101551 Lecture Notes - Lecture 17: Sociocybernetics, Network Science, Multi-Agent System

• School: UWS
• Department: University of Western Sydney
• Course: 101551
• Professor: anon

Document Summary

Methodologically, social complexity is theory-neutral, meaning that it accommodates both local and global approaches to sociological research. The very idea of social complexity arises out of the historical comparative methods of early sociologists; obviously, this method is important in developing, defining, and refining the theoretical construct of social complexity. At the most localized level of analysis, ethnographic, participant or non-participant observation, content analysis and other qualitative research methods may be appropriate. More recently, highly sophisticated quantitative research methodologies are being developed and used in sociology at both local and global levels of analysis. Such methods include (but are not limited to) bifurcation diagrams network analysis, non-linear modelling, and computational models including cellular automata programming, sociocybernetics and other methods of social simulations. Complex social network analysis is used to study the dynamics of large, complex social networks. Dynamic work analysis brings together traditional social network analysis, link analysis and multi-agent systems within network science and network theory.