Granovetter 1973 - The Strength of Weak Ties

Google Scholar Link

Granovetter, M. S. (1973). The strength of weak ties. American journal of sociology, 78(6), 1360-1380.

Summary

Ties between individuals are characterized by their strength, which is a mix of the length of the relationship, the emotional intensity, the intimacy (mutual confiding), and reciprocity. In dyads, significant overlap in social networks result in strong relationships. Friends of friends can be strong ties, but they can also be weak ties. Weak ties connect individuals who might otherwise be connected only via another person. Logically, in a person’s network, there are more weak ties than strong ties. Different groups are more likely to be linked by weak ties than small ties. Information that can be passed through weak ties will have a larger spread than information that is shared only through strong ties (a process called diffusion). Innovation adoption can also be modeled this way. Early adopters generally have less social ties (“marginal” individuals as opposed to “central”), and therefore less social pressure, allowing them to deviate from the norm and innovate. Marginal individuals with many weak ties are some of the strongest agents of innovation. For example, if an acquaintance calls and asks you for help, you might not say no simply because you don’t feel comfortable doing so with that individual. On the contrary, with a friend, you most likely will feel more comfortable declining. Lack of weak ties will result in fragmentation (clusters of people having only strong ties to each other, local cohesion).

Application

Makes me think that I should accept every connection request on LinkedIn. That makes me think of a podcast I heard talking to Steve Burda, the most connected person on LinkedIn (if you can find it, might be a good listen for MBA students). Most people find jobs not through listings, but through weak ties. If you’re looking to form ties within a company, you need to specifically provide ways for them to form.