For an Integrated Approach to Agent-Based Modeling of Science

The goal of this paper is to provide a sketch of what an agent-based model of the scientific process could be. It is argued that such a model should be constructed with normative claims in mind: i.e. that it should be useful for scientific policy making. In our tentative model, agents are researchers producing ideas that are points on an epistemic landscape. We are interested in our agents finding the best possible ideas. Our agents are interested in acquiring credit from their peers, which they can do by writing papers that are going to get cited by other scientists. They can also share their ideas with collaborators and students, which will help them eventually get cited. The model is designed to answer questions about the effect that different possible behaviors have on both the individual scientists and the scientific community as a whole.