Pragmatic Ambiguity and Rational Miscommunication

Author(s):

Toru Suzuki

Date of publication: June 2021

Working paper number: 04

Abstract:

This paper provides a model of miscommunication in a common-interest setting. The speaker describes the state with a preexisting language to the decision-maker, whereas using a longer description is more costly. It is shown that, given any non-zero communication cost, any reasonably efficient equilibrium exhibits miscommunication caused by ambiguous descriptions whenever agents communicate across various occasions and their perceptions of occasions are imperfect but sufficiently accurate. Equilibrium miscommunication disappears when agents’ perceptions of occasions are too noisy, suggesting more accurate perceptions do not always reduce miscommunication. The model also provides insight into the miscommunication that triggered a well-known aircraft crash.

Acknowledgement of Country

UTS acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal people and the Gamaygal people, upon whose ancestral lands our university stands. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands.