Discrete Mathematics and Its Applications, Seventh Edition

Published by McGraw-Hill Education
ISBN 10: 0073383090
ISBN 13: 978-0-07338-309-5

Chapter 3 - Section 3.1 - Algorithms - Exercises - Page 204: 63

Answer

We have given that: A matching table is stable, when there is no man $m$ and no women $w$ such that $m$ prefers $w$ over his assigned partner and $w$ prefer $m$ over her assigned partner. $Proof$ $by$ $contradiction$ Let us assume, for the sake of contradiction, that the algorithm does not end with a stable assignment. Then there exists a man $m$ and a woman $w$ such that $m$ prefers $w$ over his assigned partner and $w$ preferred $m$ over her assigned partner. This would then mean that $m$ would have proposed $w$ in a previous iteration of the algorithm. Since $w$ prefers $m$ over her assigned partner, she would then have rejected the proposal of the assigned partner in that iteration of the algorithm. However, this is not possible as she cannot reject a proposal of somebody who became the assigned partner and thus we have derived a contradiction. This then means that our assumption “the algorithm does not end with a stable assignment” is incorrect and thus the deferred acceptance algorithm terminates with a stable assignment.

Work Step by Step

We have given that: A matching table is stable, when there is no man $m$ and no women $w$ such that $m$ prefers $w$ over his assigned partner and $w$ prefer $m$ over her assigned partner. $Proof$ $by$ $contradiction$ Let us assume, for the sake of contradiction, that the algorithm does not end with a stable assignment. Then there exists a man $m$ and a woman $w$ such that $m$ prefers $w$ over his assigned partner and $w$ preferred $m$ over her assigned partner. This would then mean that $m$ would have proposed $w$ in a previous iteration of the algorithm. Since $w$ prefers $m$ over her assigned partner, she would then have rejected the proposal of the assigned partner in that iteration of the algorithm. However, this is not possible as she cannot reject a proposal of somebody who became the assigned partner and thus we have derived a contradiction. This then means that our assumption “the algorithm does not end with a stable assignment” is incorrect and thus the deferred acceptance algorithm terminates with a stable assignment.
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