The objectives of this paper are to define and classify different types of errors and artefacts that can appear in the process of developing an agent-based model, and to propose activities aimed at avoiding them during the model construction and testing phases. To do this in a structured way, we review the main concepts of the process of developing such a model – establishing a general framework that summarises the process of designing, implementing, and using agent-based models. Within this framework we identify the various stages where different types of errors and artefacts may appear. Finally we propose activities that could be used to detect (and hence eliminate) each type of error or artefact.

Abstract. The basis of this research project is the computer simulation of the emergence of ethnicity and cultural differentiation in prehistoric hunter-gatherer groups. Instead of working directly on a universal theoretical model, we have preferred a predictive simulation of a historical case (ancient Patagonia) where the knowledge about the simulated social system is available at the necessary level of detail, using data from archaeological, ethnological, and historical research. The aim of this research is to test existing social theories of social evolution through history by creating a simple computer model of a society in a theoretically possible historical context, in such a way that we may identify yet unknown social relationships and interactions. 1