Emergence and resilience of social networks: a general theoretical framework

ABSTRACT. – The paper first introduces a general dynamic setup that embodies abstract formulations of the following two forces: (a) homophily, i.e. the idea that networking is favored by similarity in behavior; (b) conformity, i.e. the pressure towards similar behavior induced by interaction. This general framework is then specialized into three alternative directions, corresponding to different specific manifestations of those two forces. For each such particularization of the general model, we find that (i) sharp transitions, (ii) hysteresis, and (iii) equilibrium multiplicity are salient characteristics of the long-run social dynamics. Since features (i)-(iii) are often reported for a variety of social (network) phenomena where (a)-(b) play an important role, we sugget that the former may indeed be the result of some common mechanism at work that relies on the interplay of the latter.