Citation
Malanson, George P. & Walsh, Stephen J. (2015). Agent-Based Models: Individuals Interacting in Space. Applied Geography, 56, 95-98.Abstract
Geographers study the complex interactions within and among human, biological, and physical systems that occur at and across multiple scales. Agent-Based Models (ABMs) can represent these interactions (Manson et al., 2012 and Parker et al., 2003), and continue to generate interest across a wide swath of the sciences. ABMs are computer simulations in which the dynamics of a system are modeled at the level of individuals that carry out its operations. ABMs are taken to mean the same thing as Multi-Agent Systems (MAS) model, and while some differentiation is possible, definitions and applications do not differentiate them precisely (Hare & Deadman, 2004). The important aspects of ABMs are that the individuals interact with each other and their environment in that what they do depends on relations with either or both. This view of agent based models derives from their descent from both artificial intelligence, wherein the agents are algorithms, and micro-simulation, which is focused on individual components in a conceptual system. The latter is how agents are primarily understood in ecology, economics, sociology, and geography (e.g., Ballas et al., 2005; Gilbert, 2008; Railsback and Grimm, 2012 and O'Sullivan and Perry, 2013).URL
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2014.11.009Reference Type
Journal ArticleYear Published
2015Journal Title
Applied GeographyAuthor(s)
Malanson, George P.Walsh, Stephen J.