Complex Systems Science

The origin of population-scale coordination has puzzled philosophers and scientists for centuries. Recently, game theory, evolutionary approaches and complex systems science have provided quantitative insights on the mechanisms of social consensus. However, the literature is vast and widely scattered across fields, making it hard for the single researcher to navigate it. This short review aims to provide a compact overview of the main dimensions over which the debate has unfolded and to discuss some representative examples. It focuses on those situations in which consensus emerges ‘spontaneously’ in the absence of centralized institutions and covers topics that include the macroscopic consequences of the different microscopic rules of behavioural contagion, the role of social networks and the mechanisms that prevent the formation of a consensus or alter it after it has emerged. Special attention is devoted to the recent wave of experiments on the emergence of consensus in social systems.

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An Introduction to Complex Systems Science and Its Application to Hernia Surgery

Textbook of Hernia ◽

10.1007/978-3-319-43045-4_2 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 7-13

Author(s):

Bruce Ramshaw

Keyword(s):

Complex Systems ◽

Systems Science ◽

Hernia Surgery ◽

Complex Systems Science

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How Complex Systems Science Can Revolutionize Population Health Theory

Complex Systems and Population Health ◽

10.1093/oso/9780190880743.003.0006 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 73-88

Author(s):

Patricia Goodson

Keyword(s):

Complex Systems ◽

Population Health ◽

Policy Development ◽

Theory Building ◽

Public Health Workforce ◽

Systems Science ◽

Complex Health Problems ◽

Complex Systems Science ◽

Health Theory ◽

And Training

This chapter discusses whether and how complex systems science (CSS) can revolutionize population health theory. First, the chapter defines theory and the practice of theory-building (or theorizing); second, it outlines some of the difficulties found in current population health theorizing; lastly, it characterizes the mechanisms through which CSS can influence, change, and revolutionize current theorizing efforts. The chapter also describes two examples of scholars who used CSS to challenge currently held assumptions and reframe complex health problems. Lastly, the author addresses the implications—of adopting a CSS approach to theorizing—for practice, policy development, and training of the future public health workforce.

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Bridging the Divide

Complex Systems and Population Health ◽

10.1093/oso/9780190880743.003.0001 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 3-14

Author(s):

Yorghos Apostolopoulos

Keyword(s):

Risk Factor ◽

Complex Systems ◽

Population Health ◽

Health Science ◽

The Other ◽

Systems Science ◽

Shared Understanding ◽

Key Concepts ◽

The One ◽

Complex Systems Science

This chapter contextualizes the volume and describes its organization. It begins by delving into the limitations of the prevailing reductionist paradigm in population health science and the need for a transition from a typically risk factor–based science to a science that recognizes the whole and relationships among parts of pressing population health problems. Next, it walks readers through distinctions between public and population health on the one hand and key concepts of complexity on the other, while offering a shared understanding of population health science and complex systems science. The chapter also lays out the design of and potential audiences for this book.

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Complex Systems Science in Biomedicine

10.1007/978-0-387-33532-2 ◽

2006 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Keyword(s):

Complex Systems ◽

Systems Science ◽

Complex Systems Science

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Integrating complex systems science into road safety research and practice, part 1: review of formative concepts

Injury Prevention ◽

10.1136/injuryprev-2019-043315 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 26 (2) ◽

pp. 177-183

Author(s):

Rebecca B Naumann ◽

Jill Kuhlberg ◽

Laura Sandt ◽

Stephen Heiny ◽

Yorghos Apostolopoulos ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Complex Systems ◽

Injury Prevention ◽

Road Safety ◽

Systems Science ◽

Death Rates ◽

Research And Practice ◽

Safety Research ◽

Complex Systems Science ◽

Over Time

Many of our most persistent public health problems are complex problems. They arise from a web of factors that interact and change over time and may exhibit resistance to intervention efforts. The domain of systems science provides several tools to help injury prevention researchers and practitioners examine deep, complex and persistent problems and identify opportunities to intervene. Using the increase in pedestrian death rates as an example, we provide (1) an accessible overview of how complex systems science approaches can augment established injury prevention frameworks and (2) a straightforward example of how specific systems science tools can deepen understanding, with a goal of ultimately informing action.

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