2022 | Essence of Humanities and Social Sciences39: Decision Making E 1

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2022　Essence of Humanities and Social Sciences39: Decision Making E 1

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Academic unit or major: Humanities and social science courses

Instructor(s): Inohara Takehiro

Class Format: Lecture

Media-enhanced courses

Day/Period(Room No.): Wed3-4()

Group: 1

Course number: LAH.S508

Credits: 1

Academic year: 2022

Offered quarter: 2Q

Syllabus updated: 2022/3/16

Lecture notes updated: -

Language used: English

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Syllabus

Course description and aims

The theme of this course is “social networks and decision making.” This course deals with fundamental concepts and analysis methods of social decision making on social networks through lectures, discussion, and working on exercise problems. Specifically, this course treats the topics such as “stability of social networks,” “coalition formation in social networks,” “Social networks and social decision making,” “deadlock of meetings,” and “interaction consistency in selection and election groups.” These are fundamental concepts and analysis methods of social decision making on social networks, which the students are expected to understand upon the completion of this course.

Taking social decision making on social networks as an object, this course aims to cultivate the students’ abilities to: select an appropriate mathematical model for describing and analyzing an object; describe the object by a mathematical model; draw some insights from the results of analysis of the mathematical model; convey the analysis results to others concisely.

Student learning outcomes

Upon completion of this course, taking social decision making on social networks as an object, students should be able to:
1) State the definitions of mathematical models using examples of the objects described by the mathematical models;
2) Apply analysis methods to examples of the objects described by the mathematical models, and explain the analysis results to others;
3) Select an appropriate mathematical model and describe an object; and
4) Apply analysis methods to an object described by a mathematical model, and explain the analysis results to others.

Keywords

Stability of social networks; Coalition formation in social networks; Social networks and social decision making; Deadlock of meetings; Interaction consistency in selection and election groups

Competencies that will be developed

Specialist skills

✔ Intercultural skills

✔ Communication skills

✔ Critical thinking skills

✔ Practical and/or problem-solving skills

Class flow

First, a lecture on the definitions of basic concepts and analysis methods is presented. Then, the students examine the contents of the lecture, and work on exercises. After the class, each student writes and submits a “summary report” on what he/she learned through individual observation, other students' ideas, the lecture, and exercises. Also, the students submit the answers to the exercises.

Course schedule/Required learning

	Course schedule	Required learning
Class 1	Guidance; Self introduction	State at least three topics this course treats. Find at least three new colleagues.
Class 2	Notation; Social Networks; Stability; Symmetry	Find an example of social networks which are of three decision makers and stable in Heider’s sense. Find an example of social networks which are of three decision makers and NOT stable in Heider’s sense.
Class 3	Separability; Clusterability; General clusterability	Find an example of social networks which are of three decision makers, one of who is with negative self attitude, and stable in Newcomb’s sense. Find an example of social networks which are of three decision makers, one of who is with negative self attitude, and NOT stable in Newcomb’s sense.
Class 4	Group work on social decision making situations	Describe and analyze social decision making situations through group work.
Class 5	Social decision making situations; Meetings; Selection groups; Election groups	Find an example of social decision making situations with three decision makers.
Class 6	Interaction consistency; Majority decisiveness; Deadlock	Find an example of meetings which are of three decision makers and at a deadlock. Find an example of meetings which are of three decision makers and NOT at a deadlock.
Class 7	Stability; Bisectability; Quasi-clusterability; Summary	(1) Compare two distinct social networks of three decision makers by using the results of stability analysis with Heider’s stability and Newcomb’s stability. (2) Considering meetings, selection groups, and election groups with the two social networks in (1), compare the two social networks by using the results of analysis on deadlock of meetings and interaction consistency.

Out-of-Class Study Time (Preparation and Review)

To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.

Textbook(s)

None specified.

Reference books, course materials, etc.

Course materials will be provided via T2SCHOLA and other means.

[Reference books and materials]
D. Cartwright, F. Harary, Structural balance: a generalization of Heider’s theory, Psychol. Rev. 63 (1956) 277-293.
J.A. Davis, Clustering and structural balance in graphs, Hum. Relations 20 (1967) 181-187.
F. Heider, Attitudes and cognitive organization, J. Psychol. 21 (1946) 107-112.
T. Inohara, S. Takahashi and B. Nakano, On conditions for a meeting not to reach a deadlock, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.90, No.1, pp.1-9, March, 1998.
猪原健弘、「感情と認識－競争と社会の非合理戦略II」、勁草書房、2002年（1.2節、2.1節、2.2節、4章、5章、6.1節、6.3節）（ISBN-10: 4326502231、ISBN-13: 978-4326502233）。
T. Inohara, Characterization of clusterability of signed graph in terms of Newcomb’s balance of sentiments, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.133, No.1, pp.93-104, November, 2002.
T. Inohara, Clusterability of groups and information exchange in group decision making with approval voting system, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.136, No.1, pp.1-15, March, 2003.
T. Inohara, Stability of reliance of information sources and clusterability of information sources, The 7th World Multi-Conference on Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics (SCI 2003), Proceedings Volume VII, pp.225-229, Orlando, Florida, USA, July 27-30, 2003.
T. Inohara, Quasi-clusterability of signed graphs with negative self evaluation, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.158, No.1, pp.201-215, October, 2004.
T. Inohara, Signed graphs with negative self evaluation and clusterability of graphs, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.158, No.2, pp.477-487, November, 2004.
T. M. Newcomb, Interpersonal balance, in: R.P. Abelson, E. Aronson, W.J. McGuire, T. M. Newcomb, M.J. Rosenberg, P.H. Tannenbaum (Eds.), Theories of Cognitive Consistency: A Sourcebook, Rand-McNally, Chicago, IL, 1968.
K.O. Price, E. Harburg, T.M. Newcomb, Psychological balance in situations of negative interpersonal attitudes, J. Pers. Soc. Psychol. 3 (1966) 265–270.
T. Inohara, "Rationality and Flexibility," Keiso-syobo, 2002 (in Japanese) (ISBN-10: 4326502223, ISBN-13: 978-4326502226).
T. Inohara, On conditions for a meeting not to reach a recurrent argument, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.101, No.2-3, pp.281-298, June, 1999.

Assessment criteria and methods

Assessment will be based on “summary reports” (brief summary of what you learned in each class)" (50% in total) and answers to exercises (50% in total.)

There are no make-up assignments for any absence from classes, regardless of the reason.
Read the course materials offered via T2SCHOLA to find out the content of the class you missed.

Related courses

SHS.M461 ： Graduate Methodologies in Cognition, Mathematics and Information S1
LAH.T108 ： Decision Making A
LAH.T208 ： Decision Making B
LAH.T307 ： Decision Making C
LAH.S440 ： Essence of Humanities and Social Sciences47: Decision Making D

Prerequisites (i.e., required knowledge, skills, courses, etc.)

Prospective students should have interests in social networks and decision making.

Contact information (e-mail and phone) Notice : Please replace from "[at]" to "@"(half-width character).

Prof. Takehiro Inohara, inostaff[at]shs.ens.titech.ac.jp

When inquiring by emails, include the course title in the subject, and your student ID and name in the body of the email.

Other

This course consists of the content of science.

This course is 500-level course. Tokyo Tech’s “wedge-shaped style education” enables students to pursue liberal arts education in a phased manner throughout undergraduate and graduate programs. Students are encouraged to take courses in the sequence of 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, and 600 levels. As such, master's students must begin from 400-level Humanities and Social Science courses in 1Q and 2Q of the first year, then proceed to 500-level courses. And master's students entering in September must begin from 400-level Humanities and Social Science courses in 3Q and 4Q of the first year, then proceed to 500-level courses. Students can register for 500-level Humanities and Social Science courses six months after their entrance (i.e. students admitted in April can register in 3Q and 4Q, and those admitted in September can register in 1Q and 2Q).

TOKYO INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY