Mathematical Modeling of Social Relationships

Mathematical Modeling of Social Relationships
Author: Urszula Strawinska-Zanko
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 227
Release: 2018-06-07
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 3319767658

This edited volume presents examples of social science research projects that employ new methods of quantitative analysis and mathematical modeling of social processes. This book presents the fascinating areas of empirical and theoretical investigations that use formal mathematics in a way that is accessible for individuals lacking extensive expertise but still desiring to expand their scope of research methodology and add to their data analysis toolbox. Mathematical Modeling of Social Relationships professes how mathematical modeling can help us understand the fundamental, compelling, and yet sometimes complicated concepts that arise in the social sciences. This volume will appeal to upper-level students and researchers in a broad area of fields within the social sciences, as well as the disciplines of social psychology, complex systems, and applied mathematics.

Mathematical Models of Social Evolution

Mathematical Models of Social Evolution
Author: Richard McElreath
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 429
Release: 2008-09-15
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0226558282

Over the last several decades, mathematical models have become central to the study of social evolution, both in biology and the social sciences. But students in these disciplines often seriously lack the tools to understand them. A primer on behavioral modeling that includes both mathematics and evolutionary theory, Mathematical Models of Social Evolution aims to make the student and professional researcher in biology and the social sciences fully conversant in the language of the field. Teaching biological concepts from which models can be developed, Richard McElreath and Robert Boyd introduce readers to many of the typical mathematical tools that are used to analyze evolutionary models and end each chapter with a set of problems that draw upon these techniques. Mathematical Models of Social Evolution equips behaviorists and evolutionary biologists with the mathematical knowledge to truly understand the models on which their research depends. Ultimately, McElreath and Boyd’s goal is to impart the fundamental concepts that underlie modern biological understandings of the evolution of behavior so that readers will be able to more fully appreciate journal articles and scientific literature, and start building models of their own.

Qualitative Mathematics for the Social Sciences

Qualitative Mathematics for the Social Sciences
Author: Lee Rudolph
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 494
Release: 2013
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 0415444829

This book combines psychological and mathematical perspectives to analyse how qualitative mathematics can be used to create models of social and psychological processes.

Mathematical Models of Perception and Cognition Volume II

Mathematical Models of Perception and Cognition Volume II
Author: Joseph W. Houpt
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2016-05-20
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1317297482

In this two volume festschrift, contributors explore the theoretical developments (Volume I) and applications (Volume II) in traditional cognitive psychology domains, and model other areas of human performance that benefit from rigorous mathematical approaches. It brings together former classmates, students and colleagues of Dr. James T. Townsend, a pioneering researcher in the field since the early 1960s, to provide a current overview of mathematical modeling in psychology. Townsend’s research critically emphasized a need for rigor in the practice of cognitive modeling, and for providing mathematical definition and structure to ill-defined psychological topics. The research captured demonstrates how the interplay of theory and application, bridged by rigorous mathematics, can move cognitive modeling forward.

The Oxford Handbook of Computational and Mathematical Psychology

The Oxford Handbook of Computational and Mathematical Psychology
Author: Jerome R. Busemeyer
Publisher:
Total Pages: 425
Release: 2015
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 0199957991

This Oxford Handbook offers a comprehensive and authoritative review of important developments in computational and mathematical psychology. With chapters written by leading scientists across a variety of subdisciplines, it examines the field's influence on related research areas such as cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, clinical psychology, and neuroscience. The Handbook emphasizes examples and applications of the latest research, and will appeal to readers possessing various levels of modeling experience. The Oxford Handbook of Computational and mathematical Psychology covers the key developments in elementary cognitive mechanisms (signal detection, information processing, reinforcement learning), basic cognitive skills (perceptual judgment, categorization, episodic memory), higher-level cognition (Bayesian cognition, decision making, semantic memory, shape perception), modeling tools (Bayesian estimation and other new model comparison methods), and emerging new directions in computation and mathematical psychology (neurocognitive modeling, applications to clinical psychology, quantum cognition). The Handbook would make an ideal graduate-level textbook for courses in computational and mathematical psychology. Readers ranging from advanced undergraduates to experienced faculty members and researchers in virtually any area of psychology--including cognitive science and related social and behavioral sciences such as consumer behavior and communication--will find the text useful.

Mathematical Modelling

Mathematical Modelling
Author: Simon Serovajsky
Publisher: CRC Press
Total Pages: 466
Release: 2021-11-24
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 1000503976

Mathematical Modelling sets out the general principles of mathematical modelling as a means comprehending the world. Within the book, the problems of physics, engineering, chemistry, biology, medicine, economics, ecology, sociology, psychology, political science, etc. are all considered through this uniform lens. The author describes different classes of models, including lumped and distributed parameter systems, deterministic and stochastic models, continuous and discrete models, static and dynamical systems, and more. From a mathematical point of view, the considered models can be understood as equations and systems of equations of different nature and variational principles. In addition to this, mathematical features of mathematical models, applied control and optimization problems based on mathematical models, and identification of mathematical models are also presented. Features Each chapter includes four levels: a lecture (main chapter material), an appendix (additional information), notes (explanations, technical calculations, literature review) and tasks for independent work; this is suitable for undergraduates and graduate students and does not require the reader to take any prerequisite course, but may be useful for researchers as well Described mathematical models are grouped both by areas of application and by the types of obtained mathematical problems, which contributes to both the breadth of coverage of the material and the depth of its understanding Can be used as the main textbook on a mathematical modelling course, and is also recommended for special courses on mathematical models for physics, chemistry, biology, economics, etc.

The Mathematics of Marriage

The Mathematics of Marriage
Author: John M. Gottman
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 423
Release: 2005-01-14
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 0262572303

Divorce rates are at an all-time high. But without a theoretical understanding of the processes related to marital stability and dissolution, it is difficult to design and evaluate new marriage interventions. The Mathematics of Marriage provides the foundation for a scientific theory of marital relations. The book does not rely on metaphors, but develops and applies a mathematical model using difference equations. The work is the fulfillment of the goal to build a mathematical framework for the general system theory of families first suggested by Ludwig Von Bertalanffy in the 1960s.The book also presents a complete introduction to the mathematics involved in theory building and testing, and details the development of experiments and models. In one "marriage experiment," for example, the authors explored the effects of lowering or raising a couple's heart rates. Armed with their mathematical model, they were able to do real experiments to determine which processes were affected by their interventions. Applying ideas such as phase space, null clines, influence functions, inertia, and uninfluenced and influenced stable steady states (attractors), the authors show how other researchers can use the methods to weigh their own data with positive and negative weights. While the focus is on modeling marriage, the techniques can be applied to other types of psychological phenomena as well.

Perspectives on Social Psychology

Perspectives on Social Psychology
Author: Clyde Hendrick
Publisher: Psychology Press
Total Pages: 373
Release: 2015-06-19
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1317562372

Originally published in 1977, this volume was intended to provide a relatively elementary and clear overview of some of the more important approaches to social psychology at the time. There are a number of perspectives on this discipline, but here, instead of traditional theoretical approaches (e.g. field theory, role theory or S-R) the point of view is from the general perspective. The first chapter approaches social psychology as an experimental science, with the history and philosophic traditions discussed, as well as the current state of the field. Other chapters approach the discipline from the perspectives of symbolic interaction, social development, and ethology. The final chapter is devoted to the uses of mathematical models in social psychology. This volume was intended to serve as a helpful integration of the field, and will still be useful as a text in its historical context.

The Calculus of Selfishness

The Calculus of Selfishness
Author: Karl Sigmund
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 184
Release: 2010-01-04
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 140083225X

A pioneer in evolutionary game theory looks at selfishness and cooperation How does cooperation emerge among selfish individuals? When do people share resources, punish those they consider unfair, and engage in joint enterprises? These questions fascinate philosophers, biologists, and economists alike, for the "invisible hand" that should turn selfish efforts into public benefit is not always at work. The Calculus of Selfishness looks at social dilemmas where cooperative motivations are subverted and self-interest becomes self-defeating. Karl Sigmund, a pioneer in evolutionary game theory, uses simple and well-known game theory models to examine the foundations of collective action and the effects of reciprocity and reputation. Focusing on some of the best-known social and economic experiments, including games such as the Prisoner's Dilemma, Trust, Ultimatum, Snowdrift, and Public Good, Sigmund explores the conditions leading to cooperative strategies. His approach is based on evolutionary game dynamics, applied to deterministic and probabilistic models of economic interactions. Exploring basic strategic interactions among individuals guided by self-interest and caught in social traps, The Calculus of Selfishness analyzes to what extent one key facet of human nature—selfishness—can lead to cooperation.