ABSTRACT
Computational cognitive models formalize structures and processes assumed to underlie human cognition and behavior in the form of executable computer programs. Although such models commonly target cognition of individuals, the social sciences may profit from considering cognitive models. Ultimately, social processes depend on the behavior of individuals and, for many pressing social problems, such as climate change, it has been argued that a deeper understanding of individual cognition and behavior is crucial for understanding the relevant social processes. It is social simulation, in particular, that may gain in comprehensiveness and correctness by incorporating computational cognitive models, because the models readily lend themselves to equip the agents in the simulation with reasonable cognition and behavior. At the same time, incorporating cognitive models into social simulation provides further insight into individual cognition by generating feedback about the correctness and scalability of the models in complex social settings. Consequently, computational cognitive models are a means to bridge the gap between individual-level questions about the human cognitive system and population-level sociological questions. In this chapter, I will give an overview of computational cognitive modeling as a method and its merits for the social sciences.
