HOW DOES THE STRUCTURE OF SOCIAL NETWORKS AFFECTTHE PERFORMANCE OF ITS ACTORS? A study in Brazil

Abstract

The creation of partnership networks between the private sector, the government, and organized civil society has called the attention of researchers in the field of strategy, mainly the association between the creation of partnerships and the organizational performance. In this sense, the studies of organizational networks emerge through a series of questionings, among which is the understanding of how the structure of networks affects the performance of its actors. Thus, the objective of this survey consists in identifying the relation between the network structure, measured by network indicators and income generation, of collectors of recyclable materials, called carrinheiros, participating in organizations which take part in the Recyclable Materials Network Organization of the city of Curitiba in the state of Parana in Brazil, between 2007 and 2011. As a result, it was possible to identify the actors in the network during the period in question (from 65 actors in 2007 to 102 in 2011), as well as the structural dynamics of a network, and the association between the variable and the performance (Adjusted Income), and the variables of motivation in question, along with its persistence over time.