A relative approach to opinion formation

Kit Ming Danny Chan, Robert Duivenvoorden, Andreas Flache and Michel Mandjes

The Journal of Mathematical Sociology, 2024, vol. 48, issue 1, 1-41

Abstract: Formal models of opinion formation commonly represent an individual’s opinion by a value on a fixed opinion interval. We propose an alternative modeling method wherein interpretation is only provided to the relative positions of opinions vis-à-vis each other. This method is then considered in a similar setting as the discrete-time Altafini model (an extension of the well-known DeGroot model), but with more general influence weights. Even in a linear framework, the model can describe, in the long run, polarization, dynamics with a periodic pattern, and (modulus) consensus formation. In addition, in our alternative approach key characteristics of the opinion dynamic can be derived from real-valued square matrices of influence weights, which immediately allows one to transfer matrix theory insights to the field of opinion formation dynamics under more relaxed conditions than in the DeGroot or discrete-time Altafini models. A few specific themes are covered: (i) We demonstrate how stable patterns in relative opinion dynamics are identified which are hidden when opinions are considered in an absolute opinion framework. (ii) For the two-agent case, we provide an exhaustive closed-form description of the relative opinion model’s dynamic in the long run. (iii) We explore group dynamics analytically, in particular providing a non-trivial condition under which a subgroup’s asymptotic behavior carries over to the entire population.

Date: 2024
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/0022250X.2022.2036142 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:gmasxx:v:48:y:2024:i:1:p:1-41

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/gmas20

DOI: 10.1080/0022250X.2022.2036142

Access Statistics for this article

The Journal of Mathematical Sociology is currently edited by Noah Friedkin

More articles in The Journal of Mathematical Sociology from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().