Social Network Analysis Methodology Research Articles

Harvesting connections: the role of stakeholders’ network structure, dynamics and actors’ influence in shaping farmers’ markets

AbstractFarmers’ markets (FMs) represent a crucial player in urban food systems, being the interconnection of local agricultural production and consumption, and serving as spaces for both economic exchange and community building. Despite their transformative potential, there is a scarcity of research that comprehensively investigates the dynamics of FMs network structure and the influence of the actors shaping FMs. The present article delves into the network of relationships within FMs in the Italian city of Bologna. This study adopts the Social Network Analysis (SNA) methodology applied with the Net-Map tool. The research objectives are to visualise the underlying network structure, map the dynamics, and identify the key actors who play pivotal roles in Bologna’s FMs and their level of influence. The research carried out interviews with ten FMs stakeholders, revealing the network of relationships between 54 actors, divided into three categories—civil society, food economy and public administration. Actors were linked by a total of 428 relationships across three types of networks: support, economic, and hindering. Findings indicate a strong support network structure characterised by varying degrees of centrality among different actors. Farmers emerge as a central node due to their pivotal role in providing fresh, local produce. Additionally, local institutions contribute significantly to FMs resilience and growth. Our research demonstrates the importance of recognising the embeddedness of FMs within the local context. By understanding the network structure and influential actors in FMs, policymakers can devise more effective policies for promoting local agriculture, and enhancing the sustainability of urban–rural exchanges. In conclusion, the present study offers valuable insights into the network dynamics of FMs, highlighting their crucial role in the sustainable development of urban and local food systems.

Integration of Dementia Systems in Central America: A Social Network Approach.

Action 3 of the UN Decade of Healthy Ageing plan is to deliver integrated care to improve older adults' lives. Integrated care is vital in meeting the complex needs of people with dementia but little is known about how this is or could be delivered in low and middle income countries (LMIC). This paper provides insights into previously unknown care system structures and on the potential and reality of delivering integrated care in Central America for people with dementia. A social network analysis (SNA) methodology was adopted to engage with providers of services for older adults and families with dementia in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica and Panama. Sixty-eight (68) semi-structured interviews were completed, 57 with organisations and 11 with families. Across the five countries there was evidence of fragmentation and low integration within the dementia care systems. A variety of services and types of providers are present in all five countries, and high levels of diversified connections exist among organisations of differing disciplines. However, unawareness among network members about other members that they could potentially form active links with is a barrier on the path to integration. This innovative and robust study demonstrates SNA can be applied to evaluate LMIC care systems. Findings provide baselines of system structures and insights into where resources are needed to fortify integration strategies. Results suggest that Central American countries have the building blocks in place to develop integrated care systems to meet the needs of people with dementia, but the links across service providers are opportunistic rather than context based coordinated integration policies.

Social network platforms and climate change in China: Evidence from TikTok

The actions and policies enacted by today's youth hold profound implications for future generations, underscoring their pivotal role in advocating for climate issues. Younger cohorts exhibit heightened concern regarding climate change and are highly visible on social media platforms. Hence, this study aims to delineate the portrayal of climate-related news and disasters on TikTok. The research draws upon fifty TikTok accounts focused on climate-related content. Employing social network analysis, PageRank, and Superedge Rank methodologies, this investigation evaluates how TikTok users—called TikTokers—address climate change and its impact on social media. The assessment scrutinizes climate-related news, disasters, and the resultant networks to gauge the influence wielded by social influencers in disseminating messages. Results reveal that among the four key entities—internet influencers, government, scientists, and producers—internet influencers exert the most substantial influence on climate change news dissemination on TikTok, while the government plays an influential role in climate disasters. Like other social media platforms, TikTok is a valuable arena for gauging public sentiment on critical health concerns like global warming. Nonetheless, ensuring the reliability and depth of messages shared on TikTok necessitates the presence of credible experts who can deliver comprehensive and scientifically sound information within the platform's time constraints.

Global Outward Foreign Direct Investment Network: Perspectives for Knowledge Transfer from Host Countries to Home Countries

The possession of diverse knowledge is vital for countries to maintain competitive advantages as new technologies and other disruptive changes emerge. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has become an important instrument to access knowledge and innovation available in other countries with the increasing trend of globalization. However, little is known about how the knowledge base of a country can be enriched in the context of knowledge sourcing through FDI, drawing upon general contexts of knowledge and innovation in countries. By adopting the social network analysis methodology to model and analyze the global outward FDI network for the period 2009–2016 and conducting longitudinal regression analyses, this study reveals that the global outward FDI network has a core–periphery structure, the network centrality position of a country is positively and significantly associated with the knowledge base of the country, and the absorptive capacity of a country positively moderates the association. Equipped with empirical evidence to support our theory, we develop the K-NACK framework to understand the context of knowledge sourcing through FDI.

Global Outward Foreign Direct Investment Network: Perspectives for Knowledge Transfer from Host Countries to Home Countries by MNEs

The possession of diverse knowledge is vital for countries to maintain competitive advantages as new technologies and other disruptive changes emerge. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has become an important instrument to access knowledge and innovation available in other countries with the increasing trend of globalization. However, little is known about how the knowledge base of a country can be enriched in the context of knowledge sourcing through FDI, drawing upon general contexts of knowledge and innovation in countries. By adopting the social network analysis methodology to model and analyze the global outward FDI network for the period 2009–2016 and conducting longitudinal regression analyses, this study reveals that the global outward FDI network has a core–periphery structure, the network centrality position of a country is positively and significantly associated with the knowledge base of the country, and the absorptive capacity of a country positively moderates the association. Equipped with empirical evidence to support our theory, we develop the K-NACK framework to understand the context of knowledge sourcing through FDI. This empirical research article offering novel analysis and a theoretical and conceptual framework will be useful for policymakers at firms and in individual countries to find advanced as well as complementary knowledge from host countries to improve the knowledge base in home countries.

Bibliometric Analysis: Remote Sensing Applied to Urban Permanent Preservation Areas

Objective: To carry out a Bibliometric Analysis to quantify and evaluate academic publications on Permanent Preservation Areas (PPAs) in urban contexts, with an emphasis on the use of Remote Sensing.   Theoretical framework: This work is based on a bibliometric analysis of Permanent Preservation Areas (PPAs) in urban contexts, with an emphasis on the use of Remote Sensing, and their importance in preserving natural resources, highlighting the need to collect accurate and up-to-date data to support technical studies and public policies.   Method: Vosviewer software was used to build bibliometric networks, interactive visualizations and text mining. In addition, the SNA (Social Network Analysis) methodology was applied to examine the relationships between authors, countries and institutions, and VOSviewer was used as the main tool to map and evaluate these connections. Data was collected from the Web of Science database.   Results and conclusion: The results covered 525 publications on PPAs and Remote Sensing, where bibliometric analysis highlighted a significant increase in academic interest from 2055 onwards. Brazil leads in publications in the area, with emphasis on the University of São Paulo (USP) and international collaboration. In addition, authors such as Alexandre Rosa dos Santos and Jose Eduardo Macedo Pazzopone are influential in the field.   Research implications: The research reveals significant trends in academic production on Permanent Preservation Areas (PPAs) and Remote Sensing in urban contexts. Key findings include the remarkable growth in interest in this topic, reflecting a growing environmental awareness. These findings have implications for managers, researchers, professionals and policymakers aiming at environmental preservation and the promotion of collaborative research.   Originality/value: Through the methodology adopted, the study identified emerging trends and highlighted the growing global interest in this theme, reflecting growing environmental awareness and legislative changes. The implications of these findings are significant, not only for researchers, but also for managers, policymakers and practitioners, offering valuable insights for the promotion of more sustainable practices and environmental awareness.

Rural development models in China: The participant’s perspective

This study aims to explore the feasible and sustainable rural development model in China from the perspective of participants. The paper proposed the concept of ‘the community of rural development’: the actors who participate in rural planning, housing and infrastructure construction, industrial development, environmental improvement and social progress, and analysed its evolutionary process from traditional to modern and social network structure characteristics. On this basis, the study proposed six models of rural development in China and selected six typical cases for detailed analysis. These models include village committee-led, peasant organization-led, township enterprise-led, government-led, external enterprise-led and NGO-led. Based on the methodology of social network analysis, the paper designed a simulated routing to analyse the network evolution characteristics of these models and elaborated four output indicators: clustering coefficient, average path length, density and degree centrality of the core actor. The results showed that the internal-actor-led model is superior to the external-actor-led model due to the close inter-relationships among the participants and the strong influence of the core actor. Finally, the paper proposed building partnerships in the community of rural development that are stable and harmonious over the long term and could promote rural development and sustainable renewal in a comprehensive way.

Interaction Map: A Visualization Tool for Personalized Learning Based on Assessment Data

Personalized learning is the shaping of instruction to meet students’ needs to support student learning and improve learning outcomes. While it has received increasing attention in education, limited resources are available to help educators properly leverage assessment data to foster personalized learning. Motivated by this need, we introduce a new visualization tool, the interaction map, to foster personalized learning based on assessment data. The interaction map approach is engineered by the latent space item response model, a recent development in assessment data-leveraging social network analysis methodologies. In the interaction map, students and test items are mapped into a two-dimensional geometric space, in which their distances tell us about the student’s strengths and weaknesses with individual or groups of test items given their overall ability levels. Student profiles can be generated based on these distances to display individual student strengths and weaknesses. Finally, we introduce a user-friendly, free web-based software IntMap in which users can upload their own assessment data and view the customizable interaction map and student profiles based on settings that users can adjust. We illustrate the use of the software with an educational assessment example.

Integrated network analysis on industrial symbiosis: Case study of Qinghai salt lake industrial park

Implementing industrial symbiosis has emerged as a pivotal strategy for establishing eco-industrial parks worldwide to promote sustainable development and optimize resource utilization within industrial parks. However, the present evaluation framework for industrial symbiosis is nascent, which may hinder the ecological development of industrial parks. Therefore, to gauge industrial symbiosis efficacy and infrastructure soundness, we propose a revolutionary evaluation system that amalgamates social network analysis and ecological network analysis methodologies. Our evaluation system is meticulously customized to cater to the distinctive features and analytical requirements of eco-industrial parks and encompasses three primary facets: impact dissemination, sustainability, and resource optimization. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed evaluation system, we conducted a case study of Qinghai Salt Lake industrial park. The findings reveal that the industrial symbiosis level in Qinghai Salt Lake industrial park (QSLIP) improved during 2014–2018. Nevertheless, conventional indicators are unable to pinpoint certain issues, such as deterioration in waste reutilization quality, underscoring the significance and necessity of the indicator system proposed in this study.

Methodological Exploration of Social Value Measurement in Mobile Network Services: Application of Social Network Analysis and System Dynamics Methodology

Methodological Exploration of Social Value Measurement in Mobile Network Services: Application of Social Network Analysis and System Dynamics Methodology

Research on Collaborative Mechanisms of Railway EPC Project Design and Construction from the Perspective of Social Network Analysis

With the promotion of Engineering Procurement Construction mode in railway construction projects, collaborative management between design and construction has faced increasing challenges due to complexities of the participants and the various professional fields involved in railway EPC projects. This paper aims to analyze the issues present in the collaborative management of railway EPC project design and construction. Utilizing the social network analysis methodology combined with the Wuli–Shili–Renli (WSR) system methodology, a network model was established to explore relationships between design and construction management. This study investigates network-influencing factors and proposes targeted measures to enhance project management efficiency. The findings indicate that coordination and communication mechanisms, organization building, interface management systems and design management systems represent core network elements that significantly impact railway EPC collaborative management. These elements are closely related to other network factors. The research not only advances design and construction coordination theory, but it also introduces new ideas for engineering practice.

Understanding digital services in GVCs: An extended gravity model through the lens of network analysis

AbstractCountries are increasingly incorporating foreign digital services in their exports, creating new and complex interdependencies between economies, which suggests a new channel for the expansion of global value chains (GVCs). To better understand how these new and complex interdependencies are evolving, we apply a novel methodological framework. First, using social network analysis methodology, we calculate several indicators that capture these complex network interdependencies. Second, we include these indicators in the second stage of a two‐step gravity model that explains (in the first step) dyadic trade flows of embodied digital services. Our motivation for this two‐stage approach is to avoid difficulties that traditional gravity models have in incorporating complex network interdependencies. Our empirical results suggest statistically significant effects of such interdependencies in the embodied digital services trade flows.

Analysis of weighted network centrality for cold chain commodities in international air cargo under the COVID-19 pandemic

Air Cargo plays a key role under the global supply chain crisis brought about by COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to analyze empirically the transport patterns and correlations of key commodities of cold chain in air cargo. We analyzed air cargo O-D data by weight for key commodities including pharmaceutical and coolchain products for top 100 airports in the last 10 years. We analyzed weighted centralities for key cold chain commodities traffic using social network analysis methodology. Whereas previous studies focused on unweighted centrality metrics, this study covered weighted centrality metrics, which represent more accurate empirical situation. The international air cargo networks for cold chain are significantly improved after COVID-19. Comparative analysis of cold chain traffic trends for top 10 international air cargo airports was also performed. The role of top 10 airports in the performance of air cargo transportation was found to be more important, especially in COVID-19 period.

EY and KPMG Merger: How Strong Are Relationships Among Board Members and Their Audit Partners? A Network Perspective

This study investigates the avenue of outcomes that followed up the process of joining the operations between two audit firms in Denmark—Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG) and Ernst & Young (EY)—in 2014, under the EY label. In this research, we study clients’ behavior to audit staff defection in the auditor selection context to identify the impact of the change that occurred in the market for audit services on engagement partner selections. Company behaviors to the newly formed situation are examined against the tendency toward each of the following three behavioral patterns: (a) staying with the same audit firm, (b) following the engagement partner’s switch to another audit firm, and (c) selecting a third auditor. Utilizing the cutting-edge methodology for social network analysis called exponential random graph models (ERGMs), we study the relevant reactions in the period from 2012 to 2017. Results show that, at the audit firm level, earlier KPMG clients preferred to stay with the newly established KPMG. On the contrary, at the audit partner level, former KPMG clients had a strong tendency to follow their incumbent partners who had decided to switch to EY. Finally, those KPMG clients that decided to rotate audit firms did not commit this rotation to follow their incumbent partners.

NETWORK STRUCTURE FOR THE MOBILITY OF BOVINES PRODUCED IN THE STATE OF CHIHUAHUA, MEXICO, 2010–2019

The Social Network Analysis (SNA) is a tool for studying the structure and importance of livestock markets and their elements. The aim of the investigation was to analyze the network structure for the mobility of bovines produced in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico, between the 2010–2019 period. The Social Network Analysis methodology was used, with centrality measures at origin and destination centers taken into account. In the 2010–2019 period, the structure of bovine livestock mobility was determined by 67 centers of origin (producers) and 32 destination centers (consumers). Producers mobilized 10 012 227 heads with the intentions of exporting calves for fattening (39.2 %), pasturing (26.6 %), fattening (13.9 %), slaughtering (13.5 %) and auctioning, breeding stock, and events (6.7 %). These seven products, which comprised three destination markets: export, national, and local, determined the structure and mobility of bovine livestock. The main center of origin was the municipal area of Chihuahua, whereas the main destinations were the USA and the municipal area of Chihuahua, which are therefore considered the main elements of the network and key nodes of the dynamism of bovine livestock in the state. It was also possible to confirm that the export of calves for fattening was the main purpose of cattle mobility for the state of Chihuahua.

Contacts on LinkedIn: equity crowdfunding platforms' networks and creators' innovation performance

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore whether and how the innovation performance of start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that collect funds using equity crowdfunding (EC), i.e. creators (or proponents), and the EC performance are influenced by the social media networks (SMNs) in which EC platforms' managers and firms exchange their ideas with investors and customers.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical analysis is conducted on a sample composed by all the creators that collected funds in EC platforms over the three-year period 2018–2020. For each creator, the innovation performance is computed as the percentage of sales from new or significantly improved product and services compared to total sales of firm. For each campaign, the EC performance is considered as the ratio between the total amount of funding raised at the end of the campaign and the target capital for the campaign. To investigate EC platform social media activity, LinkedIn profiles of EC platforms managers are analyzed using the social network analysis (SNA) methodology, which permits to observe the quantity and the quality of managers' interactions with other users. A regression analysis is thus performed to observe the relationship between managers' LinkedIn activities, EC performance and creators' innovation performance.FindingsData reveal that EC platforms managers display different activities in networking, with some individuals more active than others and more oriented to interact with business profiles rather than personal ones. The variables related to managers' LinkedIn activities are shown to impact both on the EC performance and on the ability of creators to innovate, suggesting the existence of a link between creators, EC platforms and the activity of the subject who manages it.Originality/valueThe present study is the first to examine the link between the ability of creators to innovate and SMNs, focusing on the social links of platforms managers and considering the LinkedIn social media; moreover, the analysis is conducted analyzing the quality of the interactions in addition to their number. The study is original also in that rather than focusing on specific EC platforms it considers all those purposefully authorized by the Italian financial market supervisory authority over a three-year time span. From a managerial point of view, the observation of the relevance of social networks by personnel with specific professional skills reveals it can be a successful driver for operators in the sector, not only to safeguard their reputation, but to stimulate the processes of co-creation of value that is essential in the crowdfunding market.

Social Networks as Social Capital for Volunteering With Syrian Refugees in Slemani City, Kurdistan Region, Iraq

This article argues that both direct and indirect social networks between volunteers had become social capital for them to help the Syrian refugees in Slemani City, Kurdistan region, Iraq. This argument is based on a recent study that had applied a combination of social network, structural hole and social capital theories, and social network analysis methodology, namely ego network analysis. The research objectives were to uncover the nature of social networks that had generated social capital through analyzing the structure of social networks between the volunteers (i.e., who is linked to who) and the type of their social networks. Data were collected through semi structured interviews and network-based survey from a purposive sampling of 20 volunteers in a non-governmental organization (NGO) selected for the study. Findings revealed the structure of social networks as established by a type of social network known as friendship ties between the volunteers. The volunteers’ social networks had also generated social capital for them because the networks had added value. Hence, the networks provided the volunteers benefits, namely task, informational, and social support benefits. Specifically, the volunteers obtained task benefits by assisting one another in building and renovating, maintaining good hygiene and tool services in the refugees’ shelters and distributing non-food items. Informational benefits were in terms of cooperating and advice giving and getting information to assess the refugees’ family situations and conduct seminars and campaigns for the refugees. The volunteers also received social support benefits through social gatherings. These findings imply the need for the Kurdistan government and NGOs to emphasize social networks and social capital to motivate volunteers.

QUAL A POSIÇÃO DAS MULHERES NA REDE DE BOARD INTERLOCKING DO BRASIL? UMA ANÁLISE PARA O PERÍODO DE 1997 A 2015

ABSTRACT Until recently, the companies’ boards of directors have shown a strong male predominance, while controversial results regarding the insertion of women in these bodies have prevailed. Given this context, this research aimed to investigate the evolution of women’s participation in the boards of directors of Brazilian companies listed on B3 and the position of these directors in the corporate board interlock network, between 1997 and 2015. To understand this phenomenon, the Social Network Analysis (SNA) methodology was adopted and several indicators were. The results indicate that women’s participations have increased top management positions of the Brazilian corporate environment and women have begun to integrate the boards of directors, a scenario still far from the reality observed in developed countries. Nonetheless, by analyzing the members connected in the corporate network, we have concluded that women reach high proximity, since they have a high degree of centrality in the network, but they also lack the potential for intermediation. Such results signal the need to increase gender diversity at the top level of companies, which could raise the quality of debate on boards of directors and improve levels of corporate governance.

Slowbalisation or a “New” type of GVC participation? The role of digital services

This paper investigates the role of digital services in the dynamics observed in global value chains (GVCs) from 1995 to 2018. Despite the context of a deceleration in globalisation, we observe how countries’ exports are increasingly incorporating foreign digital services, suggesting that a new channel, digitally driven, for globalization and GVC participation is emerging. Using trade in value added data and Social Network Analysis (SNA) methodology, we map the network of these digital services flows linked to GVCs and analyse its characteristics and evolution for the period 1995–2018. Moreover, we identify the leading economies in those networks from the point of view of both source and destination countries. New actors such as China, India and Israel arise, sharing with the USA, Germany, and the UK the leadership as global providers of intermediate digital sectors. Small European economies and Singapore show the highest dependence on foreign digital sectors to be incorporated in their exports.

Connecting for Care: a protocol for a mixed-method social network analysis to advance knowledge translation in the field of child development and rehabilitation

BackgroundConnections between individuals and organizations can impact knowledge translation (KT). This finding has led to growing interest in the study of social networks as drivers of KT. Social networks are formed by the patterns of relationships or connections generated through interactions. These connections can be studied using social network analysis (SNA) methodologies. The relatively small yet diverse community in the field of child development and rehabilitation (CD&R) in Canada offers an ideal case study for applying SNA. The purposes of this work are to (1) quantify and map the structure of Canadian CD&R KT networks among four groups: families, health care providers, KT support personnel, and researchers; (2) explore participant perspectives of the network structure and of KT barriers and facilitators within it; and (3) generate recommendations to improve KT capacity within and between groups. Aligning with the principles of integrated KT, we have assembled a national team whose members contribute throughout the research and KT process, with representation from the four participant groups.MethodsA sequential, explanatory mixed-method study, within the bounds of a national case study in the field of CD&R. Objective 1: A national SNA survey of family members with advocacy/partnership experience, health care providers, KT support personnel, and researchers, paired with an anonymous survey for family member without partnership experience, will gather data to describe the KT networks within and between groups and identify barriers and facilitators of network connections. Objective 2: Purposive sampling from Phase 1 will identify semi-structured interview participants with whom to examine conventional and network-driven KT barriers, facilitators, and mitigating strategies. Objective 3: Intervention mapping and a Delphi process will generate recommendations for network and conventional interventions to strengthen the network and facilitate KT.DiscussionThis study will integrate network and KT theory in mapping the structure of the CD&R KT network, enhance our understanding of conventional and network-focused KT barriers and facilitators, and provide recommendations to strengthen KT networks. Recommendations can be applied and tested within the field of CD&R to improve KT, with the aim of ensuring children achieve the best health outcomes possible through timely access to effective healthcare.