On the interplay between behavioral dynamics and social interactions in human crowds

Abstract

This paper presents a computational modeling approach to the dynamics of human crowds, where social interactions can have an important influence on the behavioral dynamics of pedestrians. The modeling of the contagion and propagation of emotional states is carried out by looking at real physical situations where safety problems might arise in some specific circumstances. The approach is based on the methods of the kinetic theory of active particles. The evacuation of a metro station is simulated to enlighten the role of the emotional state in the overall dynamics.