Complexity and Social Networks Blog

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21 August 2007

How do networkers network?

Together with Timothy Huerta, Texas Tech University, and Jennifer van Stelle, Stanford University, I have written a paper on "How do networkers network?". We conducted a study of participants at the annual conference of INSNA (International Network of Social Network Analysts) to understand how young researchers are introduced into the community of senior researchers. The paper is work in progress at the moment and we would like to hear your comments, especially on our methodology.

You can find the paper in our working paper series (Working Paper # PNG07-005) and an abstract here:

This study was conceived during the 2005 INSNA conference by attendees who were interested in the evolving patterns of relationships among social network academics and consultants, and in how junior researchers were being integrated into the existing community. The study was also intended as a session- and space-planning aid for the 2006 conference organizers. Specifically, this paper describes a study of networking among social network professionals who attended the 2005 INSNA (International Network for Social Network Analysis) “Sunbelt” Conference. The attendees were asked to respond to two rounds of surveys regarding their experiences. We obtained data on existing and new ties in the first round of the survey, and tracked the maintenance or decay of those ties in the second round (approximately nine months later). We employ homophily arguments as well as theories of status and career/life cycle to determine what factors led to the establishment of ties from interactions at the conference. We consider the content of the new ties in addition to the above-mentioned theories to understand why such ties decayed or were maintained in the post-conference period. As well as applying the results of this study to the understanding of social network dynamics, we hope our findings will further the integration of new members into the existing community and enhance the session-scheduling and space-utilization aspects of conference planning.

Posted by Ines Mergel at 11:18 AM | Comments (3)

15 August 2007

sunbelt 2008

The 2008 meeting ("Sunbelt") of INSNA will be in St. Pete Beach, FL, Jan 22-27. Sunbelt is the pre-eminent meeting of social network researchers, always stimulating and fun.

Posted by David Lazer at 1:36 PM | Comments (0)

4 August 2007

Are you in my network?

Interesting article in the NYT this morning: it seems as if the business strategies of cellphone networks have an impact on social networks. People who are in the same network talk more to each other, than people who don't have the same cellphone network.

The article explains how in informal friendship networks the frequency and duration of cellphone calls is lowered as soon as one of the participants switches to another network and that business acquaintances become "friends" through longer and more frequent phone calls when they are in the same cellphone network.

They refer to research on cellphone use being conducted at the Universities of Notre Dame and Michigan. I am wondering if people here at the Media Lab have found out a similar connection: a question for our bloggers Ben and David.

I had not thought about my own personal cellphone usage in this way, mainly because I am not checking how many minutes I have left. From a research standpoint, is your cellphone network/provider really powerful enough to influence the duration and frequency of interactions with people you do not consider your friends and only talk to on purely professional topics?

Posted by Ines Mergel at 9:01 AM | Comments (5)