5. Scheme of Information Interactions: Causes and Motives of Interactions

The habitat defines basic configuration, parameters, and motives for agent interactions. Material world created in the preceding period of the economic system existence defines physical limits, provides the means and carriers for dissemination of signals and interactions. All these combined do form interaction opportunities. The structure and character of stimulating motives for economic activity of the agents formed in this world, defines which interaction topologies are realistically necessary and which of them will be further implemented.

We consider agent economic activity in its developed form. In this case it is based on a certain labor division (specialization) between agents in an economic system and implies collective use of a certain set of related technologies in the production process (let us call this set a macro-technology). We understand a macro-technology as a production apparatus created within an economic system; its individual elements are adapted to the existing labor division system and they form the “jobs” for the agents. At the “input” to macro-technology are natural resources. Material products for final consumption are located at the “output”. The structure and composition of a macro-technology, in the general case, is not a distinctly specified set. Its "job" items could be excessive, duplicating, etc. We cannot also exclude simultaneous existence of several macro-technology types that can be employed by the system both in parallel and on the alternative basis.

Macro-technology elements, similar to agents, are distributed in a certain fashion around the economic system space and can change their spatial location under certain circumstances. As a result of certain procedures (to be described below), agents take the “jobs” of the macro-technology and make it work: they implement the production process characteristic of the given macro-technology. The latter is a material foundation for the agent community to solve the problems of their socioeconomic existence and development. The structure and parameters of its jobs, as a rule, are more stable than the structure of agent possibilities and states. In a short-term aspect, agent community solves the problem of optimal allocation of agents for the given set of macro-technology jobs; it is oriented at individual differences in agent productivity relative to the set of jobs. In the long-term aspect, agent community improves the macro-technology and solves the problem of adapting agent capacities to its newly acquired characteristics.

In the process of macro-technology using the technological links appear and specific interactions do happen between agents. The links determine whom from does an individual agent receive the intermediate product of production process and who he transfers it to after completing its portion of this product transformation.

Technological network of links would have no economic sense if it would not be completed by distribution feedbacks that provide for dissemination and distribution of the final product among the agents of the economic system. Thus, agents create and maintain among themselves another network of relationships that, in a general case, can happen not to coincide with topology of technological link network. Agent’s place in distribution network is defined by whom from he receives a certain portion of the final product and who he further transfers it to less what he can leave for himself to maintain his life activity necessities.

Having found his place in the system of technological links (a sub-space on the left side on Fig. 5) and distribution (a sub-space at the bottom on Fig. 5), the agent somewhat positions himself relative to the rest of the agents also involved with the above relationships. Those who he interacts with via direct links, are his closest neighbors in the given sub-spaces. The longer the chain of links between two given agents, the longer the distance between them, although geographically they can be located quite close to each other.

Fig. 5. (see bigger image)

Apart from the activity mediated by the above relationship networks there is one more type. Before put themselves into technological and distribution networks agents search for the better place within those networks as well as coordinate their interests and capacities with each other. New kind of agent activity, as opposed to aforeconsidered, is not directly related to exchange of material substances. Its content is information exchange; it has the form of purely informational agent interaction.

David Leveers proposed some structurization of motives and causes of information exchanges between economy participants in the form of a “cognition cycle”. It makes a stress on the existence of various stages of information preparation and exchange between economy participants. Moves from stage to stage are exercised as a gradual transition from one type of agents' communication to another. In the networked economy this means the transition from one telecommunications service to another.

In metaphoric concepts that are essentially based on the contemporary capacities of the Internet technologies, cognition cycle has the following stages:

1. "Territory". Private "territory" for individual actions (here we recollect what we had just learned, adjust our existing mental model of the world in accord with the latest changes, rehearse the application of new skills and ideas, start formulating what we would like to do further, etc.).

2. "Map". Is used for initial orientation and navigation. When we dare to leave our private “territory”, we need a ‘map” which is a passive information in the form of references (newspapers, books, Yellow Pages, etc.).

3. "Landscape”. Designed for other people and is a result of our intercourse as individuals, shows us how are we linked to communities and groups around us. “Landscape” can be a real space such as a staff meeting at the office or a construction site where actions are visible, and intercourse is audible.

4. "Room". Is designed for meetings between individuals to conduct negotiations, brainstorming, and establishment of the base for future communication and cooperation.

5. "Table" Space for joint work on an agreement over individual provisions, problems and situations that require a planned cooperative approach.

6. "Theater". The space in which the results of joint activity become visible and socially available.

Fig. 6. Source: David Leevers. Inner Space - the Final Frontier, 1997 http://www.vers.co.uk/DLEEVERS/PAPERS/innerspace.htm

The intensity of human interactions at various stages of this cycle is quite different. At the first stage (see the above list) – “territory” – the needs in communication and information exchange are at the minimum. Then they reach the maximum at the “table” stage and somewhat decrease by the concluding stage of the cycle (“theater”).

Apparently, in the process of the above stages the participants solve the task of finding mutually acceptable variants of positioning themselves in the network of production and distribution relationships as well as bringing the optimal variants found to practical use.

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