Classical Dynamic Consensus and Opinion Dynamics Models: A Survey of Recent Trends and Methodologies

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.Consensus reaching is an iterative and dynamic process that supports group decision-making models by guiding decision-makers towards modifying their opinions through a feedback mechanism. Many attempts have been recently devoted to the design of efficient consensus reaching processes, especially when the dynamism is dependent on time, which aims to deal with opinion dynamics models. The emergence of novel methodologies in this field has been accelerated over recent years. In this regard, the present work is concerned with a systematic review of classical dynamic consensus and opinion dynamics models. The most recent trends of both models are identified and the developed methodologies are described in detail. Challenges of each model and open problems are discussed and worthwhile directions for future research are given. Our findings denote that due to technological advancements, a majority of recent literature works are concerned with the large-scale group decision-making models, where the interactions of decision-makers are enabled via social networks. Managing the behavior of decision-makers and consensus reaching with the minimum adjustment cost under social network analysis have been the top priorities for researchers in the design of classical consensus and opinion dynamics models

Towards better concordance among contextualized evaluations in FAST-GDM problems

A flexible attribute-set group decision-making (FAST-GDM) problem consists in finding the most suitable option(s) out of the options under consideration, with a general agreement among a heterogeneous group of experts who can focus on different attributes to evaluate those options. An open challenge in FAST-GDM problems is to design consensus reaching processes (CRPs) by which the participants can perform evaluations with a high level of consensus. To address this challenge, a novel algorithm for reaching consensus is proposed in this paper. By means of the algorithm, called FAST-CR-XMIS, a participant can reconsider his/her evaluations after studying the most influential samples that have been shared by others through contextualized evaluations. Since exchanging those samples may make participants’ understandings more like each other, an increase of the level of consensus is expected. A simulation of a CRP where contextualized evaluations of newswire stories are characterized as augmented intuitionistic fuzzy sets (AIFS) shows how FAST-CR-XMIS can increase the level of consensus among the participants during the CRP

Technical assistance in the field of risk communication

This report assesses peer-reviewed and grey literature on risk communication concepts and practices, as requested by the European Commission to support the implementation of a ‘General Plan for Risk Communication’, i.e. an integrated framework for EU food safety risk assessors and risk managers at Union and national level, as required by the revised EU General Food Law Regulation. We conducted a scoping review of social research studies and official reports in relation to risk communication in the following areas: understanding and awareness of risk analysis roles and tasks, reducing misunderstanding of the different meaning of the terms ‘hazard’ and ‘risk’, tackling misinformation and disinformation, enhancing confidence in EU food safety, taking account of risk perceptions, key factors in trade-offs about risks, audience segmentation and tools, channels and mechanisms for coordinated risk communications. We structured our findings as follows: i) definitions of key concepts, ii) audience analysis and information requirements, iii) risk profiling, models and mechanisms, iv) contributions to communication strategies. We make several recommendations for consideration by the Commission, both in terms of actions to support the design and implementation of the general plan, and research needs that we consider crucial to further inform appropriate risk communication in the EU. EFSA carried out a targeted consultation of experts and a public consultation open to all interested parties including the general public, in preparing and finalising this report

Using persuasive technology to promote sustainable behavior in smart home environments

Sustainable living is to a large extent the outcome of how consumers use the technology surrounding them. Seen from this perspective the rather strict separation of technological and behavioral solution is not only artificial but also detrimental to finding real sustainable solutions. Persuasive technology aims to intervene in these user-system interactions by using intelligent agents to change human attitudes and behavior. Embodied agents like robots and avatars go beyond the function of a simple tool by adopting social behavior that allows for social influence on human users. In addition intelligent systems can provide experiences that are impossible in the physical reality and which may enable experiences that promote more adequate reactions to future and distant climate risks

Swift trust and behavioral change: facilitating factors of crowdsourcing in chronic disease prevention

Behind Internet usage habits there is a common vocabulary: trust. In order to promote preventive medicine, Internet medical care has been trying to cultivate user habits and behavior change, but whoever increases trust can go further. The Internet has accelerated the pace of work and life and generalized the temporary involvement of individuals and teams. In many organizations, there is usually no time to develop trust among team members or between the team and customers in traditional ways such as mutual familiarity, experience sharing, mutual disclosure, and verification of commitments. These new situations have led to the study of a new form of trust: "swift trust". According to Hurd et al. (2017), "swift trust" focuses on expecting that a person has the necessary attributes to be relied upon. In the "swift trust" theory, a group or individual assumes the existence of trust initially, and later verifies and adjusts trust beliefs accordingly. Faced with the problem of the rapid spread of chronic diseases and the high proportion of medical expenses needed to combat them and that have posed challenges to the national finances in China, this thesis focuses on studying the factors that may facilitate the establishment of "swift trust" in the Internet based chronic disease crowdsourcing model. Grounded on the idea that trust affects behavior and speed affects efficiency, we have reviewed extant literature and, with the help of ROST Content Mining (ROST-CM) text mining software, we dug millions of Internet data and conducted in-depth research on the "swift trust" problem. Results, later verified through two ongoing healthcare projects showed that "profession" followed by "platform", "dissemination" and "propensity" are the most critical factors that affect the establishment of swift trust. These results may be of interest to professionals, organizations and government decision makers in need of establishing and winning trust, and particularly "swift trust", as an essential ingredient in the sharing economy.Existe uma palavra comum por detrás de todos os hábitos de utilização da Internet: confiança. Com o objetivo de promover a medicina preventiva, alguns cuidados médicos prestados através da Internet têm vindo a procurar motivar os utilizadores para uma mudança de hábitos e comportamentos, mas apenas quem conseguir ganhar a confiança poderá ir mais longe. A Internet acelerou o ritmo da vida e do trabalho e generalizou a participação temporária de indivíduos e grupos. Em muitas organizações, não há tempo suficiente para se criar confiança entre os membros de um grupo ou entre grupos e indivíduos através de formas tradicionais como a convivência e o conhecimento mútuos, a partilha de experiências ou a verificação do cumprimento de compromissos. Esta situação levou ao estudo de uma nova forma de confiança: "a confiança imediata". Hurd et al. (2017) afirmam que este conceito se refere à expetativa de que uma determinada pessoa reúna os atributos necessários para ser confiável. Segundo a teoria que estuda a "confiança imediata", um grupo ou indivíduo assume desde logo a presença de confiança e reserva para mais tarde a confirmação da sua existência. Considerando os desafios colocados pelo rápido desenvolvimento de doenças crónicas num país tão populoso como a China e a necessidade de as combater, esta tese estuda os fatores que poderão facilitar a construção de "confiança imediata" no modelo de colaboração aberta através da Internet com vista à prevenção destas doenças. Partindo do princípio de que a confiança afeta os comportamentos e de que a rapidez afeta a eficiência procedeu-se à revisão de literatura sobre o tema e, com a ajuda do "software" de mineração de texto ROST-CM (ROST Content Mining) foram recolhidos e tratados milhões de dados extraídos da Internet. Os resultados foram depois confrontados com a prática de dois projetos na área da saúde e revelaram que a "profissão" seguida da "plataforma", "disseminação" e "propensão" são os fatores que mais contribuem para a formação de "confiança imediata". Os resultados obtidos poderão ser de interesse para profissionais, organizações e decisores governamentais que necessitam de construir e manter confiança e, em particular "confiança imediata", enquanto ingrediente essencial na economia de partilha

The Rhetorical Art of Risk Assessment: Lessons from Risk Management in Rural and Tribal Communities

Risk assessment, mitigation, and communication rely on data from multiple sources to form a complete understanding of hazards and how to manage them. Experts can use these data to make informed decisions about the nature and extent of risks and inform the public to protect health, the environment, and economic welfare. However, in an effort to objectively make decisions, technical experts and policymakers increasingly rely on quantitative data as the most important determiner of risk, which can alienate the public, limit risk understanding, and delay or miss obvious signals of impending catastrophe. I examine several cases based on my experiences practicing and researching traffic safety, public safety, and technical and professional communication (TPC). The cases include a look at the impact of limited quantitative data in addressing motor vehicle traffic injuries and death in American Indian and rural communities; the challenge of collecting accurate data by first responders and firefighters to better understand and respond to health and physical hazards; and a recent history of failures to prevent airline and aerospace disasters due to an overemphasis on quantifiable data and devaluation of certain kinds of expert knowledge. The results of this study call attention to the weaknesses resulting from a quantitative imperative in risk management and a proposal for renewed focus on risk assessment using rhetorical practices and qualitative data readily available from expert and non-expert perspectives