dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaCognitive Maps of Complex Systems Show Hierarchical Structure and Scale-Free Properties
| Authors | Uygar Ozesmi, Can Ozan Tan |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | q-bio/0612030 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/q-bio/0612030 |
Abstract
Many networks in natural and human-made systems exhibit scale-free properties and are small worlds. Now we show that people's understanding of complex systems in their cognitive maps also follow a scale-free topology (P_k = k^-lambda, lambda [1.24,3.03]; r^2 <= 0.95). People focus on a few attributes, as indicated by a fat tail in the probability distribution of total degree. These few attributes are related with many other variables in the system. Many more attributes have very few connections. The scale-free properties in the cognitive maps of people arise despite the fact that their average distances are not different (Wilcoxon sign-rank test, W=78, p=0.75) than random networks of the same size and connection density. The scale-free property manifests itself in the higher hierarchical structure compared to random networks (Wilcoxon sign-rank test, W=12, p=0.03). People use relatively short explanations to describe systems. These findings may help us to better understand people's perceptions, especially when it comes to decision-making, conflict resolution, politics and management.
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"abstract": "Many networks in natural and human-made systems exhibit scale-free properties\nand are small worlds. Now we show that people\u0027s understanding of complex\nsystems in their cognitive maps also follow a scale-free topology (P_k =\nk^-lambda, lambda [1.24,3.03]; r^2 \u003c= 0.95). People focus on a few attributes,\nas indicated by a fat tail in the probability distribution of total degree.\nThese few attributes are related with many other variables in the system. Many\nmore attributes have very few connections. The scale-free properties in the\ncognitive maps of people arise despite the fact that their average distances\nare not different (Wilcoxon sign-rank test, W=78, p=0.75) than random networks\nof the same size and connection density. The scale-free property manifests\nitself in the higher hierarchical structure compared to random networks\n(Wilcoxon sign-rank test, W=12, p=0.03). People use relatively short\nexplanations to describe systems. These findings may help us to better\nunderstand people\u0027s perceptions, especially when it comes to decision-making,\nconflict resolution, politics and management.",
"arxiv_id": "q-bio/0612030",
"authors": [
"Uygar Ozesmi",
"Can Ozan Tan"
],
"categories": [
"q-bio.NC",
"q-bio.OT"
],
"title": "Cognitive Maps of Complex Systems Show Hierarchical Structure and Scale-Free Properties",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/q-bio/0612030"
},
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