Rapid technological advances over the past few decades---in particular, the rise of the internet---has significantly reshaped and expanded the meaning of our everyday social activities, including our interactions with our social circle, the media, and our political and economic activities
This dissertation aims to tackle some of the unique societal challenges underlying the design of automated online platforms that interact with people and organizations---namely, those imposed by legal, ethical, and strategic considerations.
I narrow down attention to fairness considerations, learning with repeated trials, and competition for market share. In each case, I investigate the broad issue in a particular context (i.e. online market), and present the solution my research offers to the problem in that application.
Addressing interdisciplinary problems, such as the ones in this dissertation, requires drawing ideas and techniques from various disciplines, including theoretical computer science, microeconomics, and applied statistics.
The research presented here utilizes a combination of theoretical and data analysis tools to shed light on some of the key challenges in designing algorithms for today\u27s online markets, including crowdsourcing and labor markets, online advertising, and social networks among others
