Imaginary worlds: Using visual network scales to capture perceptions of social networks

Ajay Mehra; Stephen P. Borgatti; Scott Soltis; Theresa Floyd; Daniel S. Halgin; Brandon Ofem; Virginie Lopez-Kidwell

doi:10.1108/S0733-558X(2014)0000040016

Imaginary worlds: Using visual network scales to capture perceptions of social networks

Ajay Mehra, Stephen P. Borgatti, Scott Soltis, Theresa Floyd, Daniel S. Halgin, Brandon Ofem, Virginie Lopez-Kidwell

Management and Marketing

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review

35 Scopus citations

Abstract

Social networks are not just patterns of interaction and sentiment in the real world; they are also cognitive (re)constructions of social relations, some real, some imagined. Focusing on networks as mental entities, our essay describes a new method that relies on stylized network images to gather quantitative data on how people "see" specific aspects of their social worlds. We discuss the logic of our approach, present several examples of "visual network scales," discuss some preliminary findings, and identify some of the problems and prospects in this nascent line of work on the phenomenology of social networks. Keywords: Cognition; cognitive social networks.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	Contemporary Perspectives on Organizational Social Networks
Publisher	JAI Press
Pages	315-336
Number of pages	22
ISBN (Print)	9781783507511
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1108/S0733-558X(2014)0000040016
State	Published - 2014

Publication series

Name	Research in the Sociology of Organizations
Volume	40
ISSN (Print)	0733-558X

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10.1108/S0733-558X(2014)0000040016

Cite this

Mehra, A., Borgatti, S. P., Soltis, S., Floyd, T., Halgin, D. S., Ofem, B., & Lopez-Kidwell, V. (2014). Imaginary worlds: Using visual network scales to capture perceptions of social networks. In Contemporary Perspectives on Organizational Social Networks (pp. 315-336). (Research in the Sociology of Organizations; Vol. 40). JAI Press. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0733-558X(2014)0000040016

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abstract = "Social networks are not just patterns of interaction and sentiment in the real world; they are also cognitive (re)constructions of social relations, some real, some imagined. Focusing on networks as mental entities, our essay describes a new method that relies on stylized network images to gather quantitative data on how people {"}see{"} specific aspects of their social worlds. We discuss the logic of our approach, present several examples of {"}visual network scales,{"} discuss some preliminary findings, and identify some of the problems and prospects in this nascent line of work on the phenomenology of social networks. Keywords: Cognition; cognitive social networks.",

author = "Ajay Mehra and Borgatti, {Stephen P.} and Scott Soltis and Theresa Floyd and Halgin, {Daniel S.} and Brandon Ofem and Virginie Lopez-Kidwell",

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language = "English",

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Mehra, A, Borgatti, SP, Soltis, S, Floyd, T, Halgin, DS, Ofem, B & Lopez-Kidwell, V 2014, Imaginary worlds: Using visual network scales to capture perceptions of social networks. in Contemporary Perspectives on Organizational Social Networks. Research in the Sociology of Organizations, vol. 40, JAI Press, pp. 315-336. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0733-558X(2014)0000040016

Imaginary worlds: Using visual network scales to capture perceptions of social networks. / Mehra, Ajay; Borgatti, Stephen P.; Soltis, Scott et al.
Contemporary Perspectives on Organizational Social Networks. JAI Press, 2014. p. 315-336 (Research in the Sociology of Organizations; Vol. 40).

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review

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AU - Ofem, Brandon

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AB - Social networks are not just patterns of interaction and sentiment in the real world; they are also cognitive (re)constructions of social relations, some real, some imagined. Focusing on networks as mental entities, our essay describes a new method that relies on stylized network images to gather quantitative data on how people "see" specific aspects of their social worlds. We discuss the logic of our approach, present several examples of "visual network scales," discuss some preliminary findings, and identify some of the problems and prospects in this nascent line of work on the phenomenology of social networks. Keywords: Cognition; cognitive social networks.

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BT - Contemporary Perspectives on Organizational Social Networks

PB - JAI Press

ER -

Imaginary worlds: Using visual network scales to capture perceptions of social networks

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