Crisiscom: A Computer Simulation of Human Information Processing during a Crisis

Crisiscom is a computer representation of a set of human decision makers who process information, and of the exchanges of information among them. Information is generated by each simulated human from imbalances among the cognitive elements and relations which comprise his system. The total information generated within the set is too great for any one human being to incorporate. Crises are characterized by high rates of generation and exchange of information. Hypotheses from the social sciences about selective exposure to and selective perception of information determine how inputs to the models of the human system are limited and distorted. As a result of this distortion, each decision maker has an incomplete and imperfect picture of his environment. It is with this picture that he initiates relationships and generates further information.