Intro -- Contents -- Preface -- I. Introduction -- 1. Decentralization and Incentives -- 2. Incentive Compatibility since 1972 -- II. Informational Comparisons -- 3. Informational Requirements of Parametric Resource Allocation Processes -- 4. Price versus Direct Revelation: Informational...

A resource-allocation mechanism is viewed as a gigantic information processing system. Such a system utilizes the knowledge dispersed among economic agents concerning their preferences, technologies, and endowments to determine how resources flow. The chapter discusses that information is...