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News
Anatol Rapoport Prize for Opinion Polarization Model

Accolades

Anatol Rapoport Prize for Opinion Polarization Model

Published Sep 24, 2020

Animation of opinion polarization in a random network

Congratulations to Sven Banisch and Eckehard Olbrich. They have been awarded this year's Anatol Rapoport Prize by the German Society for Sociology for their research on the influence of social feedback on opinion polarization. The prize is awarded every two years by the section “Modellbildung und Simulation” (DGS-ModSim) for original sociological work in the field of modeling and simulation.

Anatol Rapoport was an American mathematical psychologist. He contributed to general systems theory, mathematical biology, the mathematical modeling of social interaction and stochastic models of contagion.

Discover how opinion polarization in networks propagates via social feedback in this interactive online model and read our previous news on the role of social feedback in opinion polarization.

Scientific Contact

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Sven Banisch

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Geometry and Complex Systems

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Jana Gregor

Public Relations Manager

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Science Coordination & Outreach

Panel Discussion advertisement with link to join the livestream and Twitter discussion as well as a list of speakers

Events

09.06.21

ODYCCEUS Panel Discussion

The ODYCCEUS research project will recapitulate years of research in its final conference next week. The conference will conclude with a public discussion panel on Social Media — Democratization or radicalization engine?

In Conversation

07.06.21

ODYCCEUS Podcast

The ODYCCEUS project researches how opinions are formed in social networks. In a podcast, researchers provide insights into how their work contributes to a better understanding of social issues - from climate change to political crises.

Portraits of Eckehard Olbrich & Sven Banisch in front of the twitter explorer UI

In Conversation

09.02.21

Polarization in social media — MPG Interview with Eckehard Olbrich & Sven Banisch

Eckehard Olbrich and Sven Banisch were interviewed as part of an MPG focus issue on online hate speech. The two scientists are investigating how opinions are formed in social media and to what extent this leads to increased polarization.

Research Briefs

14.08.20

Opinion Models in Odycceus: Social Feedback and Polarization

Sven Banisch and Eckehard Olbrich detail some of their work within the Horizon 2020 project Odycceus. In their research brief they elucidate the use of mathematical models in the opinion formation under social influence in agent-based networks.

Press Releases

30.10.18

Not Only Arguments Count

The phenomenon of opinion polarization has gained a lot of public attention in recent years, especially in the political context.