Social Network Analysis

Social network analysis (SNA) is a methodology to map and examine relationships between various units within a network. SNA can also be viewed as a method of social inquiry, suggests Barry Wellman, which focuses on analysis of relationships between individuals as the primary mechanism for understanding network and individual behavior. Stanley Wasserman and Kathleen Faust propose SNA as a distinctive research perspective that focuses on relational concepts. The big shift in perspective offered by SNA is the ability to study a phenomenon or process relationally, that is, examining units and the relationships between units in a process or entity.

For example, historical notions of learning have focused on the individual, suggesting that isolating the abilities of individual learners can lead to improved understanding of how to ...