Title: Business networks dynamics and agent-based simulation

Authors: Giorgio Gottardi

Addresses: Faculty of Engineering, Department of Management and Engineering, Padova University, Via Ognissanti, 72, Padova 35100, Italy

Abstract: The interest of social scientists in dynamic and far from equilibrium processes, the need for efficient methods to analyse complex business systems, and the availability of new computational tools, are the reasons for the growing interest in agent-based simulation models (ABMs). One of the applications of ABMs in economic and business field is the study of geographical clusters. Using simulation, various authors have tried to validate specific hypotheses about emergent features and performances of these systems. Nevertheless, the analyses of their dynamic behaviour are in part, lacking. The aim of this paper is to investigate, using a quite general AB simulation platform, the drivers of their evolutionary trajectories: origin, growth, maturity and death or transformation. After some references on the state of the art and on the use of the ABMs in business systems dynamics, the principal building criteria of a quite general simulation platform are described. In the conclusions, some preliminary results and research agenda are synthesised.

Keywords: agent-based simulation; modelling; geographical clusters; business network dynamics; agent-based systems; multi-agent systems; business systems dynamics; business networks.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBSR.2011.040787

International Journal of Business and Systems Research, 2011 Vol.5 No.4, pp.364 - 387

Published online: 17 Apr 2015 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article