IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v16y2025i1d10.1038_s41467-025-59777-0.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Characteristic scales and adaptation in higher-order contagions

Author

Listed:
  • Giulio Burgio

    (Universitat Rovira i Virgili
    University of Vermont)

  • Guillaume St-Onge

    (the Roux Institute at Northeastern University
    the Roux Institute at Northeastern University)

  • Laurent Hébert-Dufresne

    (University of Vermont
    University of Vermont)

Abstract

People organize in groups and contagions spread across them. A simple stochastic process, yet complex to model due to dynamical correlations within and between groups. Moreover, groups can evolve if agents join or leave in response to contagions. To address the lack of analytical models that account for dynamical correlations and adaptation in groups, we introduce the method of generalized approximate master equations. We first analyze how nonlinear contagions differ when driven by group-level or individual-level dynamics. We then study the characteristic levels of group activity that best describe the stochastic process and that optimize agents’ ability to adapt to it. Naturally lending itself to study adaptive hypergraphs, our method reveals how group structure unlocks new dynamical regimes and enables distinct suitable adaptation strategies. Our approach offers a highly accurate model of binary-state dynamics on hypergraphs, advances our understanding of contagion processes, and opens the study of adaptive group-structured systems.

Suggested Citation

  • Giulio Burgio & Guillaume St-Onge & Laurent Hébert-Dufresne, 2025. "Characteristic scales and adaptation in higher-order contagions," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-11, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-59777-0
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-59777-0
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-59777-0
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-025-59777-0?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Seierstad, Cathrine & Opsahl, Tore, 2011. "For the few not the many? The effects of affirmative action on presence, prominence, and social capital of women directors in Norway," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 44-54, March.
    2. Samuel Unicomb & Gerardo Iñiguez & James P. Gleeson & Márton Karsai, 2021. "Dynamics of cascades on burstiness-controlled temporal networks," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-10, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Antoine Rebérioux & Gwenaël Roudaut, 2016. "Gender Quota inside the Boardroom: Female Directors as New Key Players?," Working Papers hal-01297884, HAL.
    2. Alice Klettner & Thomas Clarke & Martijn Boersma, 2016. "Strategic and Regulatory Approaches to Increasing Women in Leadership: Multilevel Targets and Mandatory Quotas as Levers for Cultural Change," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 133(3), pages 395-419, February.
    3. Chiara Pronzato & Paola Profeta & Valeria Ferraro & Giulia Ferrari, 2016. "Gender Quotas: Challenging the Boards, Performance, and the Stock Market," Working Papers id:11411, eSocialSciences.
    4. Owain Smolović Jones & Sanela Smolović Jones & Scott Taylor & Emily Yarrow, 2022. "Theorizing gender desegregation as political work: The case of the Welsh Labour Party," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(6), pages 1747-1763, November.
    5. Tyrowicz, Joanna & Terjesen, Siri & Mazurek, Jakub, 2020. "All on board? New evidence on board gender diversity from a large panel of European firms," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 634-645.
    6. Jianfei Cao & Shirley Lu, 2019. "Synthetic Control Inference for Staggered Adoption: Estimating the Dynamic Effects of Board Gender Diversity Policies," Papers 1912.06320, arXiv.org.
    7. Mahmoud Ahmed, 2023. "The long-term effects of female board representation on accounting quality: Causal evidence," International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 20(2), pages 109-118, June.
    8. Gillian Warner-Søderholm & Patricia Gabaldon Quinones & Cathrine Seierstad & Carl Åberg, 2023. "Getting More Women on Boards: Cultural and Institutional Antecedents That Matter," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, August.
    9. Giulia Ferrari & Valeria Ferraro & Paola Profeta & Chiara Pronzato, 2022. "Do Board Gender Quotas Matter? Selection, Performance, and Stock Market Effects," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(8), pages 5618-5643, August.
    10. Katarzyna Burzynska & Gabriela Contreras, 2020. "Affirmative action programs and network benefits in the number of board positions," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(8), pages 1-26, August.
    11. Saudi‐Yulieth Enciso‐Alfaro & Salma Marhroub & Pedro‐José Martínez‐Córdoba & Isabel‐María García‐Sánchez, 2024. "The effect of COVID‐19 on employment: A bibliometric review of a she‐cession," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(4), pages 3444-3467, July.
    12. Einarsdottir, Thorgerdur & Rafnsdottir, Gudbjorg Linda & Sigurdardottir, Margret Sigrun & Torfason, Magnus Thor, 2020. "Networks, homogeneity and gender in Icelandic business elites," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 36(1).
    13. Hongwei Jin & Xiaoming Li & Yao Huang & Chengji Yang & Sandhya Armoogum & Neal Xiong & Wanghao Wu, 2024. "The interplay of time and space in human behavior: a sociological perspective on the TSCH model," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-17, December.
    14. STANKOVA, Marija & MARTENS, David & PROVOST, Foster, 2015. "Classification over bipartite graphs through projection," Working Papers 2015001, University of Antwerp, Faculty of Business and Economics.
    15. Yasser Eliwa & Ahmed Aboud & Ahmed Saleh, 2023. "Board gender diversity and ESG decoupling: Does religiosity matter?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4046-4067, November.
    16. Candelon, Bertrand & Joëts, Marc & Mignon, Valérie, 2024. "What makes econometric ideas popular: The role of connectivity," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(7).
    17. Irma Martinez-Garcia & Silvia Gomez-Anson, 2020. "Regulación de género en los consejos de administración: El papel moderador del entorno institucional," CNMV Documentos de Trabajo CNMV Documentos de Trabaj, CNMV- Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores - Departamento de Estudios y Estadísticas.
    18. Minelgaite Inga & Sund Berit & Stankeviciene Jelena, 2020. "Understanding the Nordic Gender Diversity Paradox," TalTech Journal of European Studies, Sciendo, vol. 10(1), pages 40-57, June.
    19. Anna Gibert & Alexandra Fedorets, 2022. "Lifting Women Up: Gender Quotas and the Advancement of Women on Corporate Boards," Working Papers 1370, Barcelona School of Economics.
    20. Yasaman Sarabi & Matthew Smith & Heather McGregor & Dimitris Christopoulos, 2021. "Gendered brokerage and firm performance – An interlock analysis of the UK," International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 72(2), pages 306-330, June.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-59777-0. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.