Abstract
The equations for imitative behavior developed previously indicate that the imitation effect increases with the numberN 0 of individuals in the social group. In this note it is pointed out that the above conclusion holds only for not too large values ofN 0. The above conclusion is based on the tacit assumption that each individual is completely informed about the behavior adopted by every other individual. If, however,N 0 becomes very large, the information per individual decreases. As a result of this, the effects of imitation either increase withN 0 less rapidly or actually become independent ofN 0.
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Literature
Rashevsky 1950a. “Mathematical Biology of Social Behavior: IV. Imitation Effects as a Function of Distance.”Bull. Math. Biophysics,12, 177–85.
— 1950b. “Some Bio-Sociological Aspects of the Mathematical Theory of Communication.” —Ibid.,,12, 359–78.
— 1951a.Mathematical Biology of Social Behavior. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
— 1951b. “A Note on the Theory of Communication through Social Channels.”Bull. Math. Biophysics,13, 139–46.
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Rashevsky, N. A note on imitative behavior and information. Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics 13, 147–151 (1951). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02478223
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02478223