Work in Progress

2024-09-19 · Ho Chanh Nghia

Originally published on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/work-progress-khanh-pham-4xrac/

Work in Progress

The first principle of a social network, often considered the most fundamental, is reciprocity - the idea that people are more likely to connect with and support those who have already connected with or supported them, essentially “trading favors” within the network.

Explanation:

• Key concept:
• Application:

Other important principles in social networks:

• Exchange:
• Similarity:

https://open.lib.umn.edu/principlesmanagement/chapter/9-4-how-managers-can-use-social-networks-to-create-value/#:~:text=CC0%20public%20domain.-,Reciprocity%2C%20Exchange%2C%20and%20Similarity,you%20trade%20favors%20with%20others.

Across all social networks, performance depends on the degree to which three fundamental principles are accounted for (Kilduff & Tsai, 2004). The first is the principle of reciprocity, which simply refers to the degree to which you trade favors with others. With the principle of reciprocity, managers have the ability to get things done by providing services to others in exchange for the services they require. For instance, you are more likely to get assistance with a problem from a colleague at work when you have helped him or her out in the past. Although the quid pro quo may not be immediate, over time managers will receive only in proportion to what they give. Unless the exchanges are roughly equivalent over time, hard feelings or distrust will result. In organizations, few transactions are one-shot deals. Most are ongoing trades of “favors.” Therefore, two outcomes are important: success in achieving the objective and success in improving the relationship such that the next exchange will be more productive.

The second principle is the principle of exchange. Like the reciprocity principle, it refers to “trading favors,” but it is different in this way: the principle of exchange proposes that there may be greater opportunity for trading favors when the actors are different from one another. In fact, according to network theory, “difference” is what makes network ties useful in that such difference increases the likelihood that each party brings a complementary resource to the table. Going back to our example where you sought out assistance from a colleague, you probably needed that assistance because that person brought a different skill set, knowledge, or other resources to bear on the problem. That is, since you were different, the value of exchange was greater.

The third principle is the principle of similarity. Psychologists studying human behavior have observed that relationships, and therefore network ties, tend to develop spontaneously between people with common backgrounds, values, and interests. Similarity, to the extent that your network is composed only of like-minded folks, also makes it more likely that an individual may be dependent on a handful of people with common interests.

The salesman who failed so far: failed across all three principles