GEPOC Parameters -- Open Source Parametrisation and Validation for Austria, Version 2.0

TL;DR

This paper details the data processing methods and validation for GEPOC, an open-source population modeling framework for Austria, emphasizing reproducibility and the application of an agent-based model.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive description of data processing algorithms and validation procedures for GEPOC parameters specific to Austria, enhancing reproducibility and model accuracy.

Findings

Validated the GEPOC ABM model with extensive testing.

Provided open-source data processing algorithms.

Ensured reproducibility of population model parameters.

Abstract

GEPOC, short for Generic Population Concept, is a collection of models and methods for analysing population-level research questions. For the valid application of the models for a specific country or region, stable and reproducible data processes are necessary, which provide valid and ready-to-use model parameters. This work contains a complete description of the data-processing methods for computation of model parameters for Austria, based exclusively on freely and publicly accessible data. In addition to the description of the source data used, this includes all algorithms used for aggregation, disaggregation, fusion, cleansing or scaling of the data, as well as a description of the resulting parameter files. The document places particular emphasis on the computation of parameters for the most important GEPOC model, GEPOC ABM, a continuous-time agent-based population model. An extensive validation study using this particular model was made and is presented at the end of this work.