Egocentric Network Research Articles (Page 1)

Research on dementia care partners often emphasizes the dyadic relationship, overlooking broader social networks that shape care partners' well-being and resilience. This study examines how social network composition and quality influence care partner outcomes. We conducted ego-centric social network structured interviews with 179 unpaid care partners of individuals living with dementia. We used regression models to test our hypothesis, with hierarchical models incorporating covariates followed by network features.Findings indicate participants who reported greater network quality also reported larger social networks and greater network demographic similarity, with older participants also reporting greater similarity. Those who showed greater network quality and perceptual affinity reported enhanced well-being and resilience and lower burden, with care partner tenure also positively related to resilience.As such,higher-quality networks are associated with larger and more demographic similarity. Further research should explore which dimensions of perceptual affinity most strongly influence care partner outcomes.

African migrants in China are at increased risk of HIV and other STDs. Consistent condom use is the most effective and cost-efficient method of preventing STD/HIV. However, there is limited literature on condom use and its determinants among Africans in China. A national online cross-sectional survey was conducted among Africans in China from January to February 2021. Participants completed a survey including social-demographic characteristics, sexual behaviors, and personal networks. Multivariable logistic regression was conducted to identify factors associated with condomless sex. The study surveyed 1305 individuals, with 488 reporting sexual activity and being included in the analysis. Most were young, unmarried, Christian, migrants for study or business in China for over a year, insured, and about half proficient in Mandarin. Notably, 53% reported engaging in condomless sex. Among them, African migrants with low sexual health community engagement (80%), lacking condom distribution services (almost 70%), had an average of 5.61 friends. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed higher odds of condomless sex for seven variables: those migrating for study (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.62, 95% confidence intervals [CI] 1.10-2.40), frequent contact with Chinese friends (aOR 1.71, 1.05-2.78), meeting more than one friend on social apps (aOR 1.57, 1.09-2.28), using social apps in China (aOR 2.19, 1.18-4.08), having over three regular partners (aOR 2.41, 1.02-5.69), using alcohol in the past 12months (aOR 2.13, 1.45-3.11), and alcohol before/during sex in the past 6months (aOR 2.16, 1.46-3.21). Our data suggest the need for comprehensive sexual health services that are tailored for African migrants in China. Expansion of condom distribution alongside community engagement and decentralized sexual health services based on personal networks is urgently needed among this population.

Background: A person’s social relationships provide a sense that one is valued and supported in ways that improve quality of life outcomes. However, a person’s social networks may include negative or ambivalent relationships that provide access to resources. Objective: The objective of this study was to understand the contribution of negative relationships, social capital, and perceived support on a person’s quality of life. Method: This study uses an egocentric social network design ( N = 305) to examine whether social capital associated with negative relationship networks provides benefits to a person’s quality of life. Findings: Although perceived support demonstrated a consistent relationship across all domains, the social capital associated with negative relationship networks was significantly related to respondents’ social and environmental quality of life. Conclusion: Capturing information about the social capital associated with negative social exchange is essential to develop a complete understanding of the role of social relationships in supporting health.

Addressing complex and persistent issues such as substance misuse requires sustained collaboration by individuals and organizations. This exploratory study investigates factors that predict coalition members’ perceptions of their inter-organizational relationships and the effects those relationships have on the community. Ego-centric network data were collected via online survey from participants in substance misuse prevention coalitions across Tennessee. Each respondent (i.e., ego) was asked to indicate other organizations (i.e., alters) with whom their organization worked to prevent substance misuse in the last six months. The resulting dataset comprised 256 unique ego-alter relationships (representing inter-organizational collaborations) from 66 organizations across 31 coalitions. We used two-level mixed-effects logistic regression models to examine the factors that affect a respondents’ perception that each ego-alter relationship is highly impactful to the community. Implications for our understanding of inter-organizational collaboration, as well as the value of ego-centric inter-organizational network analysis for examining collaboration networks across locales, are discussed.

ABSTRACT Physical activity (PA) offers a wide range of health benefits. Yet, a substantial part of the global population, and more than half of the Dutch adults does not meet the PA guidelines. Here, we aim to assess which different levels of the socioecological framework (individual, interpersonal, community, and societal factors) are associated with physical activity in middle-aged and older adults. This cross-sectional study is part of the prospective SaNAE (Social Network Assessment in Adults and Elderly) cohort with online questionnaire data of Dutch adults aged 40 years and older. Levels of PA (inactive, minimally physically active, and health-enhancing physical active (HEPA)) were assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) and associations with individual (demographics, health, health behaviour, and socio-cognitive determinants), interpersonal (structural, functional and quality of egocentric social networks), community (social and work participation) factors and level of urbanisation, were assessed using uni– and multivariable logistic regression analyses. Of 1,975 participants (58% men, mean age: 68 years) 30% were inactive, 39% minimally active, and 32% HEPA-active. Compared to being inactive, positive self-efficacy for being active, non-smoking, lower BMI, having social network members who exercise regularly themselves and social and work participation were associated with higher PA levels. This study demonstrated the importance of individual, interpersonal, community, and societal factors for PA levels. Health promotion strategies aiming to improve PA levels should be targeted at factors beyond the individual level.

Repeat collaboration and scientific innovation: evidence from dynamic ego networks of Nobel laureates

Accessing a network of supportive relationships is critical to adolescent development, yet many peer relationships shift across adolescence, and little is known about changes in non-parental youth-adult relationships over time. This study examined how and why relationships with peers and adults end or persist during adolescence, specifically across school transitions. Participants ( n = 35; 17 middle school-aged, 18 high school-aged) completed egocentric social network maps and qualitative interviews over three years. Over the transition to high school, peer nominations within the school context increased significantly, and youth described frequent friendship changes such as quick flames (rapidly formed and ended) and slow burns (gradually deepened). When leaving high school, adult nominations within school and after-school contexts decreased significantly, especially as formalized extracurricular activities ended. Youth across both age groups often replaced previous adult relationships with new ones within extracurricular settings ( interchangeable adults ), while relationships with teachers seemed to decline over time. Time together , trust and disclosure , and friendship fit were important factors of sustained relationships. Findings suggest that the transitions to and from high school may bring unique relational changes. Youth-adult relationships may decline after high school, and college and work settings are potentially valuable future focal points for building supportive youth-adult relationships.

While workplace networks shape employees’ perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors, prior research has primarily emphasized organizational and leadership-related factors. This study adopts an egocentric network perspective to explore how employees’ workplace network characteristics—such as network size, relationship closeness, multiplex ties, and employee-organization relationship (EOR) norms—are associated with their organizational identification, well-being, and intentions to leave, within both advice and friendship networks. The findings reveal the nuanced patterns in these associations across the two network types. A larger friendship network corresponds with higher organizational identification and well-being, whereas the size of an advice network does not show a significant relationship with employee outcomes. Relationship closeness within advice networks is linked to greater organizational identification and well-being, while closeness within friendship networks does not show a significant association. EOR norms within both advice and friendship networks are positively related to employee outcomes. Additionally, the higher proportion of friends in advice networks corresponds with greater well-being and lower turnover intentions, while having supervisors as friends is associated with lower well-being. This research contributes to employee and organizational communication literature by highlighting the relevance of personal network dynamics in understanding employee attitudes and behaviors.

Social network structure plays a key role in shaping processes in animal populations. However, our understanding of how individual-level social decisions scale up to population-level social structures remains limited, particularly outside mammals. Here, we used continuous, fine-scale tracking of four large captive colonies of zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), revealing that zebra finches consistently maintain 1-2 closest contacts, 6-7 close contacts and 22-24 intermediate contacts, with the identities of these contacts remaining stable across days. By separating spatial co-occurrence from social preferences using null models, we demonstrate that closest and close partners are maintained by social choice, while intermediate partners are shaped by spatial affinity. These results suggest that zebra finch egocentric networks are made up of at least three different tiers of consistent, differentiated relationships. Importantly, we show that these tiers-when combined across individuals-form a multitiered social structure at the colony level. Finally, we review literature on egocentric animal networks, highlighting similarities in patterns to other species, and discuss the distinctions between multitiered and multilevel societies. Our results suggest that fundamental constraints in time, cognition and spatial organization may drive common structural properties in animal social networks across taxa.

To identify distinct social network types among young-old adults based on the characteristics of social network structure and to explore the relationship between different types, socio-demographic characteristics and subjective cognitive decline. A cross-sectional study was conducted from July 2022 to October 2023. A total of 652 young-old adults aged 60-74 years completed the sociodemographic questionnaire, the subjective cognitive decline questionnaire-9 and the self-designed egocentric social network questionnaire. The types of social networks were identified by latent profile analysis. Univariate analysis and binary logistic regression were used to analyse the influencing factors of subjective cognitive decline. The incidence of subjective cognitive decline was 38%. Social networks of young-old adults tended to be large, predominantly family-centred and characterised by strong contact strength, high density and significant demographic heterogeneity among network members. Four social network types were identified: diverse-moderate, family-dense, family-strong and friend-loose. Young-old adults embedded in the family-dense and family-strong types were more likely to develop subjective cognitive decline than those in the diverse-moderate type. Additionally, age, education level, previous occupation, daily sleep duration and exercise were related to the incidence of subjective cognitive decline. The findings highlight the relatively high incidence of subjective cognitive decline in young-old adults that is notably influenced by the type of social network they are embedded in. More attention needs to be paid to identifying and supporting young-old adults at high risk of subjective cognitive decline, especially to promote their social integration and friend network building, to improve their subjective cognitive function. The findings emphasise the importance of considering the structure and composition of social networks when addressing subjective cognitive decline among young-old adults. A diversified social network incorporating both familial and friendship ties may provide enhanced cognitive protection. Therefore, interventions targeting subjective cognitive decline should promote the expansion of friendship-based relationships and foster the development of more heterogeneous and multi-source networks. STROBE checklist. Not applicable.

Strategic dynamics in the fishing Field: An egocentric network analysis of small-scale fishing communities in Chile

A Comparative Analysis of Social Perceptions of AI Romance: Focusing on Ego Networks in News and Community Texts

Social network analysis (SNA) has been widely used in physics education research (PER) in recent years, but mostly in a limited range of the available modalities. This paper describes a unique approach to egocentric, mixed-methods SNA applied to qualitative network data obtained from 100 interviews with women and/or queer professional physicists. We focus on our methods for obtaining quantitative network data from these qualitative sources and present novel techniques for the analysis of the networks. We also examine the ways in which egocentric and mixed-methods SNA techniques are aligned with critical methods and well suited to the study of difference, non-normativity, and experiences of marginalization in physics spaces and communities. We explore the limitations and potential applications of these methods and situate this work in the larger context of our study of these interviews. This work bridges a methodological gap between SNA and qualitative work on identity in PER and begins to develop our understanding of the way gender and sexual minority physicists experience support.

The aim of this study is to analyze egocentric social networks of 31 autistic adults in Québec (Canada). We examined the composition of their proximal personal support network and the role of support shared among autistic peers. A mixed method analysis was used. An egocentric network questionnaire that included qualitative prompts was conducted to gather participants' interpretations and reference systems, facilitating an understanding of networks' multidimensional aspect. A reflexive thematic analysis was conducted with a subset of the data from the qualitative prompts. Three main themes were identified: (1) interference in social interactions, (2) mutual acknowledgment, and (3) social engagement in the community. Most participants (n = 21) mentioned autistic peers, but although these peers may have provided support, participants rarely identified them as being part of their proximal personal support network. Results nevertheless highlight the importance of peer support for several participants, which can refer to the concept of "weak ties," but they differ from it by the exchanges of emotional support, which are normally expected from "strong" ties.Lay abstractSocial support is recognized as an important predictor of quality of life in autistic and neurodivergent people. However, few studies have explored in detail the composition of support networks in autistic adults. Moreover, research on social networks in the field of autism has mainly focused on the support networks of experts and parents. This article presents the results of a study that analyzed the composition of the support network of 31 autistic adults and examined the role of autistic peer support in their network. Interviews were conducted with the participants. Most of them (n = 21) mentioned autistic peers in their social network. Although these peers provided unique types of support, participants rarely identified them as close friends or relatives. Nevertheless, the results underline the importance of peer support for participants, which often presented itself as empathetic listening, the sharing of advice to deal with everyday life issues and company for recreational activities. This study shows that we should not underestimate the support that can be provided by people who share a common experience, even if they are not considered close friends. It paves the way to thinking about how communities and professionals, such as social workers and educators, can support opportunities and facilitate spaces that foster peer support.

Despite growing attention to the social isolation crisis in the U.S., it remains unclear whether Americans experience a decline in social connection with age. Given the complex nature of social connections, this study argues that we need to ask a different question - which domains of social connections decline with age. Using representative egocentric network data (Person-to-Person Health Interview; N = 2,603) to measure core discussion networks and representative time-diary data (American Time Use Survey; N = 35,900) to measure daily social interactions, we find diverging age differences across two dimensions of social connections. These results present a complex picture of social connections. Specifically, people maintain a consistent core discussion network of confidants across all ages. However, daily social interactions decline with age. Additionally, we find that social roles have a sizable impact on daily social interactions but little impact on core discussion networks across the life course.

To assess whether changes in social network drinking is a mechanism of behaviour change responsible for the benefits of attending Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) during a recovery attempt. An observational longitudinal cohort study investigating mechanisms of behaviour change among adults with alcohol use disorder (AUD) reporting initiation of a substantial recovery attempt. Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. From a larger observational cohort, participants were individuals who reported a substantive increase in AA attendance (increase of ≥1+ meetings/week) from baseline to 6weeks (n= 71) and a propensity score-matched control group of participants who did not increase AA attendance (n= 71). Propensity score matching used demographics and baseline drinking. Baseline assessment and a 6-week follow-up assessment, including outcome variables: diagnostic assessment of AUD, timeline followback interview [percent drinking days (%DD) and percent heavy drinking days (%HDD)]; and exposure variables: formal egocentric social network assessment collecting egocentric social network metrics and using up to 20 network alters. Compared with the control group, participants who increased AA participation statistically significantly reduced %DD [mean (M) =5.67% (standard error of the mean, SEM =1.81) vs 30.91% (3.59); F= 46.22, P< 0.001] and %HDD [5.21% (1.79) vs 23.32% (3.14); F= 28.34, P< 0.001] and exhibited statistically significantly improved social network indicators including reduced network drinking frequency [1.99 (0.08) vs 2.96 (0.09); F= 42.26, P< 0.001] and severity [1.68 (0.06) vs 2.34 (0.08); F= 40.51, P< 0.001]. Changes in social network drinking statistically significantly mediated the relationship between changes in AA attendance and reductions in %DD [b= -0.06 (0.02), P= 0.01] and %HDD [b= -0.05 (0.02), P= 0.04] at follow-up. Reduced social network drinking appears to be one mechanism of behaviour change associated with the positive effects of Alcoholics Anonymous on drinking behavior during recovery.

Vocational education and training (VET) is facing new challenges as a result of the digital transformation, particularly with regard to the use of artificial intelligence (AI). Various funding programmes have been set up to provide support: One of these is the Erasmus+ funding programme, which funds the AI Pioneers project. A central aim of AI Pioneers is to research, promote and evaluate the use of AI in adult and vocational education. This includes establishing an interdisciplinary, international network and communities of practice. Various research methods were used in the project to generate findings at the three levels of VET: Macro, meso and micro. At the micro level, practical use cases for the application of AI in vocational schools were investigated. The meso level includes an egocentric social network analysis of the funded project partners and their networks. In addition, a European survey was conducted at the macro level. This survey aimed to expand the European Commission's digital competence framework for competences for educators (DigCompEdu) to include AI competences. The results show that ethical aspects play a crucial role in the implementation and utilisation of AI. It also demonstrates that the establishment of a sustainable network requires the involvement of all relevant stakeholders, as AI is an interdisciplinary issue. This holistic perspective facilitates a comprehensive identification of both the challenges and opportunities of AI in VET and ensures knowledge transfer.

Objective: Social network analysis offers a high-resolution framework for understanding social influences on alcohol use, but full-length assessments confer significant burden, giving rise to brief measures. However, few studies have empirically compared brief and full-length assessments. To address this, the present study examined the internal and external validity of both brief and full egocentric social network assessments and their ability to capture weak social ties. Method: In 405 adults (57.5% female) with alcohol use disorder, a full egocentric social network assessment estimated drinking behavior in the ego's 20 important alters, as well as their perceived closeness and frequency of interaction with their network, and the presence of supportive ties (mutual help organization members or treatment providers). The assessment yielded four social network drinking characteristics: percent drinking endorsement, percent heavy drinking endorsement, drinking frequency, and heavy drinking frequency. Measures from the full 20-alter assessment were compared to measures from the first 5 alters. Results: Associations between brief and full network measures were of large magnitude (rs = .53-.73, p < .0001). Internal psychometric properties of the social network drinking characteristics were robust and similar in both assessments and, in terms of external validity, 13/16 (81.3%) associations of network drinking with the ego's drinking severity were equivalent across both assessments. However, the brief assessment had less representation of mutual help organization members and treatment providers (ps < .01), resulting in a higher percent of alters endorsing drinking (p < .05). No other significant differences were present among other network drinking characteristics. Conclusions: These findings provide support for brief egocentric social network assessments, but also reveal limitations in characterizing potentially important weak social ties, namely the presence of mutual help organization members and treatment providers. Brief or full-length versions may be variably appropriate depending on the research and clinical aims. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

From connections to conservation: Social networks in forest biodiversity management.

A gap in the literature on social determinants of cognitive aging is the lack of focus on the interplay of cognitively stimulating environments across the life course. This study uses a life course perspective to propose and examine potential interaction and mediation effects between early and later life stimulating environments. Using rich cognitive assessments and egocentric network data from the state-representative Person to Person Health Interview Study (N = 685) conducted in Indiana, we find that associations between social bridging network (later life stimulating environments) and cognitive outcomes are strongest for people with less than a high school education (early life stimulating environments), constituting a moderating compensatory leveling effect rather than an added protection effect. Regarding mediation, we find no evidence of a cumulative (dis)advantage effect in the context of cognitive aging. Overall, this study presents a useful theoretical framework to study the interplay of cognitively stimulating environments across the life course.