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Conceptual and Analytical Foundations

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Simulating Societal Change

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Abstract

A research enterprise of the kind outlined in the previous chapter is an ambitious undertaking. A very substantial set of challenges are those associated with constructing the SociaLab model. Even setting up the census data in such a way that it can be analysed in a systematic and rigorous fashion is a major task in itself. Then there is the very demanding statistical work required to provide the basic estimates that will make this model work. However, before we get to the stage of managing and analysing the core data, we need to draw up the fundamental conceptual and analytical insights that inform this project. This is the purpose of this chapter, that is, to draw up the conceptual and analytical foundations that underpin the data management, analysis, and estimation work.

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Davis, P., Lay-Yee, R. (2019). Conceptual and Analytical Foundations. In: Simulating Societal Change. Computational Social Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-04786-3_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-04786-3_2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-04785-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-04786-3

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