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Mathematical Modeling of Collective Behavior in Socio-Economic and Life Sciences pp 245–270Cite as

Modelling opinion formation by means of kinetic equations

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In this chapter, we review some mechanisms of opinion dynamics that can be modelled by kinetic equations. Beside the sociological phenomenon of compromise, naturally linked to collisional operators of Boltzmann kind, many other aspects, already mentioned in the sociophysical literature or no, can enter in this framework. While describing some contributions appeared in the literature, we enlighten some mathematical tools of kinetic theory that can be useful in the context of sociophysics.New opinions are always suspected, and usually opposed, without any other reason but because they are not already common.John Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. UMR 7598 LJLL, UPMC Univ Paris 06, Paris, F-75005, France

    Laurent Boudin

  2. UMR 7598 LJLL, CNRS, Paris, F-75005, France

    Laurent Boudin

  3. REO Project-team, INRIA Paris-Rocquencourt, F-78153, Le Chesnay Cedex, France

    Laurent Boudin

  4. Dipartimento di Matematica F. Casorati, Università degli Studi di Pavia, Via Ferrata 1, 27100, Pavia, Italy

    Francesco Salvarani

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  1. Laurent Boudin
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  2. Francesco Salvarani
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Correspondence to Laurent Boudin .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Matematica, Università di Milano, Via Saldini 50, Milano, 20133, Italy

    Giovanni Naldi

  2. Dipartimento di Matematica, Università di Ferrara, Via Machiavelli, 35, Ferrara, 44100, Italy

    Lorenzo Pareschi

  3. Dipartimento di Matematica, Università di Pavia, Via Ferrata, 1, Pavia, 27100, Italy

    Giuseppe Toscani

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Boudin, L., Salvarani, F. (2010). Modelling opinion formation by means of kinetic equations. In: Naldi, G., Pareschi, L., Toscani, G. (eds) Mathematical Modeling of Collective Behavior in Socio-Economic and Life Sciences. Modeling and Simulation in Science, Engineering and Technology. Birkhäuser Boston. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-8176-4946-3_10

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