Computational Model Library

ForagerNet3_Demography: A Non-Spatial Model of Hunter-Gatherer Demography (1.1.0)

The ForagerNet3_Demography (FN3_D) model is a non-spatial ABM for exploring:

  • How demographically-relevant behaviors at the person- and household-levels are related to one another in hunter-gatherer systems;

  • How those lower-level behaviors are related to system-level demography;

  • How the characteristics of assemblages of dead individuals are related to the demographic characteristics of the living population from which those assemblages were drawn.

The model has three main levels: person, household, and system. Inter-related methods represent birth, death, and pair bonding (marriage). Many parameters in the model are continuously variable. The dependency ratio (the ratio of consumers to producers in a household) is a key variable in many economic decisions embedded in the methods.

The FN3_D model is not intended to represent all details of any particular hunter-gatherer system. This was a purposeful strategy to aid in constructing a model whose structure and behavior are understandable and applicable to a range of circumstances.

The FN3_D model is explicitly non-spatial. Investigating the effects of the spatial distribution of population on demography will be the focus of a later version of the ForagerNet3 model. The FN3_D model can be used to explore aspects of hunter-gatherer demography in the absence of spatial effects (and without assuming or accounting for any particular spatial configuration of the population).

FN3_D was built using Repast J. The code for the model is supplied as a text file.

The documentation provides (1) a description of the representations of time and the entities (persons, households, social links) in the model; (2) a brief overview of the major groups of methods in the model (pair bond, reproduction, and mortality); (3) model-level variables, parameters, and lists; and (4) a detailed description of the “rules” and the operations of the model with specific numeric reference to sections of the code.

Release Notes

ForagerNet3_Demography_V1: October 17, 2013

Associated Publications

ForagerNet3_Demography: A Non-Spatial Model of Hunter-Gatherer Demography 1.1.0

The ForagerNet3_Demography (FN3_D) model is a non-spatial ABM for exploring:

  • How demographically-relevant behaviors at the person- and household-levels are related to one another in hunter-gatherer systems;

  • How those lower-level behaviors are related to system-level demography;

  • How the characteristics of assemblages of dead individuals are related to the demographic characteristics of the living population from which those assemblages were drawn.

The model has three main levels: person, household, and system. Inter-related methods represent birth, death, and pair bonding (marriage). Many parameters in the model are continuously variable. The dependency ratio (the ratio of consumers to producers in a household) is a key variable in many economic decisions embedded in the methods.

The FN3_D model is not intended to represent all details of any particular hunter-gatherer system. This was a purposeful strategy to aid in constructing a model whose structure and behavior are understandable and applicable to a range of circumstances.

The FN3_D model is explicitly non-spatial. Investigating the effects of the spatial distribution of population on demography will be the focus of a later version of the ForagerNet3 model. The FN3_D model can be used to explore aspects of hunter-gatherer demography in the absence of spatial effects (and without assuming or accounting for any particular spatial configuration of the population).

FN3_D was built using Repast J. The code for the model is supplied as a text file.

The documentation provides (1) a description of the representations of time and the entities (persons, households, social links) in the model; (2) a brief overview of the major groups of methods in the model (pair bond, reproduction, and mortality); (3) model-level variables, parameters, and lists; and (4) a detailed description of the “rules” and the operations of the model with specific numeric reference to sections of the code.

Release Notes

ForagerNet3_Demography_V1: October 17, 2013

Version Submitter First published Last modified Status
1.1.0 Andrew White Thu Oct 17 19:13:37 2013 Fri Feb 16 22:21:04 2018 Published
1.0.0 Andrew White Thu Oct 17 18:53:03 2013 Tue Feb 20 15:09:44 2018 Published

Discussion

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