"A Dialectic Architecture for Computational Autonomy"

Mark Witkowski¹ and Kostas Stathis²

¹Intelligent and Interactive Systems Group, 
Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, 
Imperial College, 
Exhibition Road, 
London SW7 2BT, U.K.
m.witkowski@imperial.ac.uk

²Intelligent Computing Environments, 
Department of Computing,
School of Informatics, 
City University, 
London EC1V 0HB, U.K.
kostas@soi.city.ac.uk

in: Nickles, M., Rovatsos, M. and Weiß, G. (eds.) Agents and Computational Autonomy - Potential, Risks, and Solutions, Springer LNCS 2969, pages 261-273.

ABSTRACT

This paper takes the view that to be considered autonomous, a software agent must possess the means by which to manage its own motivations and so define new goals. Using the motivational theories of Abraham Maslow as a starting point, we investigate the role that argumentation processes might play in balancing the many competing aspects of a whole agent’s motivational agenda. This is developed into an Agent Argumentation Architecture (AAA) in which multiple “faculties” argue for different aspects of the total behavior of the Agent. The overall effect of these internal arguments then defines the overt “personality” of the agent.

Back to Publications