How Abstract Mechanisms Come Alive: Modelling Network Path Dependence Using Qualitative Data

Modelling conceptually abstract social mechanisms generally raises questions of empirical and ontological correspondence. Modelling (path dependent) dynamics of interorganisational networks is thus challenging. The inability to observe certain empirical phenomena while unfolding and the additional lack of readily available mathematical network measure data requires a new empirical approach. I report on how I conducted a qualitative case study of two embedded cases in the smartphone industry using a diversity of data sources for grounding a theory-driven agent-based simulation model. Subsequently, I explain how these empirical foundations affected model implementation and key results, and I conclude with a reflection on how qualitative case studies can help underpin the simulation of emergent network dynamics.