Methodological individualism and agent-based computational simulation: A reply to Kincaid and Zahle

This study reflects on Harold Kincaid and Jule Zahle’s view that there is no necessary association between methodological individualism and agent-based models because the analysis of social phenomena in terms of the latter cannot always be regarded as an implementation of the former. Their view rema...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Social Science Information 2024-06, Vol.63 (2), p.155-167
Main Author: Di Iorio, Francesco
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Holism
Holistic approach
Individualism
Methodological individualism
Philosophers
Research methodology
Simulation
Social scientists
Traditions
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:This study reflects on Harold Kincaid and Jule Zahle’s view that there is no necessary association between methodological individualism and agent-based models because the analysis of social phenomena in terms of the latter cannot always be regarded as an implementation of the former. Their view remains in contention with the standpoint of several philosophers of science and social scientists, including Chen and Di Iorio. Kincaid and Zahle’s main argument against such a standpoint is that agent-based simulation is compatible with holistic explanations that are at odds with methodological individualism. The following study argues that Kincaid and Zahle’s conclusion remains untenable since it stems from inaccurate historical assumptions concerning the tradition of methodological individualism and the way the individualism-holism debate is understood within this tradition.
ISSN:0539-0184
1461-7412
DOI:10.1177/05390184241258370