What is Social Network Theory

The question "what is social network theory?" is a misleading one. Technically, every interaction between more than two sources becomes a sort of social network - which is why social network analysis software can be used for everything from business organizations to contagious disease control. However, in recent years, with the development of Internet phenomena such as Facebook, social network theory (or SNT, as it is abbreviated) has become more and more focused on the many ways that people interrelate and communicate via the various social networking platforms.

So What is Social Network Theory for the Internet?

Basically there are two elements in any social network, online or offline: nodes and ties. Nodes are the elements of the network that "act" - whether they are organizations, small groups, or individuals - and ties are the ways these nodes relate to each other. This could be as minor as an email correspondence or as intimate as a marriage.

The fact that these kinds of ties can vary in intensity and importance is just one of the many variables that can factor into social network theory. Often the analysis of a network will involve dots of varying sizes and colors connected by lines of differing lengths and thicknesses. A social network analyst will usually try changing variables and looking at the connections in various ways to discover hidden correlations and trends within the network itself.

The Power of Connection

One of the defining elements of social network theory that differentiates it from other sociological sciences is the weight it gives to the relationships between the nodes, as opposed to the attributes of the nodes themselves. While this is useful to explain many social phenomena, it is also criticized for making the individual seem less able to shape their own destiny - putting the emphasis on a person's place in the network as opposed to their own attributes. Some have turned this particular idea to their advantage, however. For example, Esther Dyson has posited that her success has less to do with her degree from an Ivy League university and much more to do with the network of contacts she made while she was there.

Applications of Social Network Theory

As with many aspects of the Internet, the primary focus of much social network theory, outside of academia, is on business applications. Companies are obviously social networks made up of internal social networks, and when you add in business-to-business interactions, the complicated web of connection grows exponentially. At the same time, at their smallest level these connections are made from person to person, so companies can leverage interpersonal relationships to corporate advantage. A CEO that has ignored multiple emails and sales pitches might listen to a golfing buddy, for example, and it is that very phenomenon that social network theory tries to quantify and examine. Other elements that become important for theorists include:

Expectations of privacy
Various issues of identities and anonymity
Accumulation and expenditure of social capital
Effects of social networking on teens

The study of social networks has spread beyond the academic papers produced in universities. The Journal for Computer-Mediated Communications published an entire issue dedicated to social networking theoretical studies. New terminology has also come about, such as the term "groundswell," coined by a 2006 Forrester Research Inc. study which refers to any group of people that uses web technology to form peer-to-peer support networks for the purpose of gaining something - from tangible products to the pure exchange of ideas - from others within the network.

Other Focuses of Social Network Theory

Business is not the only area affected by the rise of online social networks. There have been both positive and negative impacts on education, entertainment, and even terrorist attacks through social networking tools. A suicide by a teen was related to a false profile on MySpace, for example, and the terrorists who attacked Mumbai, India in 2008 used social networks to coordinate their violence. Just as social networks have become part of everyday life, the theory behind them is a science as interesting as it is essential.