132 research outputs found
Measuring the Generalized Friendship Paradox in Networks with Quality-dependent Connectivity
The friendship paradox is a sociological phenomenon stating that most people
have fewer friends than their friends do. The generalized friendship paradox
refers to the same observation for attributes other than degree, and it has
been observed in Twitter and scientific collaboration networks. This paper
takes an analytical approach to model this phenomenon. We consider a
preferential attachment-like network growth mechanism governed by both node
degrees and `qualities'. We introduce measures to quantify paradoxes, and
contrast the results obtained in our model to those obtained for an
uncorrelated network, where the degrees and qualities of adjacent nodes are
uncorrelated. We shed light on the effect of the distribution of node qualities
on the friendship paradox. We consider both the mean and the median to measure
paradoxes, and compare the results obtained by using these two statistics
Tail-scope: Using friends to estimate heavy tails of degree distributions in large-scale complex networks
Many complex networks in natural and social phenomena have often been
characterized by heavy-tailed degree distributions. However, due to rapidly
growing size of network data and concerns on privacy issues about using these
data, it becomes more difficult to analyze complete data sets. Thus, it is
crucial to devise effective and efficient estimation methods for heavy tails of
degree distributions in large-scale networks only using local information of a
small fraction of sampled nodes. Here we propose a tail-scope method based on
local observational bias of the friendship paradox. We show that the tail-scope
method outperforms the uniform node sampling for estimating heavy tails of
degree distributions, while the opposite tendency is observed in the range of
small degrees. In order to take advantages of both sampling methods, we devise
the hybrid method that successfully recovers the whole range of degree
distributions. Our tail-scope method shows how structural heterogeneities of
large-scale complex networks can be used to effectively reveal the network
structure only with limited local information.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure
A study on the friendship paradox – quantitative analysis and relationship with assortative mixing
The friendship paradox is the observation that friends of individuals tend to have more friends or be more popular than the individuals themselves. In this work, we first study local metrics to capture the strength of the paradox and the direction of the paradox from the perspective of individual nodes, i.e., an indication of whether the individual is more or less popular than its friends. These local metrics are aggregated, and global metrics are proposed to express the phenomenon on a network-wide level. Theoretical results show that the defined metrics are well-behaved enough to capture the friendship paradox. We also theoretically analyze the behavior of the friendship paradox for popular network models in order to understand regimes where friendship paradox occurs. These theoretical findings are complemented by experimental results on both network models and real-world networks. By conducting a correlation study between the proposed metrics and degree assortativity, we experimentally demonstrate that the phenomenon of the friendship paradox is related to the well-known phenomenon of assortative mixing
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Three Essays on Network Dynamics and Liminality
This dissertation focuses on the emergence and evolution of social networks by paying particular attention to the spanning of cultural boundaries that segregate actors in the context of specific societies. In particular, I use systems science methods to study the bridging of cultural holes in small and relatively dense artificial societies, as well as in an American high school. I also study the significance of local triadic configurations in giving rise to the highly hierarchical system of aggregate-level migration flows in place in the Americas during the late 20th century. I use the concept of liminality as a way to analyze these disparate social systems. More precisely, I focus on the role of cultural brokers seen as actors at the limen – i.e. at the border – of symbolic boundaries, actors that can act as bridges between culturally disconnected worlds. In this context, this dissertation explains key network dynamics behind two emergent phenomena that are the direct result of liminal agents’ behaviors: the diffusion of innovations (Chapters 1 and 2) and a system of international migration flows (Chapter 3). Finally, I also put forward a critical view on brokerage based on different cases mentioned in the literature (e.g. 1.5 generation migrants or multiracial individuals) that show how the spanning of cultural holes can put brokers at an increased risk of being socially and/or psychologically harmed
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