Insincerely Yours

Abstract

Every known voting method can be manipulated, hence the tactic of “strategic voting.” But some voting methods are harder to manipulate than others and therefore encourage “truthful revelation” of voters’ preferences. These interact with the problems that various voting systems have (following from Chapter 4) when voters are asked to choose between more than two options. Many organizations try to deal with the “problem” of many choices by breaking every decision down into a set of “yes/no” votes. The most famous of these “parliamentary process” procedures is Robert’s Rules of Order, widely used throughout the world. Controlling the sequence of “yes/no” votes can often manipulate the outcome, which is known in political science as “agenda control.” Other ways to manipulate outcomes includes how the choices are described (“framing” effects) and the biases (either explicit or implicit) of “decision facilitators.” This chapter discusses these issues and suggests ways to avoid their being used adversely in group decision-making.