How agent-based modelling can be used to study intangible cultural heritage
A new working paper explains how such a study could be approached, and provides access to a few basic models programmed in Python.
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Alongside stochasticity, the ability to model social systems is among the main appeals of agent-based modelling. To take advantage of these capabilities, social phenomena such as social influence and social identity must be decomposed into their individual ‘determinants’ — for example, cultural assimilation, homophily, and salience. Additionally, the interaction of these determinants with one another and with other socio-cultural and demographic factors must be expressed in mathematical or logical terms. CET postdoctoral fellow Daniel Puig has authored a working paper that provides a few such formalisations.
The working paper focuses on the main social phenomena influencing an individual’s attachment to intangible cultural heritage. The natural evolution of intangible cultural heritage is disrupted by several factors, including climate change. This disruption compromises the realisation of both the intrinsic and instrumental values of intangible cultural heritage. The socio-cultural processes determines the level of attachment to intangible cultural heritage are key in the context of heritage stewardship, because attachment levels modulate the extent to which the societal values of heritage are realised. This working document provides pointers to study these phenomena.
