Flock Theory - A New Model of Emergent Self-Organization in Human Interaction

Flock Theory 2

Flock Theory: A New Model of Emergent Self-Organization in Human Interaction Tracking # - ICA-7-11675

Abstract

This paper introduces a new theory of emergent self-organization in human interaction.

Flock theory draws from a theoretical basis of emergence and self-organizing systems (Contractor, 1994; Hodgson, 2000; Monge & Contractor, 2001; Monge & Eisenberg, 1987).

Likewise, two other important theoretical works are offered, Eric Eisenberg’s work on the transcendent organization of jamming (Eisenberg, 1990), and R. Keith Sawyers’ work on the Emergence of Creativity (Sawyer, 1999). Catalyzed by a computer graphic simulation of a flock of birds by Craig Reynolds (Reynolds, 1987), and conceived to model jazz improvisation, Flock Theory is presented axiomatically. Focusing on the optimization of group members’ distance, the maintenance of leadership, and matching of direction of other individuals, this theory poses a model of human interaction that captures the potentially egalitarian effects of a cooperative evolution. Methods and applications of Flock Theory extend across disciplines, from task groups to online interaction.