Boundary Objects for Participatory Group Model Building of Agent-Based Models

Boundary objects in participatory group processes help participants share their understanding of systems across disciplinary and social boundaries. We report development of a series of boundary objects in a group model building project in which stakeholders and modelers constructed agent-based models (ABMs) of health care seeking and delivery. We propose conventions for describing agent actions and interactions, and offer advice for effective use of boundary objects in a group process of building ABMs. We found that 1) an early boundary object was helpful for teaching stakeholders basic ABM concepts, 2) physical correspondence between boundary objects and model interfaces improved participant engagement, 3) group ownership of the model was threatened when the modeling team failed to capture needed model elements through the boundary object, 4) adherence to boundary object conventions improved when participants were given specific charges, 5) with hands-on exposure, the model graphical user interface became an effective boundary object.