Social network analysis of spreading and exchanging information on Twitter: the case of an agricultural research and education centre in Mexico

Abstract Objective – This paper aimed to analyze worldwide research on evidence based librarianship (EBL) using Social Network Analysis (SNA). Methods – This descriptive study has been conducted using scientometrics and a SNA approach. The researchers identified 523 publications on EBL, as indexed by Scopus and Web of Science with no date limitation. A range of software tools (Ravar PreMap, Netdraw, UCINet and VOSviewer) were utilized for data visualization and analysis. Results – Results of the study revealed that the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US) occupied the topmost positions regarding centrality measures, clearly indicating their important structural roles in EBL research. The network of EBL research in terms of the degree of connectedness showed low density in the co-authorship networks of both authors (0.013) and countries (0.214). Seven subject clusters were identified in the EBL research network, four of which related to health and medicine. The occurrence of the keywords related to these four subject clusters suggested that EBL research had a greater association with the setting of health and medicine than with traditional librarianship elements such as human resources or library collection management. Conclusion – This study provided a systematic understanding of topics, research, and researchers in EBL by visualizing the networks and may thus inform the development of future aspects of EBL research and education.

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Using social network analysis to evaluate the impacts of the research: on the transition to organic farming in the Camargue

Cahiers Agricultures ◽

10.1051/cagri/2018006 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 27 (1) ◽

pp. 15012 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Sylvain Quiédeville ◽

Dominique Barjolle ◽

Matthias Stolze

Keyword(s):

Social Network ◽

Social Network Analysis ◽

Network Analysis ◽

International Development ◽

Organic Farming ◽

Agricultural Research ◽

Great Influence ◽

Ex Post ◽

Excellent Research

This paper evaluates the relevance of undertaking a Social Network Analysis (SNA) to better understand the role played by the network of actors during innovation processes as well as validate stakeholders’ views on actors’ relationships in a case study on the transition to organic farming in the Camargue territory (South of France). The SNA method is part of a set of methods that forms an approach that was developed to evaluate ex-post the impacts of agronomic research in the framework of the European research project IMPRESA. The analysis particularly confirms, through the indicator of Betweenness, the growing role played by INRA (French National Institute of Agronomic Research) in the network and its contribution to the transition to organic agriculture. This is due in particular to closer relationships between farmers and INRA. The results also indicate a growing role played by CIRAD (Agricultural Research Center for International Development) through the lens of increased relationships with farmers. Additionally, the analysis confirms the great influence of the creation of the firm Biosud in 2003 on the transition to organic farming. SNA proved to be an excellent research tool for confirming stakeholders’ statements about impact pathway, the events described in it, and the intensity of links between events. The reconstruction of the actor network over 5 different periods allows a significant deepening of the analysis. This method could be more largely used in evaluating impacts of research.

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Overcoming Barriers to Agriculture Green Technology Diffusion through Stakeholders in China: A Social Network Analysis

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17196976 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (19) ◽

pp. 6976 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Wenke Wang ◽

Jue Wang ◽

Kebei Liu ◽

Yenchun Jim Wu

Keyword(s):

Social Network ◽

Social Network Analysis ◽

Network Analysis ◽

Technology Diffusion ◽

Agricultural Research ◽

Green Technology ◽

Agricultural Activities ◽

Market Demand ◽

Key Stakeholders ◽

The Government

It is crucial to actively encourage the development of agriculture green technology, which has been regarded as one of the most effective solutions to the environmental degradation caused by agricultural activities. However, agriculture green technology diffusion is indeed a challenging task and still faces numerous barriers. The stakeholders who can potentially deal with these barriers, however, have been overlooked by previous studies. To address these issues, social network analysis was performed to identify critical stakeholders and barriers. Their interactions in agriculture green technology diffusion were analyzed based on the literature, a questionnaire survey and expert judgments. A two-mode network and two one-mode networks were used to analyze the relationships among the identified 12 barriers and 14 stakeholders who can influence these 12 barriers identified. The results show that agricultural research institutes, universities, agribusiness, agencies of township promotion, the government and farmers’ relatives are key stakeholders and that the limited market demand for green technology and the high cost of its diffusion are two main barriers. However, poor green technology operability and farmer families in distress are factors that are not as important as previously perceived. Finally, some recommendations and suggestions are provided to promote agriculture green technology diffusion in China.

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