Social network analysis has provided important insight into many population processes in wild animals. Constructing social networks requires quantifying the relationship between each pair of ...individuals in the population. Researchers often use association indices to convert observations into a measure of propensity for individuals to be seen together. At its simplest, this measure is just the probability of observing both individuals together given that one has been seen (the simple ratio index). However, this probability becomes more challenging to calculate if the detection rate for individuals is imperfect. We first evaluate the performance of existing association indices at estimating true association rates under scenarios where (1) only a proportion of all groups are observed (group location errors), (2) not all individuals are observed despite being present (individual location errors), and (3) a combination of the two. Commonly used methods aimed at dealing with incomplete observations perform poorly because they are based on arbitrary observation probabilities. We therefore derive complete indices that can be calibrated for the different types of incomplete observations to generate accurate estimates of association rates. These are provided in an R package that readily interfaces with existing routines. We conclude that using calibration data is an important step when constructing animal social networks, and that in their absence, researchers should use a simple estimator and explicitly consider the impact of this on their findings.
•Association indices are widely used to describe relationships between individuals.•Indices include built-in assumptions about how animals are observed.•These assumptions are rarely considered in studies of animal social networks.•We outline limitations and provide new indices that accurately correct for biases.
Dozens of studies in different nations have revealed that socioeconomic status only weakly predicts an individual's subjective well-being (SWB). These results imply that although the pursuit of ...social status is a fundamental human motivation, achieving high status has little impact on one's SWB. However, we propose that sociometric status—the respect and admiration one has in face-to-face groups (e.g., among friends or coworkers)—has a stronger effect on SWB than does socioeconomic status. Using correlational, experimental, and longitudinal methodologies, four studies found consistent evidence for a local-ladder effect: Sociometric status significantly predicted satisfaction with life and the experience of positive and negative emotions. Longitudinally, as sociometric status rose or fell, SWB rose or fell accordingly. Furthermore, these effects were driven by feelings of power and social acceptance. Overall, individuals' sociometric status matters more to their SWB than does their socioeconomic status.
THE SOCIAL CONSEQUENCES OF VOICE McCLEAN, ELIZABETH J.; MARTIN, SEAN R.; EMICH, KYLE J. ...
Academy of Management journal,
10/2018, Volume:
61, Issue:
5
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
This paper explores the impact of two types of voice and gender on peer-rated social status and subsequent leader emergence. Across two studies—a three-wave field study and an experiment—we find that ...speaking up promotively, but not prohibitively, is positively and indirectly related to leader emergence via status, and that this relationship is conditional on the gender of the speaker. Specifically, men who spoke up promotively benefited the most in terms of status and leader emergence, not only compared to men who spoke up prohibitively, but also compared to women who spoke up promotively. This research extends our understanding of the outcomes of voice by articulating how it impacts one’s place in his or her group’s social structure, and ultimately whether he or she is seen as a leader. We also add to our understanding of leader emergence by suggesting that talking a lot or participating at a high level in a group may not be enough to emerge as a leader—it also depends how you do it and who you are.
Values: Reviving a Dormant Concept Hitlin, Steven; Piliavin, Jane Allyn
Annual review of sociology,
01/2004, Volume:
30, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Over the past decades, the concept of values has gone in and out of fashion within sociology. Relatively recent advances in both the conceptualization and measurement of values offer the potential ...for a reincorporation of values into sociological work. Sociologists often employ cursory understandings of values, imbuing values with too much determinism or viewing them as too individually subjective. The concept is employed sporadically in sociological subdisciplines. This review maps out the contours of the various approaches to linking values with culture, social structure, and individual behavior. We discuss theoretical and empirical approaches to values, organizing the broad literature to address three questions: (a) What are values? (b) Where do values come from? and (c) What do values do? We identify important research findings and suggest areas for future inquiry.
Income Inequality and Happiness Oishi, Shigehiro; Kesebir, Selin; Diener, Ed
Psychological science,
09/2011, Volume:
22, Issue:
9
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Using General Social Survey data from 1972 to 2008, we found that Americans were on average happier in the years with less national income inequality than in the years with more national income ...inequality. We further demonstrated that this inverse relation between income inequality and happiness was explained by perceived fairness and general trust. That is, Americans trusted other people less and perceived other people to be less fair in the years with more national income inequality than in the years with less national income inequality. The negative association between income inequality and happiness held for lower-income respondents, but not for higher-income respondents. Most important, we found that the negative link between income inequality and the happiness of lower-income respondents was explained not by lower household income, but by perceived unfairness and lack of trust.
What is social structure, and how does it influence the views and behaviors of land managers? In this paper, we unpack the term “social structure” in the context of current research on institutions, ...social networks, and their role(s) in resource management. We identify two different kinds of structure, formal and informal, and explore how these link to views of land management and management practice. Formal structures refer to intentionally designed organizations that arise out of larger institutional arrangements; informal ones refer to social networks, based on the communication contacts individuals possess. Our findings show significant correlations between respondents' views regarding land management and their social networks; it is these informal structures that have greater influence on what stakeholders perceive. These findings suggest that stakeholders are less influenced by their particular organizational affiliation or category (e.g., “conservationist” versus “farmer”), and more by whom they speak with on a regular basis regarding land management. We conclude with a discussion on the practical implications for resource managers wishing to “design” participatory management, arguing that, if "diversity" is the goal in designing such participatory processes, then diversity needs to translate beyond stakeholder categories to include consideration for the personal, social networks surrounding stakeholders.
This article draws on the conceptual link between power and causality to develop an account of the relational, discursive, and performative dimensions of power. Each proposed dimension of power is ...grounded in a different understanding of social causes: relationalrealist, discursive-hermeneutic, and performative-pragmatic. For the purposes of empirical analysis, this dimensional schema crosscuts the classic sources of power typology developed by Michael Mann and others, thus rendering the conceptual apparatus for pursuing sociological research on power more complex and explanatorily effective. The schema is illustrated by an example from comparative-historical sociology: explaining the storming of the Bastille and its effects. A series of research questions for investigating the relative autonomy of performative power is proposed. Finally, the current schema is situated vis-avis classic sociological theories of power, including the arguments of Steven Lukes, Michel Foucault, and Pierre Bourdieu, among others.
Epigenetics is a burgeoning area of biomedicai research into the mechanisms by which genes are regulated—how the activity of producing proteins is controlled. Although molecular epigenetic research ...is highly biochemical, it is of interest to sociologists because some epigenetic changes are environmentally mediated and can persist across the life span or into further generations. Environmental epigenetic research tracks mechanisms by which social forces—from pollution to nutrition to mothering to traumatic experience—become molecularly embodied, affect gene expression, and induce durable changes in behavior and health. We begin with an introduction to the science of environmental epigenetics focused on articulating the logic of experimentation and explanation in this field. Turning to sociologists' key interests, we review the growing literature on epigenetics of socioeconomic status. Finally, we consider how epigenetics offers opportunities and challenges for sociological research on both empirical and theoretical grounds.
Two dimensions persist in social cognition when people are making sense of individuals or groups. The stereotype content model (SCM) terms these two basic dimensions perceived warmth ...(trustworthiness, friendliness) and competence (capability, assertiveness). Measured reliably and validly, these Big Two dimensions converge across survey, cultural, laboratory, and biobehavioral approaches. Generality across place, levels, and time further support the framework. Similar dimensions have emerged repeatedly over the history of psychology and in current theories. The SCM proposes and tests a comprehensive causal theory: Perceived social structure (cooperation, status) predicts stereotypes (warmth, competence), which in turn predict emotional prejudices (pride, pity, contempt, envy), and finally, the emotions predict discrimination (active and passive help and harm). The SCM uncovers systematic content and dynamics of stereotypes, which has practical implications.
This review highlights one stream of work within the social network field, namely the work on cognitive social structures (CSS). First, CSS research is positioned within the field of social networks, ...and the key methods associated with CSS research are described. Research examining systematic biases in individuals' perceptions of social networks is covered, as is research examining the consequences of biased network perceptions (in terms of behaviors and outcomes). A research agenda is forwarded, suggesting three key directions for future research: the social capital of cognitive ties, extending and challenging network accuracy as a source of advantage and collective agency and organizational change. The overall goal is to invigorate research that moves beyond the description of cognitive social structures to an outcome-focused research paradigm.
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