Evaluation in Network Context

Our aim in this chapter is to have a concise reference to which we can send students and colleagues who are looking for a quick introduction to core ideas on evaluation in a social context. The phenomenon of interest is a person, ego, making an evaluation of alter, where alter can be another person, an idea, an object, or a group (social or corporate). The evaluation is any kind of opinion, varying from positive to negative; liking, disliking, trusting, distrusting, seeking, avoiding, etc. That’s a good idea. That’s a marvellous product. I have the highest trust in her. The channel through which evaluation is expressed can vary from sworn testimony to gossip in social media. Central to this discussion is that ego and alter are surrounded by a social network of individuals relevant to the evaluation.