JASSS logo


(2 articles matched your search)

From Anti-Conformism to Extremism
By: GĂ©rard Weisbuch, Volume 18 (3)
Abstract: We here present a model of the dynamics of extremism based on opinion dynamics in order to understand the circumstances which favour its emergence and development in large fractions of the general public. Our model is based on the bounded confidence hypothesis and on the evolution of initially anti-conformist agents to extreme positions. Numerical analyses demonstrate that a few extremists are able to drag a large fraction of conformists agents to their position provided that they express theirs views more often than the conformists. The most influential parameter controlling the outcome of t ...

A Psychologically-Motivated Model of Opinion Change with Applications to American Politics
By: Peter Duggins, Volume 20 (1)
Abstract: Agent-based models are versatile tools for studying how societal opinion change, including political polarization and cultural diffusion, emerges from individual behavior. This study expands agents' psychological realism using empirically-motivated rules governing interpersonal influence, commitment to previous beliefs, and conformity in social contexts. Computational experiments establish that these extensions produce three novel results: (a) sustained strong diversity of opinions within the population, (b) opinion subcultures, and (c) pluralistic ignorance. These phenomena arise from a combi ...