Interdisciplinary Challenges: Complex Networks and Econophysics Over the last decades, an interdisciplinary community of scientists, especially physicists, has carried out both empirical and theoretical investigations
Over the last decades, an interdisciplinary community of scientists, especially physicists, has carried out both empirical and theoretical investigations aimed at understanding economic and financial systems within the framework of complex systems. This approach, which defines the so-called field of Econophysics, differs from the one traditionally adopted in mainstream economics in various respects.
First of all, emphasis is put on induction from empirical evidence to theoretical models, rather than deduction from strict and often unreasonable mathematical assumptions about the expected behaviour of individuals. Second, the preferred objects of analysis are large socio-economic systems with many underlying units, which often interact with each other forming intricate networks with a complex topology. In this talk, I will first introduce the main results of Econophysics in the analysis of financial markets, then illustrate various examples of complex networks encountered in economic and financial systems, and discuss in particular recent results about the network of trade relationships among all world countries and their implications for international macroeconomics. I will conclude with an overview of future challenges for Econophysics, especially at the intersection with the so-called Sociophysics research field which aims at understanding cultural diversity and collective social behaviour.
