Agent-based modeling: A tool for complementing the analysis of social phenomena

Abstract

This paper shows the usefulness of Agent-based Modeling (AbM) for studying social phenomena. This tool saves time and resources, allowing us to analyze many variables and then select the most significant ones for proceeding with the study. This process is illustrated through a model which analyzes the time needed to treat sick people according to whether the treatment might be given in situ or at a hospital, whether health personnel might share or not information regarding patients' location and, if the density of geographical distribution of sick people is high or low. The results reveal that exchanging information significantly shortens the time only for hospital treatments and that density does not have an impact. We conclude that AbM has great advantages for the design of social research and helps in the decision making process of practitioners.