Emotion contagion; Agent-based modelling; Empirical validation

In recent years, many agent-based models of human groups have implemented a mechanism of emotion contagion, yet empirical validation is lagging behind. The aim of the present paper is to validate an agent-based model of emotion contagion at the level of group emotion, by comparing simulations against the emotional development of real people in small groups. To study the effect of emotion contagion, the participants interacted via a video call, where they were virtually placed in different social environments while they played a quiz.