Exploring Kadushin’s Ten Master Ideas of Social Networks (Part 2 of 2)

Continuing from where I left off last week, below are the final five ideas (of Kadushin’s Ten Master Ideas of Social Networks) and how I have experienced each one over the past semester.

6. Position – This term refers to the degree (number of nominations received by a person in a social unit), as well as betweenness (the extent to which a person acts as a gateway between different networks). LinkedIn has allowed my students to access the expertise of professionals in the graphic communications industry who I am connected with because of the nature of my role as Internship Coordinator. LinkedIn has also allowed my students to connect with professionals outside of Ontario because of my growing network in Alberta, broadening geographical reach for my students. This is a really exciting part of my job that I enjoy – acting as the go-between to connect students with professionals who are a great fit for one another.

Bridging the gap between students and industry via LinkedIn connections.

7. Organizational Authority – Formal hierarchical structures exist most commonly in organizational or business networks (CEO > Departmental Managers > Line Employees). Informal hierarchical structures are more commonly experienced in online networks. For me, this is exemplified on LinkedIn, whereby thought leaders emerge based on discussions within Groups. I belong to a few industry-specific Groups and those who contribute often with thoughtful responses gain authority and thought-leadership among their colleagues.

Here’s an example of a LinkedIn Group I belong to in the graphic communications industry.

 

8. Small World – “It’s a small world after all!” The idea that the world is a small place and we’re all connected to one another by only a few steps is pretty amazing. The Oracle of Bacon is a fantastic example of how the small world theory works in the circle of acting (it’s definitely worth a look if you haven’t seen it!). Facebook best exemplifies the small world theory for me as I have a number of friends living on different continents around the world, who are connected to individuals I know in Toronto (Mutual Friends). It’s amazing to discover that someone you met on a trip is a cousin of a friend’s friend in your hometown!

My friend Eden lives in Singapore and we have lots of mutual connections!

 

9. Diffusion – This concept is “at the heart” of social networks because the very nature of these networks ensure that they flow between one another. Examples of areas of diffusion include ideas, opinions, and friendship. Twitter is where this happens on a frequent basis, especially when it comes to the free flow of ideas and opinions between MACT classmates!

Class ideas and opinions flowing on Twitter – searchable through the #COMM506 hashtag.

10. Social Capital – This is the final concept that looks at the overall consequences (typically positive) of social networks. A large breadth and depth of social connections means that someone has greater social capital then an individual with fewer connections. As I continue to reach out and connect, my professional networks are becoming richer and denser every day. I recently wrote about joining Klout to better understand my social capital. In the last month, my Klout score has increased 9 points to 51 from 42, primarily because I connected more social networks to the site above and beyond my Twitter account.

My Klout score is now 51!

Thank you, Charles Kadushin, for neatly summarizing your work into the Ten Master Ideas of Social Networks! Your work has helped me better understand the networking theory and how it relates to my own networks.

 

 

Kadushin, C. (2011). Understanding social networks : Theories, concepts, and findings / Charles Kadushin. New York : Oxford University Press.

 

 

All About Klout & Identifying Influencers

All About Klout

Klout is a website that I knew very little about until a few hours ago. The site aggregates social networking analytics of a user and provides them with a score of anywhere between 1-100, which quantifies their social influence online. Users can connect many of their social media accounts Klout (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+ and Foursquare) to be given a more accurate Klout score. Klout measures users’ impact online within a 90 day window.

I just recently registered with Klout because (I must admit) I was interested to see my Klout score. I have been much more active on Twitter and Instagram over the last seven weeks of this semester because I am actively working to build my online professional network. The average Klout score is 40. Mine is 42. Shoot. (More on the significance of this number in a minute.)

Furthermore, I wasn’t sure what to think of the overall Klout concept but the site provides a lot of added value to users that I wasn’t expecting. For example, once you register with Klout (by signing in either through Facebook or Twitter), Klout assigns you your score, but also provides tools to help increase your online social influence score. There are three tabs on the right-hand side: Create, Schedule and Measure. Klout tries to determine the type of content you typically share online and then provides relevant news items that you can share right from the Klout site. If you don’t want to bombard your followers with too much info at once, you can also choose to schedule the tweet or post in order to publish it at a specific date and time (much like other social media manager sites like HootSuite). Finally, Klout tracks your online social influence progress (sharing content and interacting with others via your social networks) and provides real time data as to how your social influence is changing within a 90 day window.

I am impressed, Klout. You provide me with important and timely analytics, as well as making it easier for me to increase my score!

Identifying Influencers

For me, Klout is an interesting concept because it has historically been quite difficult to quantify who opinion leaders and influencers are within personal and professional networks. Understanding who influences change is very difficult to do without the hard data that the Internet can provide.

At its core, influence is a transaction; it’s an attempt to persuade an individual or group of individuals who are seeking answers to problem. Kadushin reiterates Burt’s (1999, p.51) ideas regarding opinion leaders: “Opinion leaders are more precisely opinion brokers who carry information across the social boundaries between groups. They are not people at the top of things so much as people at the edge of things, not leaders within groups so much as brokers between groups” (Kadushin, 2011, loc 3049).

Understanding how you fit into the world of online influence and to what extent you are an opinion leader (through simple to use and free services like Klout) helps improve the impact you’re making online within your social networks. My score is 42 (not terribly impressive), but it provides me with a starting point from which to grow. I plan to check back with Klout over the next several weeks to see if and how my Klout score changes.

Kadushin, C. (2011). Understanding social networks : Theories, concepts, and findings / Charles Kadushin. New York : Oxford University Press.