Hogan Bernie, Janulis Patrick, Phillips Gregory Lee, Melville Joshua, Mustanski Brian, Contractor Noshir, Birkett Michelle
University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
Netw Sci (Camb Univ Press). 2020 Jun;8(2):204-222. doi: 10.1017/nws.2019.27. Epub 2019 Nov 4.
This paper examines the stability of egocentric networks as reported over time using a novel touchscreen-based participant-aided sociogram. Past work has noted the instability of nominated network alters, with a large proportion leaving and reappearing between interview observations. To explain this instability of networks over time, researchers often look to structural embeddedness, namely the notion that alters are connected to other alters within egocentric networks. Recent research has also asked whether the interview situation itself may play a role in conditioning respondents to what might be the appropriate size and shape of a social network, and thereby which alters ought to be nominated or not. We report on change in these networks across three waves and assess whether this change appears to be the result of natural churn in the network or whether changes might be the result of factors in the interview itself, particularly anchoring and motivated underreporting. Our results indicate little change in average network size across waves, particularly for indirect tie nominations. Slight, significant changes were noted between waves one and two particularly among those with the largest networks. Almost no significant differences were observed between waves two and three, either in terms of network size, composition, or density. Data come from three waves of a Chicago-based panel study of young men who have sex with men.
本文使用一种基于触摸屏的新型参与者辅助社会关系图，研究了随时间报告的自我中心网络的稳定性。过去的研究指出，被提名的网络成员具有不稳定性，很大一部分在访谈观察期间离开并再次出现。为了解释网络随时间的这种不稳定性，研究人员通常会考虑结构嵌入性，即网络成员与自我中心网络中的其他成员相连的概念。最近的研究还探讨了访谈情境本身是否可能在引导受访者认识社交网络的适当规模和形状方面发挥作用，从而影响哪些成员应该被提名。我们报告了这些网络在三个阶段的变化情况，并评估这种变化似乎是网络自然变动的结果，还是可能是访谈本身的因素导致的，特别是锚定效应和动机性少报。我们的结果表明，各阶段的平均网络规模变化不大，尤其是间接关系提名。在第一阶段和第二阶段之间，特别是在那些拥有最大网络的人群中，出现了轻微但显著的变化。在第二阶段和第三阶段之间，无论是在网络规模、组成还是密度方面，几乎都没有观察到显著差异。数据来自对芝加哥男男性行为者的一项三阶段小组研究。
