent Multi-Agent Syst 24, 536–564 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10458-010-9165-y
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10458-010-9165-y