Joseph A.E. Shaheen

Georgetown University | GU · McCourt School of Public Policy

We develop an agent-based model in order to understand agent/node behaviors that generate social media networks. We use simple rules to synthetically generate a backcloth (friend/follow) network collected using Twitter's API. The Twitter network was collected using seeds for known terrorist propaganda accounts in 2015. Model parameter adjustments w...

The ridesharing economy is experiencing rapid growth and innovation. Companies such as Uber and Lyft are continuing to grow at a considerable pace while providing their platform as an organizing medium for ridesharing services, increasing consumer utility as well as employing thousands in part-time positions. However, many challenges remain in the...

ISIS social media and propaganda activities.

We demonstrate the use of agent-based models to simulate the interactions of two mobile dating applications that possess divergent interaction features. We reproduce several expected outcomes when compared to extant literature. We also demonstrate the use of a standard social network analysis technique—the network regression, Multiple Regression Qu...

We demonstrate the use of agent-based models to simulate the interactions of two mobile dating applications that possess divergent interaction features. We reproduce several expected outcomes when compared to extant literature. We also demonstrate the use of a standard social network analysis technique—the network regression, Multiple Regression Qu...

An analysis of network interactions in complex systems presents a more plausible explanation for the development of states and societies and the origins of liberty than does the linear approach adopted by Acemoğlu and Robinson in The Narrow Corridor, which is based on a single dichotomy—state vs. society. A methodology that responds to complexity r...

This paper will serve as an introduction and somewhat of a review to the conference session titled ``Exploring Network Approaches in Targeting Policy: From Epidemics to Dark Networks" and will focus on the salient challenges within targeting paradigms in several domains. First a discussion on the impact of dark networks frameworks and organizationa...

In the domain of utilizing network data to ensure safety and national security, the paradigm of Dark Networks offers a systemic approach to identifying 'nodes of interest' in social networks. This paradigm is primarily based on the well-developed concepts of Social Network Analysis, but relies heavily on heuristic approaches that are often unprinci...

The Intelligence community utilizes Social Network Analysis (SNA) as an analytical tool-of-choice in many aspects of its investigation into criminal, terrorist, and foreign adversarial networks. The topical domain of Dark Networks attempts to frame the concepts and methodologies of SNA with classical decision science to formulate a collection of po...

The Intelligence Community faces continuous challenges in the collection and aggregation of human-centric network data, partially due to a lack of availability of said data and tampering by the adversary. Moreover, chronic methodological issues manifest themselves in the applied analytical process post data retrieval; these can be summarized as a d...

The growth of Computational Social Science as a subject that encompasses a variety of disciplines, topics, and methods has seen a dramatic increase over the last period. New entrants into this trans-disciplinary field come from a variety of disciplines and interests causing disruption, a re-questioning of accepted principles, and sometimes down-rig...

We use IRS data through a firm aggregation method that uses W-2 records to emerge all employment-active U.S. firms. We compare aggregate statistics to Census Bureau data.

A better understanding of firm birth, life, and death yields a richer picture of firms' life-cycle and dynamical labor processes. Through "big data" analysis of a collection of universal fundamental distributions and beginning with firm age, wage and size, I discuss stationarity, their functional form, and consequences emanating from their defects....

The ridesharing economy is experiencing rapid growth and innovation. Companies such as Uber and Lyft are continuing to grow at a considerable pace while providing their platform as an organizing medium for ridesharing services, increasing consumer utility as well as employing thousands in part-time positions. However, many challenges remain in the...

The terrorist organization, Daesh, also known as the so-called ‘Islamic State/IS/ISIS/ISIL’, has launched an extremely sophisticated information campaign targeting a wide range of audiences around the world to gain support for its expansion in the Middle East. Daesh first strategic success was the public address of self-styled Caliph Abu Bakr al-Ba...

The recruiting leader is faced with many tough decisions throughout the life cycle of the talent acquisition process. In this paper published in the Journal of Corporate Recruiting Leadership (2011), I discuss those challenges.