Binary opinion dynamics on signed networks based on Ising model

The evolution dynamics of public opinion is a hot issue in complex networks research. And the Ising model is the earliest classic dynamic model of public opinion. Although signed networks can describe amicable and antagonistic relationship in complex real world systems accurately, and the research on dynamic process of public opinion evolution on signed networks is valuable, few people have paid attention to that. Previous methods for opinion diffusion cannot be applied to signed network directly, which ignore the important information contained in the negative edges. In this paper, the binary opinion dynamics on signed networks has been modeled by aid of the Ising model. The model is applied both to the synthetic and real-world signed networks. We observe that the proportion and distribution of negative edges have a fundamental effect on the evolutionary result of public opinion on signed networks. There exists the critical ratio. When the proportion of negative edges in the network exceeds the critical ratio, there appears to be a completely different evolutionary result, and the distribution of negative edges affects the value of the critical ratio. In addition, we study the network structural balance in the evolutionary process of opinion on signed networks as complementary. Our findings can deepen the understanding of the evolutionary process of binary opinion in real signed social systems. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.