This Article Free Full Text (Free PDF) Free References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Smith, E. R. Articles by Conrey, F. R. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Smith, E. R. Articles by Conrey, F. R. Social Bookmarking                   What's this?

Agent-Based Modeling: A New Approach for Theory Building in Social Psychology

Indiana University, Bloomington, esmith4{at}indiana.edu

Frederica R. Conrey

Indiana University, Bloomington

Most social and psychological phenomena occur not as the result of isolated decisions by individuals but rather as the result of repeated interactions between multiple individuals over time. Yet the theory-building and modeling techniques most commonly used in social psychology are less than ideal for understanding such dynamic and interactive processes. This article describes an alternative approach to theory building, agent-based modeling (ABM), which involves simulation of large numbers of autonomous agents that interact with each other and with a simulated environment and the observation of emergent patterns from their interactions. The authors believe that the ABM approach is better able than prevailing approaches in the field, variable-based modeling (VBM) techniques such as causal modeling, to capture types of complex, dynamic, interactive processes so important in the social world. The article elaborates several important contrasts between ABM and VBM and offers specific recommendations for learning more and applying the ABM approach.

Key Words: evolutionary psychology • metatheory • research methods

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				W. A. Mason, F. R. Conrey, and E. R. Smith Situating Social Influence Processes: Dynamic, Multidirectional Flows of Influence Within Social Networks Personality and Social Psychology Review, August 1, 2007; 11(3): 279 - 300. [Abstract] [PDF]