Network Diversity and Economic Development

TLDR

Social networks underpin social and economic life, yet until recently no data existed to study the national network’s social impact. The study aims to combine the most complete national communication network record with census socioeconomic data to investigate network effects. Using these linked data, the authors conduct a population-level analysis of how network structure relates to socioeconomic opportunity. They find that greater diversity in individuals’ relationships strongly correlates with higher community economic development.

Abstract

Social networks form the backbone of social and economic life. Until recently, however, data have not been available to study the social impact of a national network structure. To that end, we combined the most complete record of a national communication network with national census data on the socioeconomic well-being of communities. These data make possible a population-level investigation of the relation between the structure of social networks and access to socioeconomic opportunity. We find that the diversity of individuals' relationships is strongly correlated with the economic development of communities.