Thresholds of Behavioral Flexibility in Turbulent Environments for Individual and Group Success
Figure 3 . Adaptability as changing payoffs ( π ) to actions ( behavioral flexibility ).
Finally , there are two other considerations to adaptability . The first is environmental turbulence . As the environment in which we are embedded when we make these changes itself changes , the idea of what it means to adapt becomes even muddier . If the environment is turbulent , is it best to hunker down and stick with the policies — whether personal or governmental — that we know have worked in the past ? They are tried-and-true , after all . On the other hand , is it time to try something new ? How do we know ? Note that environmental turbulence can refer both to exogenous and endogenous changes in the environment , for example , if other actors in a system are changing .
The second is group outcomes of individual adaptive behavior . If everyone around you is changing , is it ever beneficial to hold fast to what you have been doing ? Alternatively , if other actors in your system — firms , individuals , and legislators — are all switching types , should you , too ? Moreover , what is the result of all of this not just on your individual welfare , but also on group welfare ?
In this paper , I will strictly consider adaptability as changing goals , or what I will henceforth refer to as behavioral flexibility . Within behavioral flexibility , I will consider both the probability of change and the threshold for change — how bad do things have to get before you change ? The agent-based model I present in this paper not only allows agents to explore different flexibility probabilities and thresholds , but it also situates agents in an environment , which allows for the examination of the relationship of flexibility with endogenous and exogenous environmental turbulence and both individual and group outcomes .
In the next section , I briefly review samples of literature on behavioral flexibility from biology , ecology , and the social sciences , especially organizational science . I then present the model , analysis , results , and a concluding discussion .
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