Agent-Based Modeling by Dr Milena Tsvetkova
The workshop will introduce students to agent-based models as a theory-construction tool in the social sciences. Agent-based models enable us to study the emergence of social phenomena in social systems from the behavior and interactions of a population of actors (people, organizations, states, etc.). The morning session will start with a brief introduction to complex systems, game-theoretic games and strategies, and Monte Carlo methods. We will then examine several fundamental agent-based models explaining social phenomena such as residential segregation, social contagion, collective action, opinion polarization, the emergence of cooperation, and network formation. In the afternoon session, we will introduce the NetLogo programming language and use it to modify and extend existing models. The workshop is suitable to both quantitative and qualitative researchers. No programming background or knowledge is required. Students are encouraged to bring their own laptops to the session.
Texts
Macy, M. W., & Willer, R. (2002). From factors to actors: Computational sociology and agent-based modeling. Annual Review of Sociology, 28(1), 143–166.
Optional Texts
Axelrod, R., & Hamilton, W. D. (1981). The evolution of cooperation. Science, 211(4489), 1390–1396.
Deffuant, G., Neau, D., Amblard, F., & Weisbuch, G. (2000). Mixing beliefs among interacting agents. Advances in Complex Systems, 03(01n04), 87–98.
Schelling, T. C. (1969). Models of segregation. The American Economic Review, 59(2), 488–493.
Watts, D. J., & Strogatz, S. H. (1998). Collective dynamics of “small-world” networks. Nature, 393(6684), 440.
Session Details
Time: 10:00 - 15:00 (12:00 - 13:00 Lunch break)
Date: 20 May 2025
Mode: Hybrid - In person at DSI and on Zoom
Data Science Institute
COL 1.06
Columbia House (Houghton Street Entrance)
Houghton Street
London, WC2A 2AE
Please ring the doorbell
Please note that the course material and Zoom link will be distributed ahead of the short course when sign-up closes.
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