Comparison of crowd evacuation efficiency under static signage and dynamic personnel guidance from an emotional contagion perspective

Abstract

This study investigates the comparative effectiveness of two emergency guidance strategies—static signage and dynamic personnel guidance—within the context of emotional contagion, aiming to optimize the allocation of guidance resources. An improved Emotion Contagion–Guidance Coupled SIR (Susceptible-Infected-Recovered) model is incorporated into a multi-agent simulation framework to dynamically replicate emotional contagion and evacuation behaviors during the early warning stage or initial phase of a disaster. Simulations are conducted under varying levels of guidance resource availability in an urban area with a population of 59,800 based on the NetLogo platform, with each strategy implemented independently. Key performance indicators—including evacuation completion rate, evacuation time, and emotional contagion frequency—are evaluated and compared. Results show that under resource-scarce conditions, dynamic guidance facilitates faster evacuation initiation and significantly reduces evacuation time due to its real-time, point-to-point intervention capability. Under moderate resource availability, static signage demonstrates higher evacuation efficiency due to its broad coverage and sustained influence. When resources are abundant, the performance gap between the two strategies narrows, and both exhibit diminishing marginal returns. Furthermore, static signage is more effective at mitigating panic and maintaining emotional stability, whereas dynamic guidance may marginally elevate early-stage emotional contagion due to intensified interpersonal interactions. These findings provide theoretical support for the strategic deployment and integration of emergency guidance strategies across diverse disaster scenarios, thereby enhancing evacuation effectiveness.