Good models start with good plans. Let’s think through the process systematically.
What Question Are You Trying to Answer?¶
Every model should address a specific question about social phenomena:
Good research questions:
“How do individual preferences for similar neighbors lead to residential segregation?”
“What factors determine whether cooperation emerges in a group?”
“How does information spread through a social network?”
Too vague:
“How do people behave?”
“What makes societies work?”
What Are Your Agents and What Do They Do?¶
Once you have a question, design your agents:
Agent properties: What characteristics do they have?
Demographics (age, income, education)
Preferences (risk tolerance, social orientation)
States (opinion, mood, health status)
Resources (money, time, information)
Agent behaviors: What actions can they take?
Movement (where do they go?)
Communication (who do they talk to?)
Decision-making (how do they choose?)
Learning (how do they adapt?)
What Does Success Look Like?¶
Define what patterns you expect to see:
Segregation model: Clusters of similar agents
Cooperation model: Stable cooperation despite temptation to defect
Information spread: Rapid diffusion through social networks
Success criteria:
Model produces realistic patterns
Changing parameters creates predictable changes
Results provide insights about real-world phenomena