How change agents and social capital influence the adoption of innovations among small farmers: Evidence from social networks in rural Bolivia

"This paper presents results from a study that identified patterns of social interaction among small farmers in three agricultural subsectors in Bolivia—fish culture, peanut production, and quinoa production—and analyzed how social interaction influences farmers' behavior toward the adoption of pro-poor innovations. Twelve microregions were identified, four in each subsector, setting the terrain for an analysis of parts of social networks that deal with the diffusion of specific sets of innovations. Three hundred sixty farmers involved in theses networks as well as 60 change agents and other actors promoting directly or indirectly the diffusion of innovations were interviewed about the interactions they maintain with other agents in the network and the sociodemographic characteristics that influence their adoption behavior. The information derived from this data collection was used to test a wide range of hypotheses on the impact that the embeddedness of farmers in social networks has on the intensity with which they adopt innovations. Evidence provided by the study suggests that persuasion, social influence, and competition are significant influences in the decisions of farmers in poor rural regions in Bolivia to adopt innovations. The results of this study are meant to attract the attention of policymakers and practitioners who are interested in the design and implementation of projects and programs fostering agricultural innovation and who may want to take into account the effects of social interaction and social capital. Meanwhile, scholars of the diffusion of innovations may find evidence to further embrace the complexity and interdependence of social interactions in their models and approaches." from Author's AbstractSocial networks, Agricultural innovation, Change agent, Social capital,

Effects of Social Identity, Network Connectivity, and Prior Performance on Career Progression and Resilience: A Study of NCAA Basketball Coaches

Thesis advisor: Stephen P. BorgattiThis study was an investigation of the effects of social identity on career progression and career resilience. Particular attention was given to the predictive impact of social identity of membership in an identifiable professional sub-grouping. Using NCAA basketball coaches as an empirical setting, quantitative and qualitative analyses were conducted to predict the status of next employer for job seekers who voluntarily changed jobs (n = 282), and the employability resilience of job seekers who were fired (n = 151). Job seekers with the social identity of membership in an identifiable professional sub-grouping (in this empirical setting, defined as membership in a coaching family or coaching tree) were hired for positions with employers of higher status, and exhibited greater employability resilience than was the case for job seekers without such a social identity. Because membership in an identifiable professional sub-grouping signals concise information about the social identity of an individual above and beyond prior performance, network connectivity and status affiliations, it is theorized that individuals with such a social identity are more easily understood, more predictable, and are therefore more valuable in the labor market. Additional career benefits are accrued by individuals who claim their ascribed identity, and by individuals who have social identities characterized as relational actors. Recommendations for future research on social identity of membership in an identifiable professional sub-grouping are offered.Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2009.Submitted to: Boston College. Carroll School of Management.Discipline: Organization Studies

Will HIV Vaccination Reshape HIV Risk Behavior Networks? A Social Network Analysis of Drug Users\u27 Anticipated Risk Compensation

Background An HIV vaccine could substantially impact the epidemic. However, risk compensation (RC), or post-vaccination increase in risk behavior, could present a major challenge. The methodology used in previous studies of risk compensation has been almost exclusively individual-level in focus, and has not explored how increased risk behavior could affect the connectivity of risk networks. This study examined the impact of anticipated HIV vaccine-related RC on the structure of high-risk drug users\u27 sexual and injection risk network. Methods A sample of 433 rural drug users in the US provided data on their risk relationships (i.e., those involving recent unprotected sex and/or injection equipment sharing). Dyad-specific data were collected on likelihood of increasing/initiating risk behavior if they, their partner, or they and their partner received an HIV vaccine. Using these data and social network analysis, a post-vaccination network was constructed and compared to the current network on measures relevant to HIV transmission, including network size, cohesiveness (e.g., diameter, component structure, density), and centrality. Results Participants reported 488 risk relationships. Few reported an intention to decrease condom use or increase equipment sharing (4% and 1%, respectively). RC intent was reported in 30 existing risk relationships and vaccination was anticipated to elicit the formation of five new relationships. RC resulted in a 5% increase in risk network size (n = 142 to n = 149) and a significant increase in network density. The initiation of risk relationships resulted in the connection of otherwise disconnected network components, with the largest doubling in size from five to ten. Conclusions This study demonstrates a new methodological approach to studying RC and reveals that behavior change following HIV vaccination could potentially impact risk network connectivity. These data will be valuable in parameterizing future network models that can determine if network-level change precipitated by RC would appreciably impact the vaccine\u27s population-level effectiveness

Imaginary Worlds: Using Visual Network Scales to Capture Perceptions of Social Networks

Social networks are not just patterns of interaction and sentiment in the real world; they are also cognitive (re)constructions of social relations, some real, some imagined. Focusing on networks as mental entities, our essay describes a new method that relies on stylized network images to gather quantitative data on how people “see” specific aspects of their social worlds. We discuss the logic of our approach, present several examples of “visual network scales,” discuss some preliminary findings, and identify some of the problems and prospects in this nascent line of work on the phenomenology of social networks

All In The Family: Network Ties as Determinants of Reputation and Identity in NCAA Basketball

The article discusses the factors contributing to the formation of social reputation and market identity in National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball players. The discussion focuses on: social network analysis in relation to identity theory; the influence of social networks in career advancement; opportunities that further socioeconomic status via social power; social identity and access to resources that contribute to the structure of a social network; and the role of affiliation in institutional theory, network ties, and family group identification within an organization

La importancia de los clubes sociales en la red económica de J.P. Morgan & Co: acuerdos de asociación, sindicatos y direcciones entrelazadas antes de la Segunda Guerra Mundial

Quin paper tenen els clubs socials en la promoció de les relacions de cooperació entre els agents econòmics? Mitjançant l’estudi de les xarxes històriques de banquers d’inversió als Estats Units abans de la Segona Guerra Mundial, proposem que els llaços en forma de pertinença compartida a un club social faciliten la creació estratègica de cohesió entre empreses i dins d’una mateixa empresa, la qual guia les transaccions econòmiques. El nostre treball se centra en l’empresa de Nova York J.P. Morgan & Co., el principal banc d’inversió nord-americà abans de la Segona Guerra Mundial. A traves d’anàlisis estadístiques i qualitatives, demostrem que les relacions establertes en els clubs socials van influir en la propietat de l’empresa, la participació en sindicats i la composició dels consells d’administració. El nostre estudi avança en la literatura sobre les elits socials i en la identificació de la interacció estratègica entre l’arrelament social i l’acció econòmica a traves d’organitzacions socials, destacant el paper únic dels clubs socials com a llocs històrics de col·laboració econòmica durant l’era progressista als Estats Units.What role do social clubs play in the facilitation of cooperative relationships between economic actors? By studying the historical networks of investment bankers in the United States pre-World War II, we propose that social ties in the form of shared social club memberships facilitate the strategic creation of interfirm and intrafirm cohesion that guides economic transactions. The focus of our paper is the New York firm of J. P. Morgan & Co., the leading American investment bank before the Second World War. Through statistical and qualitative analyses we demonstrate that social club ties influenced firm ownership, syndicate participation, and interlocking directorate board memberships. Our study advances the literature on social elites by identifying the strategic interplay between social embeddedness and economic action through social organizations, highlighting the unique role of social clubs as historical sites of economic collaboration during the Progressive Era in the United States.¿Qué papel desempeñan los clubes sociales en la promoción de las relaciones de cooperación entre los agentes económicos? Mediante el estudio de las redes históricas de banqueros de inversión en Estados Unidos antes de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, proponemos que los lazos sociales en forma de pertenencia compartida a un club social facilitan la creación estratégica de cohesión entre empresas y dentro de una misma empresa, la cual guía las transacciones económicas. Nuestro trabajo se centra en la empresa neoyorquina J.P. Morgan & Co, el principal banco de inversión estadounidense antes de la Segunda Guerra Mundial. A través de análisis estadísticos y cualitativos, demostramos que los lazos de los clubes sociales influyeron en la propiedad de la empresa, la participación en sindicatos y la composición de los consejos de administración. Nuestro estudio avanza en la bibliografía sobre las élites sociales al identificar la interacción estratégica entre el arraigo social y la acción económica a través de organizaciones sociales, destacando el papel único de los clubes sociales como lugares históricos de colaboración económica durante la era progresista en Estados Unidos