when applied specifically to economics there are multiple factors to consider when understanding a zero sum game a zero sum game assumes a version of perfect competition and perfect information both opponents in the model have all the relevant information to make an informed decision taking a step back most transactions or trades are inherently non zero sum games because when two parties agree to trade they do so with the understanding that the goods or services they are receiving are more valuable than the goods or services they are trading for it after transaction costs this is called positive sum and most transactions fall under this category 
many well known game theory examples like the prisoner s dilemma cournot competition centipede game and deadlock are also non zero sum a positive sum game is where the net result is greater than zero even though there may be some winners and losers in economics trade and exchange are thought to be examples of a positive sum game zero sum games and game theorygame theory is a complex theoretical study in economics the 1944 groundbreaking work theory of games and economic behavior written by hungarian born american mathematician john von neumann and co written by oskar morgenstern is the foundational text 1 game theory is the study of the decision making process between two or more intelligent and rational parties game theory can be used in a wide array of economic fields including experimental economics which uses experiments in a controlled setting to test economic theories with more real world insight when applied to economics game theory uses mathematical formulas and equations to predict outcomes in a transaction taking into account many different factors including gains losses optimality and individual behaviors in theory a zero sum game is solved via three solutions perhaps the most notable of which is the nash equilibrium put forth by john nash in a 1951 paper titled non cooperative games 2 the nash equilibrium states that two or more opponents in the game given knowledge of each others choices and that they will not receive any benefit from changing their choice will therefore not deviate from their choice example of a zero sum gamethe game of matching pennies is often cited as an example of a zero sum game according to game theory the game involves two players a and b simultaneously placing a penny on the table the payoff depends on whether the pennies match or not if both pennies are heads or tails player a wins and keeps player b s penny if they do not match then player b wins and keeps player a s penny matching pennies is a zero sum game because one player s gain is the other s loss the payoffs for players a and b are shown in the table below with the first numeral in cells a through d representing player a s payoff and the second numeral representing player b s playoff as can be seen the combined playoff for a and b in all four cells is zero 