The purpose of this article is to introduce multi-agent modelling as an area of research that has developed rapidly in sociology over the last fifteen years. This article starts by outlining some characteristics of multi-agent modelling and then covers the history of sociological component of complexity science. In the following part, the fundamental concepts used in multi-agent modelling such as model, agent, environment and emergence are defined. Thereafter, the article focuses on the application of multi-agent modelling in sociology and identifies specific areas where it might be used productively. An illustrative example of a multi-agent model called ‘Slumulation’ that explores how slums emerge in the city is described. Finally, the advantages and limits of this approach are summarized., Anna Krčková., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The article presents the construction of an agent-based model of segregation step by step. The article is intended as a tutorial for the reader’s first steps with agent-based modeling. The model is programmed in the NetLogo software and provided in two versions: first as an online executable version, for first-impression purposes, and second as NetLogo code, for serious experiments and further model improvements by the reader. The article describes the user interface and source code of the model in close detail. Most of the article is dedicated to careful, in-depth explanation of the NetLogo code. The model aims to answer Schelling’s classical question: "Is it possible to obtain an ethnically segregated structure of a town with relatively tolerant inhabitants?" The model also aims to answer the question: "Does size of recognized neighbourhood suppress tendency to segregation?" Analysis of the data produced by the model informs us that the tendency to segregation decreased with larger recognized neighbourhood - the larger the neighbourhood the lower the number of inhabitants living in an ethnically homogenous neighbourhood. However, size of recognized neighbourhood did not moderate the relationship between intolerance and tendency to segregation - the slope of the relationship was still the same (or even steeper for larger neighbourhoods)., František Kalvas., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
The paper focuses on the intergenerational and intragenerational transmission of religion in the Czech Republic. The authors start from the general statement that self-reported religious a liation in Czech society continued to decline during the second half of the 20th century. This trend has usually been explained by secularization theory and by speci cs of Czech social history, especially with regard to the anti-religious policies of the Communist regime. In their analysis of data from ISSP 2008 – Religion, the authors aim at a more detailed inquiry into the factors responsible for the decrease in self-reported religiosity in the Czech Republic. The results show that the key factor lies in de-conversion, which is not compensated su ciently by conversion in either type of transmission, inter- or intragenerational., Antonín Paleček, Roman Vido., and Obsahuje seznam literatury