Social network

A social network is a way to understand how people and groups are connected to each other. It looks at relationships between individuals or organizations and how they interact. This idea helps us study whole groups and see patterns in how they behave. For example, we can learn how information spreads online or find out who has the most influence in a group.

The study of social networks comes from many different areas of science, like psychology, sociology, and mathematics. A scientist named Jacob Moreno created one of the first tools to draw these connections in the 1930s. Since then, learning about social networks has become very important in many fields of study. Today, it is a key way to understand complex relationships in our world.

Overview

A social network is a way to study how people, groups, organizations, or entire societies are connected. It helps us understand relationships and interactions between different social units. This approach focuses on the connections and ties between these units rather than just the units themselves. Social network analysis is used in many fields, including anthropology, biology, communication studies, economics, geography, information science, organizational studies, social psychology, sociology, and sociolinguistics.

History

In the late 1800s, thinkers like Émile Durkheim and Ferdinand Tönnies began exploring how people connect in groups. They looked at how people form close bonds, like in families or communities, and how they also connect in larger, more formal ways.

In the 1930s, many experts from different fields started studying how people interact. Psychologists, anthropologists, and mathematicians all added to our understanding. By the 1970s, scholars began bringing all these ideas together. Later, in the late 1990s, researchers started studying online social networks and how people connect in the digital world.

Levels of analysis

Social networks are organized in ways that appear from the interactions of smaller parts. As networks grow, patterns become clearer, but studying every relationship in the world isn’t possible due to limits in technology, ethics, and practical concerns. Researchers choose a level of detail that fits their questions.

Social networks can be studied at three main levels. At the micro-level, research often starts with one person or a small group, looking at relationships between two people (called a dyad) or three people (a triad). Scientists study how strong these relationships are and how they balance out.

At the meso-level, researchers look at groups that are bigger than a few people but smaller than entire societies. This level helps connect small-group behavior with larger social patterns. It includes studying organizations and how they work together.

At the macro-level, scientists examine the results of many interactions, like how resources move through large groups. This level often looks at big social systems and how they function as a whole.

Theoretical links

Different ideas and theories help us understand social networks better. Some important ones come from other areas of study, like Graph theory, Balance theory, Social comparison theory, and the Social identity approach.

A few theories were created just for studying social networks. Two of these are structural role theory and heterophily theory. Heterophily Theory tells us that having many loose connections can help us find new information and ideas. This is because groups of close friends often think very similarly. To learn something new, we need to talk to people outside our close group. This idea is known as "the strength of weak ties".

Structural holes

In networks, having good connections can give someone an advantage. These connections share information, chances, and new ideas that help the person in the middle. Usually, groups of friends or teammates share similar information. New and different ideas often come from meeting people in other groups. When two groups have different information, there is a gap called a structural hole. Being able to connect these groups helps a person get more benefits because they learn from many different places.

Networks with many of these gaps are helpful because they give access to many sources of information. For example, in business, having friends in many different jobs or industries can help someone find new job opportunities. This idea is similar to a theory that having many different kinds of friends is very useful for getting a good job. The study of these gaps is used in many real-life situations and in computer programs that can guess what might happen in social groups.

Research clusters

Art networks

Researchers study how artists connect when shown together in museum exhibitions. These connections can affect how well-known an artist becomes, even when looking only at the artist's own work. Being linked with more famous artists can help an artist’s reputation grow, though this effect may weaken over time.

Community

In the past, a community was a place where people lived nearby and knew each other. Today, communities can form online through phones and apps. These online spaces need care and study, often using special science tools to understand them better. Experts also study how communities grow and work together.

Complex networks

Complex networks need special ways to understand them, including looking at how connections change over time. These changes help shape how groups and people interact.

Conflict and Cooperation

Social networks help us understand how groups work together or fight. This includes studying how people help each other during protests, keep peace in communities, and how networks affect wars between countries or groups.

Criminal networks

Experts look at how people involved in crime connect with each other. For example, gangs may attack others to show their strength, and these actions can spread from one group to others.

Diffusion of innovations

Researchers study how new ideas and inventions spread from one person to another. Some people quickly try new things, and networks can help or stop these ideas from spreading. Tests have shown that good behaviors can spread through groups, like in villages or labs.

Demography

Social networks help experts count hard-to-reach groups, like homeless people or those who use drugs, by using people’s connections to find more participants for studies.

Economic sociology

This area looks at how people and groups interact through relationships and trust. It examines how these connections affect jobs, prices, and innovation, showing how social ties shape the economy.

Health care

Social networks are now used in health studies to understand how people share information, prevent diseases, and support each other in staying healthy.

Human ecology

Human ecology studies how people relate to their natural, social, and built environments, connecting ideas from many fields like geography, psychology, and zoology.

Literary networks

Network analysis helps study how books, writers, critics, and publishers connect. It maps these relationships to see how literature works as a system.

Organizational studies

Research looks at how people and groups connect inside companies, including teamwork, communication, and how these links affect employee commitment and performance.

Social capital

Social capital is the value of our connections, where people help each other with trust and teamwork. It helps newcomers find jobs and encourages more activity in groups. It has three parts: how people connect, the trust between them, and shared goals.

Advertising

This area studies how ads affect brands and sales, looking at how customers talk about products and share opinions, which helps companies understand what people want.

Network position and benefits

In groups, people often stay within their own circles, which can limit ideas. Those who connect different groups can bring new ideas and opportunities. This can help both the group and the individual’s career.

Social media

Main article: Social media

Computers and social apps create new ways for people to interact. These connections can share all sorts of things, from files to support, and even money in online shopping. Special tools help study these digital connections.

Segregation

People often connect with others who are similar to themselves, either by living close together or sharing traits. Social networks can show how much groups stay separate or mix together in a community.