All Outputs (21)

The stuff we swim in: Regulation alone will not lead to justifiable trust in AI (2023)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T., Linnyk, O., Guckert, M., Hannig, J., Pitt, J., Urquhart, N., …Weber, T. (2023). The stuff we swim in: Regulation alone will not lead to justifiable trust in AI. IEEE technology & society magazine, 42(4), 95-106. https://doi.org/10.1109/MTS.2023.3341463

Information technology is used ubiquitously and has become an integral part of everyday life. With the ever increasing pervasiveness and persuasiveness of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the function of socio-technical systems changes and must be consi... Read More about The stuff we swim in: Regulation alone will not lead to justifiable trust in AI.

Playing the political game: The co-evolution of institutions with group size and political inequality (2023)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T., Perret, C., & Currie, T. E. (2023). Playing the political game: The co-evolution of institutions with group size and political inequality. Philosophical Transactions B: Biological Sciences, 378(1883), https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2022.0303

All societies need to form institutional rules to regulate their social interactions. These specify what actions individuals should take in particular situations, and what sanctions will apply if individuals violate these rules. But forming these ins... Read More about Playing the political game: The co-evolution of institutions with group size and political inequality.

Evolved Open-Endedness in Cultural Evolution: A New Dimension in Open-Ended Evolution Research (2023)
Journal Article
Borg, J. M., Buskell, A., Kapitany, R., Powers, S. T., Reindl, E., & Tennie, C. (in press). Evolved Open-Endedness in Cultural Evolution: A New Dimension in Open-Ended Evolution Research. Artificial Life, https://doi.org/10.1162/artl_a_00406

The goal of Artificial Life research, as articulated by Chris Langton, is “to contribute to theoretical biology by locating life-as-we-know-it within the larger picture of life-as-it-could-be” (1989, p. 1). The study and pursuit of open-ended evoluti... Read More about Evolved Open-Endedness in Cultural Evolution: A New Dimension in Open-Ended Evolution Research.

Modelling the Impact of Individual Preferences on Traffic Policies (2022)
Journal Article
Nguyen, J., Powers, S., Urquhart, N., Farrenkopf, T., & Guckert, M. (2022). Modelling the Impact of Individual Preferences on Traffic Policies. SN Computer Science, 3(5), Article 365. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42979-022-01253-3

Urban traffic is a system always prone to overload, often approaching breakdown during rush hour times. Well adjusted modifications of traffic policies, with appropriate interventions, promise potential improvements by inducing change in both individ... Read More about Modelling the Impact of Individual Preferences on Traffic Policies.

An investigation of the role of leadership in consensus decision-making (2022)
Journal Article
Perret, C., & Powers, S. T. (2022). An investigation of the role of leadership in consensus decision-making. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 543, Article 111094. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtbi.2022.111094

Leadership is a widespread phenomena in social organisms and it is recognised to facilitate coordination between individuals. While the role of leadership in group foraging or swarm movement is well understood, it is not clear if leaders would also b... Read More about An investigation of the role of leadership in consensus decision-making.

Four levers of reciprocity across human societies: concepts, analysis and predictions (2022)
Journal Article
Lehmann, L., Powers, S. T., & van Schaik, C. P. (2022). Four levers of reciprocity across human societies: concepts, analysis and predictions. Evolutionary Human Sciences, 4, Article e11. https://doi.org/10.1017/ehs.2022.7

This paper surveys five human societal types – mobile foragers, horticulturalists, pre-state agriculturalists, state-based agriculturalists and liberal democracies – from the perspective of three core social problems faced by interacting individuals:... Read More about Four levers of reciprocity across human societies: concepts, analysis and predictions.

Modelling transitions between egalitarian, dynamic leader and absolutist power structures (2022)
Journal Article
Bryden, J., Silverman, E., & Powers, S. T. (2022). Modelling transitions between egalitarian, dynamic leader and absolutist power structures. PLOS ONE, 17(2), Article e0263665. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263665

Human groups show a variety of leadership dynamics ranging from egalitarian groups with no leader, to groups with changing leaders, to absolutist groups with a single long-term leader. Here, we model transitions between these different phases of lead... Read More about Modelling transitions between egalitarian, dynamic leader and absolutist power structures.

An overview of agent-based traffic simulators (2021)
Journal Article
Nguyen, J., Powers, S. T., Urquhart, N., Farrenkopf, T., & Guckert, M. (2021). An overview of agent-based traffic simulators. Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 12, Article 100486. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trip.2021.100486

Individual traffic significantly contributes to climate change and environmental degradation. Therefore, innovation in sustainable mobility is gaining importance as it helps to reduce environmental pollution. However, effects of new ideas in mobility... Read More about An overview of agent-based traffic simulators.

Cooperation in large‐scale human societies — What, if anything, makes it unique, and how did it evolve? (2021)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T., van Schaik, C. P., & Lehmann, L. (2021). Cooperation in large‐scale human societies — What, if anything, makes it unique, and how did it evolve?. Evolutionary Anthropology, 30(4), 280-293. https://doi.org/10.1002/evan.21909

To resolve the major controversy about why prosocial behaviors persist in large-scale human societies, we propose that two questions need to be answered. First, how do social interactions in small-scale and large-scale societies differ? By reviewing... Read More about Cooperation in large‐scale human societies — What, if anything, makes it unique, and how did it evolve?.

When to (or not to) trust intelligent machines: Insights from an evolutionary game theory analysis of trust in repeated games (2021)
Journal Article
Han, T. A., Perrett, C., & Powers, S. T. (2021). When to (or not to) trust intelligent machines: Insights from an evolutionary game theory analysis of trust in repeated games. Cognitive Systems Research, 68, Article 111-124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogsys.2021.02.003

The actions of intelligent agents, such as chatbots, recommender systems, and virtual assistants are typically not fully transparent to the user. Consequently , users take the risk that such agents act in ways opposed to the users' preferences or goa... Read More about When to (or not to) trust intelligent machines: Insights from an evolutionary game theory analysis of trust in repeated games.

From disorganized equality to efficient hierarchy: how group size drives the evolution of hierarchy in human societies (2020)
Journal Article
Perret, C., Hart, E., & Powers, S. T. (2020). From disorganized equality to efficient hierarchy: how group size drives the evolution of hierarchy in human societies. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 287(1928), Article 20200693. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2020.0693

A manifest trend is that larger and more productive human groups shift from distributed to centralized decision-making. Voluntary theories propose that human groups shift to hierarchy to limit scalar stress, i.e. the increase in cost of organization... Read More about From disorganized equality to efficient hierarchy: how group size drives the evolution of hierarchy in human societies.

Simulating the actions of commuters using a multi-agent system (2019)
Journal Article
Urquhart, N., Powers, S., Wall, Z., Fonzone, A., Ge, J., & Polhill, G. (2019). Simulating the actions of commuters using a multi-agent system. Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulation, 22(2), https://doi.org/10.18564/jasss.4007

The activity of commuting to and from a place of work affects not only those travelling but also wider society through their contribution to congestion and pollution. It is desirable to have a means of simulating commuting in order to allow organisat... Read More about Simulating the actions of commuters using a multi-agent system.

Trusting Intelligent Machines: Deepening Trust Within Socio-Technical Systems (2018)
Journal Article
Andras, P., Esterle, L., Guckert, M., Anh Han, T., Lewis, P. R., Milanovic, K., …Wells, S. (2018). Trusting Intelligent Machines: Deepening Trust Within Socio-Technical Systems. IEEE technology & society magazine, 37(4), 76-83. https://doi.org/10.1109/MTS.2018.2876107

Intelligent machines have reached capabilities that go beyond a level that a human being can fully comprehend without sufficiently detailed understanding of the underlying mechanisms. The choice of moves in the game Go (generated by Deep Mind?s Alpha... Read More about Trusting Intelligent Machines: Deepening Trust Within Socio-Technical Systems.

Modelling enduring institutions: The complementarity of evolutionary and agent-based approaches (2018)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T., Ekárt, A., & Lewis, P. R. (2018). Modelling enduring institutions: The complementarity of evolutionary and agent-based approaches. Cognitive Systems Research, 52, 67-81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogsys.2018.04.012

Empirical work has shown that societies can sometimes avoid antisocial outcomes , such as the Tragedy of the Commons, by establishing institutional rules that govern their interactions. Moreover, groups are more likely to avoid antisocial outcomes wh... Read More about Modelling enduring institutions: The complementarity of evolutionary and agent-based approaches.

The institutional approach for modeling the evolution of human societies (2018)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T. (2018). The institutional approach for modeling the evolution of human societies. Artificial Life, 24(1), 10-28. https://doi.org/10.1162/ARTL_a_00251

Artificial Life is concerned with understanding the dynamics of human societies. A defining feature of any society is its institutions. However, defining exactly what an institution is has proven difficult, with authors often talking past each other.... Read More about The institutional approach for modeling the evolution of human societies.

When is bigger better? The effects of group size on the evolution of helping behaviours: Effects of group size on evolution of helping (2016)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T., & Lehmann, L. (2017). When is bigger better? The effects of group size on the evolution of helping behaviours: Effects of group size on evolution of helping. Biological Reviews, 92(2), 902-920. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12260

Understanding the evolution of sociality in humans and other species requires understanding how selection on social behaviour varies with group size. However, the effects of group size are frequently obscured in the theoretical literature, which ofte... Read More about When is bigger better? The effects of group size on the evolution of helping behaviours: Effects of group size on evolution of helping.

How institutions shaped the last major evolutionary transition to large-scale human societies (2016)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T., van Schaik, C. P., & Lehmann, L. (2016). How institutions shaped the last major evolutionary transition to large-scale human societies. Philosophical Transactions B: Biological Sciences, 371(1687), 20150098. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2015.0098

What drove the transition from small-scale human societies centred on kinship and personal exchange, to large-scale societies comprising cooperation and division of labour among untold numbers of unrelated individuals? We propose that the unique huma... Read More about How institutions shaped the last major evolutionary transition to large-scale human societies.

An evolutionary model explaining the Neolithic transition from egalitarianism to leadership and despotism. (2014)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T., & Lehmann, L. (2014). An evolutionary model explaining the Neolithic transition from egalitarianism to leadership and despotism. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 281, 20141349-20141349. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2014.1349

The Neolithic was marked by a transition from small and relatively egalitarian groups, to much larger groups with increased stratification. But the dynamics of this remain poorly understood. It is hard to see how despotism can arise without coercion... Read More about An evolutionary model explaining the Neolithic transition from egalitarianism to leadership and despotism..

The co-evolution of social institutions, demography, and large-scale human cooperation (2013)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T., & Lehmann, L. (2013). The co-evolution of social institutions, demography, and large-scale human cooperation. Ecology Letters, 16(11), 1356-1364. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.12178

Human cooperation is typically coordinated by institutions, which determine the outcome structure of the social interactions individuals engage in. Explaining the Neolithic transition from small‐ to large‐scale societies involves understanding how th... Read More about The co-evolution of social institutions, demography, and large-scale human cooperation.

Punishment can promote defection in group-structured populations (2012)
Journal Article
Powers, S. T., Taylor, D. J., & Bryson, J. J. (2012). Punishment can promote defection in group-structured populations. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 311, 107-116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtbi.2012.07.010

Pro-social punishment, whereby cooperators punish defectors, is often suggested as a mechanism that maintains cooperation in large human groups. Importantly, models that support this idea have to date only allowed defectors to be the target of punish... Read More about Punishment can promote defection in group-structured populations.