2025 (Current Year) Faculty Courses Liberal arts and basic science courses Humanities and social science courses
Essence of Humanities and Social Sciences39: Decision Making E 1
- Academic unit or major
- Humanities and social science courses
- Instructor(s)
- Takehiro Inohara
- Class Format
- Lecture (HyFlex)
- Media-enhanced courses
- -
- Day of week/Period
(Classrooms) - 3-4 Wed (WL2-101(W611))
- Class
- 1
- Course Code
- LAH.S508
- Number of credits
- 100
- Course offered
- 2025
- Offered quarter
- 2Q
- Syllabus updated
- Mar 31, 2025
- Language
- English
Syllabus
Course overview and goals
The theme of this course is “social networks and decision making.” This course deals with fundamental concepts and analysis methods of social decision making on social networks through lectures, discussion, and working on exercise problems. Specifically, this course treats the topics such as “stability of social networks,” “coalition formation in social networks,” “Social networks and social decision making,” “deadlock of meetings,” and “interaction consistency in selection and election groups.” These are fundamental concepts and analysis methods of social decision making on social networks, which the students are expected to understand upon the completion of this course.
Taking social decision making on social networks as an object, this course aims to cultivate the students’ abilities to: select an appropriate mathematical model for describing and analyzing an object; describe the object by a mathematical model; draw some insights from the results of analysis of the mathematical model; convey the analysis results to others concisely.
Course description and aims
Upon completion of this course, taking social decision making on social networks as an object, students should be able to:
1) State the definitions of mathematical models using examples of the objects described by the mathematical models;
2) Apply analysis methods to examples of the objects described by the mathematical models, and explain the analysis results to others;
3) Select an appropriate mathematical model and describe an object; and
4) Apply analysis methods to an object described by a mathematical model, and explain the analysis results to others.
Keywords
Stability of social networks; Coalition formation in social networks; Social networks and social decision making; Deadlock of meetings; Interaction consistency in selection and election groups
Competencies
- Specialist skills
- Intercultural skills
- Communication skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Practical and/or problem-solving skills
Class flow
First, a lecture on the definitions of basic concepts and analysis methods is presented. Then, the students examine the contents of the lecture, and work on exercises. After the class, each student writes and submits a “summary report” on what he/she learned through individual observation, other students' ideas, the lecture, and exercises. Also, the students submit the answers to the exercises.
Course schedule/Objectives
| Course schedule | Objectives | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | Guidance; Self-introduction | State at least three topics this course treats. Find at least three new colleagues. |
| Class 2 | Notation; Social networks; Stability; Symmetry | Find an example of social networks which are of three decision makers and stable in Heider’s sense. Find an example of social networks which are of three decision makers and NOT stable in Heider’s sense. |
| Class 3 | Separability; Clusterability; General clusterability | Find an example of social networks which are of three decision makers, one of who is with negative self attitude, and stable in Newcomb’s sense. Find an example of social networks which are of three decision makers, one of who is with negative self attitude, and NOT stable in Newcomb’s sense. |
| Class 4 | Group work on social decision making situations | Describe and analyze social decision making situations through group work. |
| Class 5 | Social decision making situations; Meetings; Selection groups; Election groups | Find an example of social decision making situations with three decision makers. |
| Class 6 | Interaction consistency; Majority decisiveness; Deadlock | Find an example of meetings which are of three decision makers and at a deadlock. Find an example of meetings which are of three decision makers and NOT at a deadlock. |
| Class 7 | Stability; Bisectability; Quasi-clusterability; Summary | (1) Compare two distinct social networks of three decision makers by using the results of stability analysis with Heider’s stability and Newcomb’s stability. (2) Considering meetings, selection groups, and election groups with the two social networks in (1), compare the two social networks by using the results of analysis on deadlock of meetings and interaction consistency. |
Study advice (preparation and review)
To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.
Textbook(s)
None specified.
Reference books, course materials, etc.
Course materials will be provided via Science Tokyo LMS and other means.
[Reference books and materials]
D. Cartwright, F. Harary, Structural balance: a generalization of Heider’s theory, Psychol. Rev. 63 (1956) 277-293.
J.A. Davis, Clustering and structural balance in graphs, Hum. Relations 20 (1967) 181-187.
F. Heider, Attitudes and cognitive organization, J. Psychol. 21 (1946) 107-112.
T. Inohara, S. Takahashi and B. Nakano, On conditions for a meeting not to reach a deadlock, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.90, No.1, pp.1-9, March, 1998.
猪原健弘、「感情と認識－競争と社会の非合理戦略II」、勁草書房、2002年（1.2節、2.1節、2.2節、4章、5章、6.1節、6.3節）（ISBN-10: 4326502231、ISBN-13: 978-4326502233）。
T. Inohara, Characterization of clusterability of signed graph in terms of Newcomb’s balance of sentiments, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.133, No.1, pp.93-104, November, 2002.
T. Inohara, Clusterability of groups and information exchange in group decision making with approval voting system, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.136, No.1, pp.1-15, March, 2003.
T. Inohara, Stability of reliance of information sources and clusterability of information sources, The 7th World Multi-Conference on Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics (SCI 2003), Proceedings Volume VII, pp.225-229, Orlando, Florida, USA, July 27-30, 2003.
T. Inohara, Quasi-clusterability of signed graphs with negative self evaluation, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.158, No.1, pp.201-215, October, 2004.
T. Inohara, Signed graphs with negative self evaluation and clusterability of graphs, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.158, No.2, pp.477-487, November, 2004.
T. M. Newcomb, Interpersonal balance, in: R.P. Abelson, E. Aronson, W.J. McGuire, T. M. Newcomb, M.J. Rosenberg, P.H. Tannenbaum (Eds.), Theories of Cognitive Consistency: A Sourcebook, Rand-McNally, Chicago, IL, 1968.
K.O. Price, E. Harburg, T.M. Newcomb, Psychological balance in situations of negative interpersonal attitudes, J. Pers. Soc. Psychol. 3 (1966) 265–270.
T. Inohara, "Rationality and Flexibility," Keiso-syobo, 2002 (in Japanese) (ISBN-10: 4326502223, ISBN-13: 978-4326502226).
T. Inohara, On conditions for a meeting not to reach a recurrent argument, Applied Mathematics and Computation, Vol.101, No.2-3, pp.281-298, June, 1999.
Evaluation methods and criteria
Assessment will be based on “summary reports” (brief summary of what you learned in each class)" (50% in total) and answers to exercises (50% in total.)
There are no make-up assignments for any absence from classes, regardless of the reason.
Read the course materials offered via Science Tokyo LMS to find out the content of the class you missed.
Related courses
- SHS.M461 ： Graduate Methodologies in Cognition, Mathematics and Information S1
- LAH.T108 ： Decision Making A
- LAH.T208 ： Decision Making B
- LAH.T307 ： Decision Making C
- LAH.S440 ： Essence of Humanities and Social Sciences47: Decision Making D
Prerequisites
Prospective students should have interests in social networks and decision making.
It is not necessary to have taken Decision Making D to take this course and understand its contents.
Contact information (e-mail and phone) Notice : Please replace from ”[at]” to ”@”(half-width character).
Prof. Takehiro Inohara, inostaff[at]shs.ens.isct.ac.jp
When inquiring by emails, include the course title "Decision Making E" in the subject, and your student ID and name in the body of the email.
Office hours
Make an appointment by email.
Other
This course consists of the content of science.
This course is 500-level course.
Science Tokyo (science and engineering fields) provides a wedge-shaped style education that allows students to continuously take liberal arts courses from a Bachelor’s Program to a Doctoral Program. Students are recommended to take liberal arts courses in ascending order of course level. In the semester right after enrollment in the Master’s Degree Program – i.e., 1Q and 2Q for students who enroll in spring, and 3Q or 4Q for students who enroll in fall – students may register only in 400-level Humanities and Social Science Courses.
Students may take 500-level Humanities and Social Science Courses after studying at least six months after enrollment, i.e., in 3Q and 4Q for students who enroll in spring, and in 1Q and 2Q of the following year for students who enroll in fall.