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Main Authors: Schwarze, Alice C, Kawakatsu, Mari, Iams, Sarah, Fefferman, Nina H, Eissa, Tahra L
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2409.17573
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_version_ 1866910620844032000
author Schwarze, Alice C
Kawakatsu, Mari
Iams, Sarah
Fefferman, Nina H
Eissa, Tahra L
author_facet Schwarze, Alice C
Kawakatsu, Mari
Iams, Sarah
Fefferman, Nina H
Eissa, Tahra L
contents Many classical models of collective behavior assume that emergent dynamics result from external and observable interactions among individuals. However, how collective dynamics in human populations depend on the internal psychological processes of individuals remains underexplored. Here, we develop a mathematical model to investigate the effects of internal psychology on the dynamics of collective action. Our model is grounded in the theory of planned behavior -- a well-established conceptual framework in social psychology that links intrinsic beliefs to behavior. By incorporating temporal biases in social perception and individual differences in decision-making processes into our model, we find that the interplay between internal and external drivers of behavior can produce diverse outcomes, ranging from partial participation in collective action to rapid or delayed cascades of action-taking. These distinct outcomes are preceded by transient dynamics that are qualitatively similar to one another, which, just as in real-world scenarios, makes it difficult to predict long-term collective dynamics from early observations. Our model thus provides a useful test bed for methods that aim to predict the emergence of collective action, and it lays the groundwork for studying the nuanced dynamics of collective human behavior arising from the interaction between psychological processes and observable actions.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2409_17573
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Planned behavior, perceptual biases, and the dynamics of collective action
Schwarze, Alice C
Kawakatsu, Mari
Iams, Sarah
Fefferman, Nina H
Eissa, Tahra L
Physics and Society
34C28, 91C99
Many classical models of collective behavior assume that emergent dynamics result from external and observable interactions among individuals. However, how collective dynamics in human populations depend on the internal psychological processes of individuals remains underexplored. Here, we develop a mathematical model to investigate the effects of internal psychology on the dynamics of collective action. Our model is grounded in the theory of planned behavior -- a well-established conceptual framework in social psychology that links intrinsic beliefs to behavior. By incorporating temporal biases in social perception and individual differences in decision-making processes into our model, we find that the interplay between internal and external drivers of behavior can produce diverse outcomes, ranging from partial participation in collective action to rapid or delayed cascades of action-taking. These distinct outcomes are preceded by transient dynamics that are qualitatively similar to one another, which, just as in real-world scenarios, makes it difficult to predict long-term collective dynamics from early observations. Our model thus provides a useful test bed for methods that aim to predict the emergence of collective action, and it lays the groundwork for studying the nuanced dynamics of collective human behavior arising from the interaction between psychological processes and observable actions.
title Planned behavior, perceptual biases, and the dynamics of collective action
topic Physics and Society
34C28, 91C99
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2409.17573