Cultural fragmentation and innovation diffusion in a dynamic scenario

TL;DR

This paper extends the Axelrod model by incorporating group dynamics and social identity, demonstrating how cultural diversity and innovation can persist in a society through complex social interactions.

Contribution

It introduces a novel integration of group dynamics into cultural dissemination models, highlighting conditions that preserve cultural diversity and facilitate innovation survival.

Findings

Group dynamics prevent cultural homogenization.

Cultural multiplicity is maintained under certain social conditions.

Innovations can survive within group-structured societies.

Abstract

Axelrod model describes the dissemination of a set of cultural traits in a society constituted by individual agents. In a social context, nevertheless, individual choices toward a specific attitude are also at the basis of the formation of communities, groups, parties. The membership in a group changes completely the behavior of single agents who start acting according to a social identity. Groups act and interact among them as single entities, but still conserve an internal dynamics. We show that, under certain conditions on social dynamics, the introduction of group dynamics in a cultural dissemination process avoids the flattening of the culture on a single thought and preserve the multiplicity of cultural attitudes. We also considered an innovation diffusion process on this dynamical background, showing under which conditions innovative ideas can survive in a scenario where the groups choices determine the social structure.