Modeling Feedback within MAS: A Systemic Approach to Organizational Dynamics

  • Authors:

  • Wolfgang Renz;Jan Sudeikat

  • Affiliations:

  • Multimedia Systems Laboratory, Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, Hamburg, Germany 20099;Multimedia Systems Laboratory, Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, Hamburg, Germany 20099

  • Venue:
  • Organized Adaption in Multi-Agent Systems
  • Year:
  • 2009

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Abstract

Organization---oriented modeling approaches are established tools for Agent---Oriented Software Engineering (AOSE) efforts. Role and Group concepts are prevalent concepts in the design of agent---based applications. These allow the definition and partition of static organizational structures and facilitate the description of agent behaviors in terms of role/group changing activities. Due to a growing interest in the construction of adaptive and self---organizing dynamics within MAS --- i.e. applications that adjust their organizational structure at runtime --- developers require tools for expressing the dynamics of MAS organizations, that result from individual agent activity and adaptiveness. In this paper we discuss how the macroscopic behavior of organizational structures can be modeled by relating systemic modeling techniques to MAS designs. Particularly the notions of causal loop diagrams , composed of system properties connected by causal links are applied to express the timely behavior of role and group occupations. Corresponding modeling activities are facilitated by a graphical notation that highlights feedback loops. Since simulations are indispensable to examine complex, non---linear behaviors, we discuss how the systemic semantics can be translated into systems of stochastic process algebra terms, therefore enabling model simulation.