Effective Degree Theory on Multiplex Networks for Concurrent Three-State Spreading Dynamics

Abstract

We propose a model of concurrent three-state spreading dynamics on multiplex networks to study the co-evolution process of epidemic spreading and information diffusion. The spreading dynamics and information diffusion process are both described by three-state models which can be used to address a wide range of common spreading behaviors. As accurate prediction is important in understanding the behaviors of complicated spreading dynamics, based on our proposed model, we develop a continuous-time effective degree theory (EDT) to delicately analyze the concurrent dynamics. We show that compared to the Monte Carlo simulations, this developed theory could predict the behavior of the dynamics in high accuracy, outperforming the dominantly adopted heterogeneous mean field theory applied on relevant dynamics on multiplex networks.