research

Simple human actions can, over time, result in complex collective dynamics. Some of these dynamics are desirable, such as cooperation and pro-sociality. Some are concerning, such as conflict, affective polarization, bias, and discrimination. Human social dynamics are nowadays impacted by AI through new algorithmic recommendations and interaction paradigms. How can we formalize mathematically the dynamics of human collective behavior? How can selfish parts sustain a cooperative whole? How to harness artificial intelligence applications to sustain pro-sociality within systems of artificial learning agents and humans? These questions fascinate me and drive my work. My research lies at the interface of AI and Complex Systems: I study behavioral dynamics in systems of adaptive learning agents and aim at designing prosocial/fair AI.

Below, please find a list of selected publications by our group in this field. For a complete list of publications, please check Google Scholar.

2024

  1. 2024ijcai.png
    Learning Fair Cooperation in Mixed-Motive Games with Indirect Reciprocity
    Martin Smit, and Fernando P. Santos
    In Proceedings of the the 33rd International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence (IJCAI 2024), 2024
    HTML PDF
  2. 2024jaamas.png
    Tackling school segregation with transportation network interventions: an agent-based modelling approach
    Dimitris Michailidis, Mayesha Tasnim, Sennay Ghebreab, and 1 more author
    Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems, 2024
    HTML PDF
  3. 2024ecai1.png
    Artificial Agents Facilitate Human Cooperation through Indirect Reciprocity
    Alexandre Pires, and Fernando P. Santos
    In 27th European Conference on Artificial Intelligence (ECAI-2024), 2024
    HTML PDF
  4. natsust2024.png
    Prosocial preferences improve climate risk management in subsistence farming communities
    N. Choquette-Levy, M. Wildemeersch, F.P. Santos, and 3 more authors
    Nature Sustainability, 2024
    HTML PDF Blog
  5. aimagazine2024.webp
    Prosocial dynamics in multiagent systems
    Fernando P. Santos
    AI Magazine, 2024
    HTML PDF

2023

  1. 2023pnas2.png
    Adaptations to infer fitness interdependence promote the evolution of cooperation
    Marco Colnaghi, Fernando P. Santos, Paul AM Van Lange, and 1 more author
    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2023
    HTML PDF
  2. 2023natmacint.webp
    How to break information cocoons
    Fernando P. Santos
    Nature Machine Intelligence, 2023
    HTML PDF
  3. N50D30T201.gif
    The role of space, density and migration in social dilemmas
    Jacques Bara, Fernando P. Santos, and Paolo Turrini
    In Proceedings of the 22nd International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems (AAMAS 2023), 2023
    HTML PDF
  4. 2023aamas-dimitris.png
    Balancing Fairness and Efficiency in Transport Network Design through Reinforcement Learning
    Dimitris Michailidis, Sennay Ghebreab, and Fernando P. Santos
    In Proceedings of the 22nd International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems (AAMAS 2023), 2023
    HTML PDF
  5. 2023amnat.png
    Opposing Responses to Scarcity Emerge from Functionally Unique Sociality Drivers
    Albert B. Kao, Amanda K. Hund, Fernando P. Santos, and 5 more authors
    The American Naturalist, 2023
    HTML PDF
  6. aaai23cover.jpg
    Dynamics of cooperation and conflict in multiagent systems
    Fernando P. Santos
    In Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence, 2023
    HTML PDF

2022

  1. 2022merhej.png
    Cooperation and Learning Dynamics under Wealth Inequality and Diversity in Individual Risk
    Ramona Merhej, Fernando P. Santos, Francisco S Melo, and 1 more author
    Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research, 2022
    HTML PDF
  2. 2022barsotti.png
    Transparency, detection and imitation in strategic classification
    Flavia Barsotti, Rüya Gökhan Koçer, and Fernando P. Santos
    In Proceedings of the 31st International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence, IJCAI 2022, 2022
    HTML PDF
  3. 2022RecSysHR.png
    End-to-End Bias Mitigation in Candidate Recommender Systems with Fairness Gates
    Adam Mehdi Arafan, David Graus, Fernando P. Santos, and 1 more author
    In 2nd Workshop on Recommender Systems for Human Resources, RecSys-in-HR 2022, 2022
    PDF

2021

  1. 2021pnas.webp
  2. 2021rstb.webp
    The complexity of human cooperation under indirect reciprocity
    Fernando P. Santos, Jorge M Pacheco, and Francisco C Santos
    Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 2021
    HTML PDF
  3. Cooperation between independent reinforcement learners under wealth inequality and collective risks
    Ramona Merhej, Fernando P. Santos, Francisco S Melo, and 1 more author
    In Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Autonomous Agents and MultiAgent Systems, 2021
  4. Biased perceptions explain collective action deadlocks and suggest new mechanisms to prompt cooperation
    Fernando P. Santos, Simon A Levin, and Vı́tor V Vasconcelos
    iScience, 2021
  5. Dynamics of informal risk sharing in collective index insurance
    Fernando P. Santos, Jorge M Pacheco, Francisco C Santos, and 1 more author
    Nature Sustainability, 2021
  6. Towards prosocial design: A scoping review of the use of robots and virtual agents to trigger prosocial behaviour
    Raquel Oliveira, Patrı́cia Arriaga, Fernando P. Santos, and 2 more authors
    Computers in Human Behavior, 2021

2020

  1. Picky losers and carefree winners prevail in collective risk dilemmas with partner selection
    Fernando P. Santos, Samuel Mascarenhas, Francisco C Santos, and 3 more authors
    Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems, 2020

2019

  1. Reward and punishment in climate change dilemmas
    António R Góis, Fernando P. Santos, Jorge M Pacheco, and 1 more author
    Scientific Reports, 2019
  2. Evolution of collective fairness in hybrid populations of humans and agents
    Fernando P. Santos, Jorge M Pacheco, Ana Paiva, and 1 more author
    In Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence, 2019
  3. Outcome-based Partner Selection in Collective Risk Dilemmas.
    Fernando P. Santos, Samuel Francisco Mascarenhas, Francisco C Santos, and 3 more authors
    In AAMAS, 2019

2018

  1. Paths to the adoption of electric vehicles: An evolutionary game theoretical approach
    Sara Encarnação, Fernando P. Santos, Francisco C Santos, and 3 more authors
    Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, 2018
  2. Social norm complexity and past reputations in the evolution of cooperation
    Fernando P. Santos, Francisco C Santos, and Jorge M Pacheco
    Nature, 2018
  3. Engineering pro-sociality with autonomous agents
    Ana Paiva, Fernando Santos, and Francisco Santos
    In Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence, 2018
  4. Social norms of cooperation with costly reputation building
    Fernando Santos, Jorge Pacheco, and Francisco Santos
    In Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence, 2018

2017

  1. Stochastic dynamics through hierarchically embedded Markov chains
    Vı́tor V Vasconcelos, Fernando P. Santos, Francisco C Santos, and 1 more author
    Physical Review Letters, 2017

2016

  1. Paradigm shifts and the interplay between state, business and civil sectors
    Sara Encarnação, Fernando P. Santos, Francisco C Santos, and 3 more authors
    Royal Society Open Science, 2016
  2. Evolution of cooperation under indirect reciprocity and arbitrary exploration rates
    Fernando P. Santos, Jorge M Pacheco, and Francisco C Santos
    Scientific Reports, 2016
  3. Social norms of cooperation in small-scale societies
    Fernando P. Santos, Francisco C Santos, and Jorge M Pacheco
    PLoS Computational Biology, 2016

2015

  1. Evolutionary dynamics of group fairness
    Fernando P. Santos, Francisco C Santos, Ana Paiva, and 1 more author
    Journal of Theoretical Biology, 2015