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21 A.I. & L. 1 (2013)

handle is hein.journals/artinl21 and id is 1 raw text is: Artif Intell Law (2013) 21:1-46
DOI 10.1007/s10506-012-9126-7
Identifying prohibition norms in agent societies
Bastin Tony Roy Savarimuthu - Stephen Cranefield
Maryam A. Purvis - Martin K. Purvis
Published online: 23 August 2012
© Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012
Abstract In normative multi-agent systems, the question of how an agent identifies
norms in an open agent society has not received much attention. This paper aims at
addressing this question. To this end, this paper proposes an architecture for norm
identification for an agent. The architecture is based on observation of interactions
between agents. This architecture enables an autonomous agent to identify prohibition
norms in a society using the prohibition norm identification (PNI) algorithm. The PNI
algorithm uses association rule mining, a data mining approach to identify sequences
of events as candidate norms. When a norm changes, an agent using our architecture
will be able to modify the norm and also remove a norm if it does not hold in the
society. Using simulations of a park scenario we demonstrate how an agent makes use
of the norm identification framework to identify prohibition norms.
Keywords Norms - Agents - Architecture - Norm identification
Prohibition norms - Simulation - Societies - Normative multi-agent systems
(NorMAS)
1 Introduction
No other concept is invoked by social scientists more frequently than that of
norms (Sills 1968). In human societies, norms have played an important role in
regulating the behaviour of the individuals in a society. For example, regulation of
behaviour in public spaces such as parks and restaurants is governed by norms. It is
expected that no one litters a park. In a restaurant it is expected that no one smokes1
This is true in most countries.
B. T. R. Savarimuthu (E) - S. Cranefield - M. A. Purvis - M. K. Purvis
University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
e-mail: tonyr@infoscience.otago.ac.nz

I_ Springer

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