Public Choice Theory and Global Relations: Toward a New Frontier of Social Science through the Introduction of Agent Based Simulation

Abstract

In this essay, I demonstrate the effectiveness and impact of Agent Based Simulation (ABS) approach to support the restructuring of some research fields of social science as represented by economics, political science and international politics. ABS is a one of the methods of computer aided simulations which has a significant advantage to analyze complex phenomena or systems.

After the Cold War, global community has come to grips with global issues, for example, frequent outbreaks of regional conflicts or global terrorisms, instability of global economic system, cyber-attacks and so on. To resolve the problems of these issues and also to seek a way to rebuild global order is a new mission to social science. But, we will soon find the fact that analytical methods in the mainstream economics or political science are difficult to complete this mission because of the existence of built-in complex dynamisms which come from both issue linkage and diversity of agents among these global issues. It is hope that ABS is the method to break the neck of these methodological difficulties.