Search

This paper presents an agent-based model employing a stochastic optimization search that attempts to find an optimal solution to the online bicycle rebalancing problem for general bike-sharing systems. The algorithm receives the initial and final global state configuration of the system. The main objective of the study is to find the minimum cost path from the initial to the final state. Each agent of the model has four behavioral options that search the optimal configuration; at each iteration, it selects one of these options based on random thresholds and shares the temporary solution found with neighboring agents to improve their search process. The algorithm presents a high exploratory behavior of the search space, which helps to find an approximation away from the local optimal configuration. Additionally, the exchanges between agents allow a consensus on the solutions found. The algorithm has been tested with two different generated configurations using as a basis a real dataset extracted from a functional bike-sharing system collected in 2019. The results show a positive evolution originating from the emerging effect of stochastic selection and interaction between agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a model to simulate the decision-making process of consumers that adopts technology within a dynamic social network. The proposed model use theories and tools from the psychology of consumer behavior, social networks and complex dynamical systems like the Consumat framework and fuzzy logic. The model has been adjusted using real data, tested with the automobile market and it can recreate trends like those described in the world market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Visión Electrónica is the property of Fondo de Universidad Distrital Francisco Jose de Caldas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract  Acculturation discrepancy theory predicts that conflicting cultural preferences between adolescents and their parents will increase the adolescents’ risk for behavior problems such as substance use. This study evaluated this hypothesis in a sample of 1683 Hispanic students in Southern California who completed surveys in 9th and 10th grade. Measures included the students’ own cultural orientations and their perceptions of their parents’ preference for their cultural orientations (“Perceived Parental Cultural Expectations”—PPCE). Hispanic PPCE in 9th grade was a risk factor for lifetime, but not past-month, cigarette, alcohol, and marijuana use in 10th grade. The adolescents’ own Hispanic orientation in 9th grade was protective against lifetime and past-month smoking and marijuana use and lifetime alcohol use in 10th grade. The effects of the acculturation variables did not vary according to generation in the U.S. Change in acculturation between 9th and 10th grade was statistically significant but small in magnitude. Increases in parent–child Hispanic acculturation discrepancy (i.e., the difference between the adolescents’ own cultural orientations and their PPCE, with adolescents perceiving that their parents wanted them to be more Hispanic oriented than they actually were) from 9th to 10th grade were associated with an increased risk of substance use. Family-based interventions for acculturating Hispanic families may be useful in decreasing the likelihood of substance use among Hispanic adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]