Combinatorial aspect of fashion

TL;DR

This paper modifies the Axelrod model of culture dissemination by introducing a probabilistic mechanism for attraction and repulsion based on cell states, analyzing how initial homogeneity affects cultural convergence.

Contribution

It presents a new probabilistic approach to modeling repulsion in the Axelrod model and studies the impact of initial homogeneity on cultural diversity outcomes.

Findings

Ordered states vanish with probabilistic repulsion

Small clusters persist only with initial homogeneity

Imitation is effective only at the agent level, not features

Abstract

Simulations are performed according to the Axelrod model of culture dissemination, with modified mechanism of repulsion. Previously, repulsion was considered by Radillo-Diaz et al (Phys. Rev. E 80 (2009) 066107) as dependent on a predefined threshold. Here the probabilities of attraction and repulsion are calculated from the number of cells in the same states. We also investigate the influence of some homogeneity, introduced to the initial state. As the result of the probabilistic definition of repulsion, the ordered state vanishes. A small cluster of a few percent of population is retained only if in the initial state a set of agents is prepared in the same state. We conclude that the modelled imitation is successful only with respect to agents, and not only their features.