Modeling and Analyzing Social Contagion Processes in Hypergraphs

• Grant number: 25/10714-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: July 01, 2025
• End date: June 30, 2029
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Physics
• Principal Investigator: Guilherme Ferraz de Arruda
• Grantee: Yngrid Zacharias Delgato
• Host Institution: Instituto de Física Gleb Wataghin (IFGW). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 24/16711-8 - Modeling, analyzing, and controlling higher-order networks, AP.JP

Abstract

Although ubiquitous, interactions in groups of individuals have not been thoroughly studied. Perhaps the simplest example of social contagion in a higher-order context is modern messaging applications such as WhatsApp or Telegram, where we communicate in groups following one-to-many or many-to-many communication patterns. There is no consensus in the literature on how to model group interaction. Each formulation may have its own peculiarities. The goal of this proposal is to identify the general and specific features of propagation models in higher-order networks that can be applied to understanding the spread of disease, information, and behavior. To this end, we will first propose higher-order mean-field approaches that will help us find better approximations for the critical point, as well as help us understand the nature of such a phase transition and the mechanisms behind it. At the same time, we will propose and investigate new computational methods that guarantee that they correctly sample a given branch, filling an important gap in the literature. Finally, we plan to explore new variations of such models, incorporating more heterogeneity, new states, and new transitions. This proposal will contribute to the main goal of the JP proposal and will ultimately open new lines of research within the study of social contagion. In addition to the scientific results, the student is expected to become familiar with the scientific method and improve his/her academic skills in statistics, linear algebra, dynamical systems, and computational methods.