scholarly journals Identifying Social Network Conditions that Facilitate Sedentary Behavior Change: The Benefit of Being a “Bridge” in a Group-based Intervention

Author(s):  
Sabina B. Gesell ◽  
Kayla de la Haye ◽  
Evan C. Sommer ◽  
Santiago J. Saldana ◽  
Shari L. Barkin ◽  
...  

Using data from one of the first trials to try to leverage social networks as a mechanism for obesity intervention, we examined which social network conditions amplified behavior change. Data were collected as part of a community-based healthy lifestyle intervention in Nashville, USA, between June 2014 and July 2017. Adults randomized to the intervention arm were assigned to a small group of 10 participants that met in person for 12 weekly sessions. Intervention small group social networks were measured three times; sedentary behavior was measured by accelerometry at baseline and 12 months. Multivariate hidden Markov models classified people into distinct social network trajectories over time, based on the structure of the emergent network and where the individual was embedded. A multilevel regression analysis assessed the relationship between network trajectory and sedentary behavior (N = 261). Being a person that connected clusters of intervention participants at any point during the intervention predicted an average reduction of 31.3 min/day of sedentary behavior at 12 months, versus being isolated [95% CI: (−61.4, −1.07), p = 0.04]. Certain social network conditions may make it easier to reduce adult sedentary behavior in group-based interventions. While further research will be necessary to establish causality, the implications for intervention design are discussed.

Author(s):  
Tom Robinson ◽  
Clark Callahan ◽  
Kristoffer Boyle ◽  
Erica Rivera ◽  
Janice K Cho

Virtually seductive qualities of identity sharing, content gratification, and ample social atmosphere have made Facebook the most popular social network, boasting 890 million daily users (“Facebook Reports Fourth Quarter,” 2015; Joinson, 2008; Orchard et al., 2014, Reinecke et al., 2014). Online social network studies largely overlook the individual, limiting the understanding of what exactly drives people to use, abuse, even become dependent on sites like Facebook. Based on the theory of uses and gratifications, Q methodology subjectively observes what draws users to Facebook, focusing specifically on Facebook user characteristics. Past studies neglect the existence of three of the four factor groups discovered in this study, making these effectually new discoveries for academia (Alloway, Runac, Quershi, & Kemp, 2014; Cheung, Chieu & Lee, 2011; Sheldon, 2008, Tosun, 2012; Yang & Brown, 2013). These findings increase understanding of online usage, even addiction, and will help cater future social networks to specific users.


Author(s):  
Jason Gravel ◽  
George E. Tita

Though often not mentioned by name, the importance of social networks in explaining criminal behavior, delinquency, and patterns has long been recognized in the study of crime. Theories that explain criminal behavior at the individual level being learned through the impacts of peer influences presume that the transmission of ideas and influences flow among social ties (networks) that link individuals. Cultural theories of crime work in the same way. At the community level, delinquency and criminal behavior are born among members of a community or group that adhere to a particular cultural set of norms or beliefs. The concentration of crime in particular geographic areas results when there are insufficient ties among local residents to affect informal social control in the area. Impacted neighborhoods are often described as socially isolated, lacking social ties to institutions of power that provide the investment and services needed in a healthy community. The history of the formation and activities of street gangs is a clear example of how understanding the ties among individuals, and between groups of these individuals, matter in our understanding these phenomena. Comprehending social ties among gangs and gang members and employment of social network analysis (SNA) have become mainstays of local law enforcement efforts to address the issue of gang violence. Much of the early criminological work that implicated social networks but did not explicitly acknowledge a network by name, or did not employ SNA on formal network data, did so because collecting such data is difficult at best and sometimes impossible. Though criminology has been a “late adopter” of SNA, the field is making great strides in this area. The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) research program has provided a rich set of network data to explore issues of peer influence. Researchers are using carefully collected social network data at the individual and organizational level to better understand the ability of communities to self-regulate delinquency and crime in an area. Arrest data and field identification stops are being used to generate large networks in an effort to understand how one’s position in a larger social structure might be related to an actor’s involvement in future offending or victimization. As the field of criminology continues to adopt a network perspective in the study of crime, it is important to understand the development of social networks within the field. Critically examining the strengths and weaknesses of network data, especially in terms of the process by which data are generated, can lead to better applications of network analysis in the future.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S678-S679
Author(s):  
Nancy Mendoza ◽  
Christine Fruhauf

Abstract Grandparents raising grandchildren experience multiple challenges as they take on the unexpected role of caring for their grandchildren, which usually occurs under stressful and stigmatizing conditions. Many of the challenges grandparents experience are well documented in the research. Less attention is given to understanding how a grandparent caregiver’s social network changes when s/he becomes a caregiver and how her/his social network influences resilience. Thus, the purpose of this study was to use social network analysis (SNA) to examine the relation between social networks and resilience in grandparents raising their grandchildren. This was done by conducting face-to-face interviews with twenty grandparents raising grandchildren after they completed a survey measuring social support, social isolation, and resilience. The interview protocol included questions related to participants’ social network, social support, and services. Prior to the interviews, using data from the surveys participants were identified as representing one of four resilience quadrants: resilient, maladaptive, competent, and vulnerable. Qualitative analysis of grandparent’s social networks across groups indicated resilient grandparent caregivers’ networks were structured in a way that provided more opportunities for the inflow of new information and resources. Whereas the proportion of professionals in maladaptive grandparent caregivers’ networks tended to be less than for other networks. This could suggest that for grandparent caregivers, having professionals in one’s network can be beneficial. Findings from the current study provide opportunities for future research such as identifying ways to help grandparent caregivers structure their social networks to promote resilience.


2014 ◽  
Vol 114 (9) ◽  
pp. 1477-1498 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafael Curras-Perez ◽  
Carla Ruiz-Mafe ◽  
Silvia Sanz-Blas

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the determinants of social network use behaviour using Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and Uses and Gratifications Theory. Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative study was carried out with data gathered by personal interview using a structured questionnaire. Relationships proposed in the theoretical model were estimated through structural equation models. In total, 811 users of social networks over 14 and residents in Spain were part of the sample. Findings – Results indicate that use attitude and the subjective norm, both TPB variables, directly and significantly influence social network loyalty. Thus, network loyalty can be achieved if the individual shows a favourable attitude towards use and receives positive feed-back (comments, opinions, etc.) from friends, acquaintances and other individuals in their environment. Perceived control has no influence on social network loyalty. Finally, this research highlights the importance of socialisation and entertainment as antecedents of social network attitude. Research limitations/implications – Social network use has been analysed globally and database includes users with very different profiles (e.g. Facebook and Tuenti) what may skew the results. Practical implications – Individuals access social networks to establish social links with friends/family/acquaintances, seeking entertainment and fun, but they are never used to be fashionable or up-to-date. Given the importance of social relations, companies should motivate participation elements in their social networks profiles. Originality/value – The paper presents a model that explains the formation of loyal social network customers, integrating TPB and Uses and Gratifications Theory to enable understanding of the role of these networks in individuals’ lives.


2012 ◽  
Vol 279 (1749) ◽  
pp. 4914-4922 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick J. Royle ◽  
Thomas W. Pike ◽  
Philipp Heeb ◽  
Heinz Richner ◽  
Mathias Kölliker

Social structures such as families emerge as outcomes of behavioural interactions among individuals, and can evolve over time if families with particular types of social structures tend to leave more individuals in subsequent generations. The social behaviour of interacting individuals is typically analysed as a series of multiple dyadic (pair-wise) interactions, rather than a network of interactions among multiple individuals. However, in species where parents feed dependant young, interactions within families nearly always involve more than two individuals simultaneously. Such social networks of interactions at least partly reflect conflicts of interest over the provision of costly parental investment. Consequently, variation in family network structure reflects variation in how conflicts of interest are resolved among family members. Despite its importance in understanding the evolution of emergent properties of social organization such as family life and cooperation, nothing is currently known about how selection acts on the structure of social networks. Here, we show that the social network structure of broods of begging nestling great tits Parus major predicts fitness in families. Although selection at the level of the individual favours large nestlings, selection at the level of the kin-group primarily favours families that resolve conflicts most effectively.


1997 ◽  
Vol 6 (S1) ◽  
pp. 113-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Becker ◽  
Maya Albert ◽  
Matthias C. Angermeyer ◽  
Graham Thornicroft

In a seminal study, Elizabeth Bott (1957) investigated relationships between family roles and social networks in a small group of families in London. The author was an anthropologist, and the field of social network research, in psychiatry, has received major input from methods of social anthropology. Tolsdorf (1976) investigated social networks of patients with schizophrenia. Since then, many studies have focused different aspects of social networks and social support in patients with psychotic disorders.


2013 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
pp. 556-559 ◽  
Author(s):  
DEBORAH R. BASSETT ◽  
LONNIE NELSON ◽  
DOROTHY A. RHOADES ◽  
ELIZABETH M. KRANTZ ◽  
ADAM OMIDPANAH

SummaryUsing data from The National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions, the strength of social networks and the association of self-reported health among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) and non-Hispanic Whites (NHW) were compared. Differences in social network–health relationships between AI/ANs and NHWs were also examined. For both groups, those with fewer network members were more likely to report fair or poor health than those with average or more network members, and persons with the fewest types of relationships had worse self-reported health than those with the average or very diverse types of relationships. Furthermore, small social networks were associated with much worse self-reported health in AI/ANs than in NHWs.


2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-11

This article is a theoretical overview of the main standardized techniques for assessment of the social relations of the individual. The study of these techniques allows professionals to get the basic information about the microsocial environment of people. Theoretical analysis shows that the study of the social network of an individual involves the analysis of its structure, composition and function of its components. Described and analyzed the most common techniques for assessment of human social networks - "Name generator", "Drawing a social network", "Inventory of Social Network" (K. Bartholomew), "Social Networks Inventory " (Treadwell T. and co.), "Social Network Index "( L. Berkman, S. Syme), "Social Network List" (B. Hirsch, J. Stokes). Separately, the method of drawing up clients structured diary and method network card are shown.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 58-69
Author(s):  
Tetyana KHRABAN ◽  
◽  
Igor KHRABAN ◽  

The aimof the article is to identify the specifics of communicative-compensatory processes on social network. Materials & methods. In order to achievethat objective, the general scientific research methods: analysis, classification, observation, description were used. In addition, as part of an integrated sociolinguistic approach, discourse analysis and a quantitative research method were used. Publications posted in the Ukrainian sector of an American online social media and social networking service Facebook served as an input for the research. Results & discussions. The study identified three modes of communicative-compensatory processes, which are arranged in descending order according to their proportions: 1)communicative-compensatory process characterized by a correlation with the defense mechanism “overcompensation”. During this process personal growth and radical transformations of the whole personality occur on the basis of the dialogical mutual affirmation of “I” and “You”. At the linguistic level, such mode is manifested owing to the use of a preferable image (real or illusory) to affirm one’s strength, significance, value, that is, for self-assertion and rising in status; 2)process characterized by a correlation with the defense mechanism “direct compensation” and which shows itself as adaptive in nature and does not contribute to the personal growth. At the linguistic level such mode is manifested in the individual concentrating on his own interests, feelings and needs and orientation on consumption; 3)process characterized by a correlation with the defense mechanism “illusive overcompensation” and which nature is emotional vampirism. At the linguistic level such mode is manifested in the watching out for another person’s imaginary or real flaws with the purpose of emphasizing and exaggerating. Conclusion. A specific feature of communicative-compensatory processes in social networks is that they mainly act as representations of the compensatory functionof autocommunication. The dominant form of compensatory autocommunication in social networks is an internal monologue. The verbal implementation of communicative-compensatory processes in social networks are: 1)posts in which the protest gains the power of critical confrontation and is a synonym for the right to individual free development; 2)posts aimed at humiliation and criticism; 3)posts containing advice, support, comfort to the troubled “I”.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 21-28
Author(s):  
L. G. Akhmaeva

A brief overview of the history of the Internet and social networks in the world and in Russia in particular has been provided. The concepts of social network, user profile and properties inherent in any social network – virtuality, interactivity and multimedia have been сharacterized and revealed. Dynamic data on the state of digital technologies for 2019 in the world and in Russia in particular have been analysed. The history and prospects for further development of social networks have been considered. Statistical data on the number of users of the 9 most popular social networks in Russia, namely: their activity, the amount of time spent on the Internet and in social networks, age and gender specifics and preferences of the technical devices used and types of Internet connection have been adduced. General recommendations to marketers on accurate targeting of ads placed in social networks have been given. To do this, companies should work with groups of users, that are united by a number of parameters, as well as create communities in social networks by companies that convey new information to users. Using data on the age, gender and other attributes of the target audience of social networks, marketers will be able to successfully solve the problems of increasing brand awareness and loyalty, attracting new customers, influencing the search promotion of external resources (sites and communities) containing information about the brand, products and services, and using them as effective tools for attracting potential customers.


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