Artificial Societies and the Social Sciences

A critical history of research on artificial societies‚ is framed in the context of the "Positivist Dispute" (Positivismusstreit) between Karl Popper and Theodor Adorno. Both criticized the methodology of descriptive statistics, arguing that such analysis is just “scientific mirroring.” This unresolved debate prefigures themes in contemporary research on “artificial societies‚” such as the limitations of descriptive methods, the concept of alternative pathways of historical development, and the relationship between the individual and the collective. It is argued that simulation models have enabled researchers to (implicitly) address Popper's and Adorno's concerns through a shift in perspective, from the behavior of systems comprised of homogeneous actors, to that of dynamical systems with heterogeneous actors.