Multi-Modeling and Socio- cultural complexity: Reuse and Validation

Socio-cultural complexity is often best approached through the use of hybrid models that blend the effects of atomic models built from different social and mathematical theoretical bases. Such approaches are often referred to as multimodeling. This paper discusses the types of multi-modeling, with attention to the factors that support reuse and validation. Illustrations of multi-modeling are shown using examples from multiple multi-modeling exercises. Multi-modeling supports in-depth analysis by enabling cross-validation of results through triangulation, insight into implications at multiple levels of granularity through cross-model consistency, and model advancement through re-use across multiple domains.