Comparison between Agent-based and Aggregate Models: A Case Study of Tuberculosis Transmission

This paper compares the difference of agent-based models and aggregate models in the context of M. Tuberculosis (TB) transmission. The impact of individual heterogeneity and network structure are examined. Impact of heterogeneous individuals is examined through implementation of BCG vaccination and reactivation. The outcome shows that individual heterogeneity has a remarkable impact on TB transmission. Different types of network structures are also evaluated on agent-based models. Simulations were run under three widely used network topologies namely random, scale-free and small world. The results reveal large differences between results of agent-based models and aggregate models. Finally, based on the conducted experiments, strengths and weakness of both approaches are discussed, which can give some insights into TB diffusion in Saskatchewan as well as guidance in choosing the appropriate modeling approach for particular problems