Edge-based reputation promotes cooperation in simplicial complexes

Du, Chunpeng ; Fang, Fei ; de Miguel-Arribas, Alfonso ; Lu, Yikang ; Wang, Yanan ; Pan, Xin ; Moreno, Yamir (Universidad de Zaragoza)

Resumen: Understanding how cooperation emerges and persists is a central challenge in the evolutionary dynamics of social and biological systems. Most prior studies have examined cooperation through pairwise interactions, yet real-world interactions often involve groups and higher-order structures. Reputation is a key mechanism for guiding strategic behavior in such contexts, but its role in higher-order networks remains underexplored. In this study, we introduce an edge-based reputation mechanism, incorporating both direct and indirect reputation, to investigate the evolution of cooperation in simplicial complexes. Our results show that coupling reputation mechanisms with higher-order network structures strongly promotes cooperation, with direct reputation exerting a stronger influence than indirect reputation. Moreover, we reveal a nonlinear interplay between network topology and reputation mechanisms, highlighting how multi-level structures shape collective outcomes. These findings provide a novel theoretical framework for understanding cooperation in complex social systems.

Idioma: Inglés

DOI: 10.1016/j.chaos.2025.117748

Año: 2026

Publicado en: Chaos, Solitons and Fractals 204 (2026), 117748 [10 pp.]
ISSN: 0960-0779

Financiación: info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/DGA/E36-23R-FENOL
Financiación: info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MICINN/PID2023-149409NB-I00

Tipo y forma: Article (Published version)

Área (Departamento): Área Física Teórica (Dpto. Física Teórica)