Computational sociology

Computational sociology is a recently developed branch of sociologythat uses computationto analyze social phenomena. The basic premise of computational sociology is to take advantage of computer simulationin the construction of social theories. It involves the understanding of social agents, the interaction among these agents, and the effect of these interactions on the social aggregate. Although the subject matter and methodologies in social sciencediffer from those in natural scienceor computer science, several of the approaches used in contemporary social simulationoriginated from fields such as physicsand artificial intelligence.

In relevant literature, computational sociology is often related to the study of social complexity. Social complexity concepts such as complex systems, non-linearinterconnection among macro and micro process, and emergence, have entered the vocabulary of computational sociology. A practical and well-known example is the construction of a computational model in the form of an "artificial society," by which researchers can analyze the structure of a social system.

See also

• Artificial Society
• Social simulation
• Important publications in computational sociology

External links

• On-line book "Simulation for the Social Scientist" by Nigel Gilbert and Klaus G. Troitzsch, 1999, second edition 2005
• Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulation
• Computational Sociology Tutorial in Bandung Fe Institute compiled by Hokky Situngkir (available in Indonesian/Bahasa Melayu)
• From Factors to Actors: Computational Sociology and Agent-based Modeling - Review by Michael Macy and Robert Willer
• Mind Colonies & Ecosystems Thinking for Mind Ecosystemsko:?? ???

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It uses material from the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computational+sociology Wikipedia article Computational sociology.