SOC 1001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Embeddedness, Balance Theory, Stanley Milgram
Document Summary
Early work on social networks was influenced by electrical engineering diagrams but instead of flows of current, sociologists were interested in flows of influence across social actors. Social network: a set of social units held together by ties between them. Social relations (cid:883)o(cid:325) ties, (cid:907)a(cid:325)cs(cid:908)(cid:884): the co(cid:290)(cid:290)ectio(cid:290) bet(cid:363)ee(cid:290) t(cid:363)o u(cid:290)its i(cid:290) a social relationship. Si(cid:289)plest (cid:325)elatio(cid:290)ship is (cid:907)k(cid:290)o(cid:363)i(cid:290)g so(cid:289)eo(cid:290)e(cid:908), but could be a(cid:290)(cid:369) social co(cid:290)(cid:290)ectio(cid:290) Social units (cid:883)(cid:907)(cid:290)odes(cid:908), (cid:907)(cid:362)e(cid:325)tices(cid:908)(cid:884): usuall(cid:369) (cid:363)e a(cid:325)e i(cid:290)te(cid:325)ested i(cid:290) people, but ca(cid:290) be a(cid:290)(cid:369) social entity. Can treat these as two separate ties or just one tie. Love, like, hate, phone calls, dates which go both ways, simultaneous. Flow one way but not the other. Often helps to see these as vertical/hierarchical/power differentials. Relations like honor and deference flow up, authority and commands flow down. Units and relations can take many forms. Could be cities tied by trade relations. Could be organizations, tied by common members. Could be nations, tied by immigration flows.
