Application of simulation techniques in social sciences: A critical study

علوم اجتماعی دانشگاه فردوسی مشهد

Article 3, Volume 11, Issue 2 - Serial Number 24, March 2015, Pages 77-104   

Document Type: Scientific-Research

DOI: 10.22067/jss.v11i2.18642

Author

Ahmadreza Asgharpour-Masouleh^*

Ferdowsi University of Mashhad

Abstract

Social simulation includes a set of techniques and tools for modeling social phenomena in such a way that testing and doing artificial experiments are possible. Modern computational and programming tools have made it possible for social researchers, along with other disciplines, to open new perspectives in sociology, both in theory and method. Although technical development in computational tools has a short history, but the need for social simulation can be traced to the first decades of the last century. In a typology, the techniques of social simulation may be categorized as follows: system dynamics, queuing models, microsimulaiton, cellular automata, and agent-based modeling. These five could be put in two general categories: process-based techniques (the first two) and agent-based techniques (the last three). It seems that among all of these techniques, agent-based modeling can satisfy some of the most important considerations of social researchers. Considerations like agent heterogeneity, interaction, learning, agent-environment interaction and emergence of macro patterns from micro actions. Although social simulation, in general, and agent-based modeling, in particular, are in their first years of maturity, and some of important critics have remained unanswered, but it seems that potentially they can add new and efficient views to the sociology.

Keywords

social simulation; agent-based modeling; microsimulation; cellular automata; queuing models

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