The sharing of beliefs, attitudes and behaviours among individuals can play a significant role in defining the characteristics of groups. While traditionally studied from sociological and psychological perspectives, computational modelling can also play a role in understanding the dynamics through which group-level phenomena may take hold. Using so-called agent-based modelling, abstract representations of individual-level behaviour and responses can be played out in thousands of different scenarios to shed light on how groups can potentially evolve.
In this seminar, Professor Roger Whitaker will provide an overview of recent agent-based modelling addressing three important psychological concepts: i) out-group prejudice, ii) vicarious (cognitive) dissonance, and iii) identity fusion. Identity fusion is particularly interesting as it provides an explanation for the devoted actor phenomenon, where individuals become empowered to seemingly act without regard for themselves. Professor Whitaker has helped established one of the first computational models to study the evolution of this concept and during the talk will provide evidence that sensitivity to hypocrisy may play an important role.
This work has been supported by CSRI’s role in the Distributed Analytics and Information Sciences International Technology Alliance programme. The outcomes lead us to question how further signals on individual and group level behaviour may be captured in social media to give deeper insights into the nature of online communities and formal/informal groups.
Speaker Biography
Roger Whitaker is a Professor of Collective Intelligence at Cardiff University within the School of Computer Science and Informatics. Roger is also Academic Director of Supercomputing Wales, Co-director of Data Innovation Accelerator and Project leader for the US/UKDistributed Analytics and Information Sciences International Technology Alliance (DAIS ITA, 2016-2021). He is interested in social, psychological and evolutionary intelligence, including engineering, sociology and psychology.
When: 12-1pm, 14th September 2021
Where: This event will be held on Zoom. To register, follow this link. Once you have registered, you will be sent the link and passcode to access the call.
Contact: [email protected]