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UC SAN DIEGO CENTER ON GENDER EQUITY AND HEALTH
Using social network analysis to understand social norms
Background
Social norms refer to attitudes and behaviors that are not only prevalent in a society but are also socially dependent1. Social
network studies offer invaluable insights into norms by demonstrating how the attitudes and behaviors of socially connected
individuals are correlated2, including those specific to gender equity, maternal, child and reproductive health3.
Figure 1. The social ecological model is a framework for
understanding the reciprocal relationship between
individuals and the social contexts within which they are
nested. Social network analysis is an essential part of
understanding many of these dynamics.
Figure 2. Each square or circle represents an individual and
the lines represent social ties. Networks are typically
comprised of many individuals with many ties. This allows
researchers to understand the structure of the social context
and the relationships and characteristics of the individuals
within it.
Social network
Definition: A web of social relationships and their corresponding
properties
 Structural properties of the network
 Individual position within the network
 Social influence from person to person
Instrumental for helping to:
 Identify sources of social inequity
 Uncover possible pathways for social change
 Understanding barriers to change
 The connectedness of a network can provide insights
into the mechanisms of social norms
 Identify the strongholds of social norms
Figure 3. Depending on the question asked, networks can
represent very different types of relationships, with
implications for intervention strategies. Here women are
represented by circles and men are represented by squares4.
References
1.)
2.)
3.)
4.)
Bicchieri C, Muldoon R. Social Norms. In: Zalta EN, ed. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Spring 2011 ed. Stanford CA: The Metaphysics Research Lab 2011.
Multiple sources
Kohler HP, Behrman JR, Watkins SC. The density of social networks and fertility decisions: Evidence from South Nyanza District, Kenya. Demography 2001; 38(1): 43-58
Shakya H.B, Christakis N.A., & Fowler J.H. ( 2014) An exploratory comparison of name generator content: data from rural India. Social Networks, 48 (2017) 157-168.
doi.org/10.1016/j.socnet.2016.08.008
UC SAN DIEGO CENTER ON GENDER EQUITY AND HEALTH
Interesting findings from Center Social Networks research
Figure 1a: This figure shows the network of adolescent girls
from a US school. The larger the node, the greater the
behavioral risk factors for sexual violence. The clustering of
those nodes provides structural evidence of risk
environments in which sexual violence is more likely.
Figure 2b. This shows clusters of socially connected people within
one Indian village. Square nodes own toilets; round nodes do
not. Note the different distribution of toilet ownership within
each group. This suggests that the village is not necessarily the
best social unit to target for interventions, but that
understanding the context within the village can be vital.
Figure 3c shows one village in Honduras network from 2 perspectives. The left panel depicts all ties from a randomly selected group of
individuals. Note that intimate partner violence (IPV) acceptance is clustered among socially connected individuals and that IPV is generally
more accepted on the periphery of the network. The right panel depicts only within household ties from the same randomly selected group.
Note the strong clustering of IPV norms at the household level.
a
Shakya HB, Fariss C, Ojeda C, Raj A, Reed L.Social network clustering of sexual violence experienced by adolescent girls. (revise and resubmit: American Journal of Epidemiology
Shakya HB, Christakis NA, Fowler JH. (2014) Social network communities are associated with health behavior: an observational sociocentric network study of latrine ownership in rural India. American
Journal of Public Health. 2014; 104(5)930-937.
c
Shakya HB, Hughes DA, Stafford DK, Christakis NA, Fowler JH, Silverman JG. (2016) Intimate partner violence norms cluster within households: an observational social network study in rural Honduras.
BMC Public Health. PMCID: PMC4782313. doi: 10.1186/s12889-016-28934
b