buy (sell) a single unit of an indivisible good. The core predicts a unique and extreme outcome: the entire surplus is … split evenly among the buyers when m gt; n and among the sellers when m lt; n; the long side gets nothing. We test this core … deviations from the core prediction, we find that successful collusion is infrequent in both new institutions. A disproportionate …

A longstanding criticism of the core is that it is too sensitive to small changes in player numbers, as in a well known … and decreasing over time even with institutions that facilitate collusion and, consistent with core theory, a …

. The core predicts a unique and extreme outcome: the entire surplus is split evenly among the buyers when m > n and among … the sellers when m < n; the long side gets nothing. We test this core conjecture in the lab with n + m = 3 or 5 randomly … agreements while trading. Despite frequent attempts to collude and occasional large deviations from the core prediction, we find …

whether or not the core exists and in the initial allocation of property rights among the players. The paper highlights the … interaction between property rights, transaction costs and the empty core. Our experimental results indicate that the existence of … the core is an important determinant of bargaining generally and the Coase Theorem in particular. They confirm our …