Agent-Based Simulation of the Effect of Emotional Contagion on the Citizens’ Sense of Gain in Smart Cities

Citizens’ sense of gain in smart cities (CSGSC) has become a vital standard in evaluating the sustainable development of smart cities, which encompasses both the subjective spiritual and objective material gains experienced by citizens. However, existing CSGSC evaluation studies primarily focus on measuring citizens’ subjective feelings using scales, neglecting the potential impact of emotional contagion among individuals. This study addresses this study gap by establishing an agent-based simulation model of CSGSC, incorporating expectation confirmation theory and emotional contagion theory to analyze the effect of emotional contagion on CSGSC. The simulation results demonstrate that emotional contagion diminishes the overall CSGSC of the population, possibly due to the heightened susceptibility of individuals to low-level CSGSC. Furthermore, emotional contagion contributes to the polarization of the population. This study identifies the effect of relationship network density and individual characteristics on the effects of emotional contagion by multi-scenarios simulations. Additionally, the implications of these findings for government and enterprises engaged in smart city construction are discussed. This study offers a novel perspective for CSGSC research and carries significant implications for the evaluation of CSGSC. From the perspective of emotional contagion, this study provides valuable guidance for policymakers and technology research enterprises involved in smart city development.