Sociologically influenced coevolutionary dynamics

Recent studies have outlined models of socio-political change, albeit primarily based on economic foundations. These studies suggest that citizens invest economic resources supporting their preferred “utopian” state of the world, with dynamics interpreted as a coevolutionary process between competing utopic visions. The diffusion of various utopian ideas is determined by the economic contributions of individuals, as they seek to persuade others about their specific ideational preferences. This paper explores extensions of these coevolutionary models using insights from sociology. A diffusive process of “utopia competition” follows an earlier, but unstated, generative phase through which ideals emerge. The utopia competition process previously described in literature is also amenable to sociological refinement. Factors such as social identity and power dynamics shape the extent and rate of meso-level diffusions of utopian ideas, beyond economic considerations such as differential resource investments. These sociological dimensions encompass the potential for coevolutionary utopic diffusion in ways that are underappreciated in current research, such as “blocking” events or factors inhibiting the fitness of certain utopic ideas. In suggesting these sociological refinements, we seek to present enriched frameworks building upon recent coevolutionary research and analysis.

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