Regulated Agent-Based Social Systems

Thisvolumepresentsselected,extendedandreviewedversionsofthepapersp- sented at the 1st International Workshop on Regulated Agent Systems: Theory and Applications (RASTA 2002), a workshop co-located with the 1st Internat- nalJointConferenceonAutonomousAgentsandMulti-AgentSystems(AAMAS 2002), which was held in Bologna, Italy, in July, 2002. In addition, several new papers on the workshop theme appear here as the result of a further call for participation. Agent-technology is the latest paradigm of software engineering methodology. The development of autonomous, mobile, and intelligent agents brings new ch- lenges to the ?eld. Agent technologies and multiagent systems are among the most vibrant and active research areas of computer science. At the same time commercialapplicationsofagentsaregainingattention.Theconstructionofar- ?cial (agent) societies leads to questions that already have been asked for human societies. Computer scientists have adopted terms like emerging behavior, se- organization,andevolutionarytheoryinanintuitivemanner.Multiagentsystem researchershavestartedtodevelopagentswithsocialabilitiesandcomplexsocial systems. However, most of these systems lack the foundation of the social sciences. The intention of the RASTA workshop, and of this volume, is to bring together researchers from computer science as well as the social sciences who see their common interest in social theories for the construction and regulation of mul- agent systems. A total of 17 papers appear in this volume, out of 31 papers submitted. Theyincludeninepaperspresentedintheworkshop(whosepreproceeedingswere published as Communications Vol. 318 Mitteilung 318 of Hamburg University, Faculty of Informatics), as well as six new papers. In addition, an invited paper from Bruce Edmonds re?ects some aspects of the lively discussions held during the workshop. The selection presented is divided into two major topics.

Klappentext

re?ects some aspects of the lively discussions held during the workshop. The selection presented is divided into two major topics.

Inhalt
Invited Paper.- How Formal Logic Can Fail to Be Useful for Modelling or Designing MAS.- Topic A: Social Theory for Agent Technology.- Communicational Patterns as Basis of Organizational Structures.- On How to Conduct Experimental Research with Self-Motivated Agents.- Cognitive Identity and Social Reflexivity of the Industrial District Firms. Going Beyond the Complexity Effect with Agent-Based Simulations.- The MAS-SOC Approach to Multi-agent Based Simulation.- Organisation Modelling for the Dynamics of Complex Biological Processes.- Communication without Agents? From Agent-Oriented to Communication-Oriented Modeling.- Modeling Product Awareness Rates and Market Shares.- Metanarratives and Believable Behavior of Autonomous Agents.- FORM A Sociologically Founded Framework for Designing Self-Organization of Multiagent Systems.- Social Organization in a Software Agent Community with a Non-zero-Sum Game Interaction Model.- Emotion: Theoretical Investigations and Implications for Artificial Social Aggregates.- Topic B: Norms and Institutions in MAS.- What Is a Normative Goal?.- Searching for a Soulmate Searching for Tag-Similar Partners Evolves and Supports Specialization in Groups.- Norms and Their Role in a Model of Electronic Institution.- A Model of Normative Multi-agent Systems and Dynamic Relationships.- Integration of Generic Motivations in Social Hybrid Agents.