Complex-Systems Research in Psychology

by Han L.J. van der Maas

Humans are the ultimate complex systems. In this monograph intended for psychologists and social scientists interested in modeling psychological processes, Han L. J. van der Maas argues that we can only succeed in exploring the psychological system by understanding its complexity. By applying the tools of complexity science to psychology, researchers and practitioners can achieve desperately needed breakthroughs in the social sciences.

The book has three primary objectives: to provide a comprehensive overview of complex-systems research, with a particular emphasis on its applications in psychology and the social sciences; to provide skills for complex-systems research; and to foster critical thinking regarding the potential applications of complex systems in psychology. Readers should have a basic understanding of mathematics and knowledge of the programming language R.

Complex-Systems Research in Psychology explores a range of topics, including chaos, bifurcation, and self-organization in psychological processes, psychological network analysis, as well as agent-based modeling of social processes. It offers applications in various areas of psychology, such as perception, depression, addiction, cognitive development, and polarization.

310 pages, Paperback

Published August 28, 2024

Reviews

[Movie Goer]

Before reading this, the key is to know that if addition is considered as the litmus test of quantification, we do not know how to add in psychology (The author says so). So this book allows you to consider possible ways that humans as agents interact for you to build your own models and test.
Given that, it is very readable and can be a super useful tool for someone who is trying to develop an intuition or develop an experiment in psychology.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very readable textbook that quickly goes from basic complexity science and the need for modelling in psychology to specific examples of many complex-systems models used in behavioral sciences.