Isolation, cohesion and contingent network effects: the case of school attachment and engagement

Isolation and cohesion are two key network features, often used to predict outcomes like mental health and deviance. More cohesive settings tend to have better outcomes, while isolates tend to fare worse than their more integrated peers. A common assumption of past work is that the effect of cohesio...

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Main Authors: Gauthier G. Robin, Smith Jeffrey A., Harcey Sela, Markowski Kelly
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Sciendo 2022-01-01
Series:Connections
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.2478/connections-2019.025
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author Gauthier G. Robin
Smith Jeffrey A.
Harcey Sela
Markowski Kelly
author_facet Gauthier G. Robin
Smith Jeffrey A.
Harcey Sela
Markowski Kelly
author_sort Gauthier G. Robin
collection DOAJ
description Isolation and cohesion are two key network features, often used to predict outcomes like mental health and deviance. More cohesive settings tend to have better outcomes, while isolates tend to fare worse than their more integrated peers. A common assumption of past work is that the effect of cohesion is universal, so that all actors get the same benefits of being in a socially cohesive environment. Here, we suggest that the effect of cohesion is universal only for specific types of outcomes. For other outcomes, experiencing the benefits of cohesion depends on an individual’s position in the network, such as whether or not an individual has any social ties. Network processes thus operate at both the individual and contextual level, and we employ hierarchical linear models to analyze these jointly to arrive at a full picture of how networks matter. We explore these ideas using the case of adolescents in schools (using Add Health data), focusing on the effect of isolation and cohesion on two outcomes, school attachment and academic engagement. We find that cohesion has a uniform effect in the case of engagement but not attachment. Only non-isolates experience stronger feelings of attachment as cohesion increases, while all students, both isolates and non-isolates, are more strongly engaged in high cohesion settings. Overall, the results show the importance of taking a systematic, multi-level approach, with important implications for studies of health and deviance.
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spelling doaj.art-41bbbbe49cdb4c4d816542cc565fd2682022-12-22T03:45:31ZengSciendoConnections0226-17662022-01-01421314510.2478/connections-2019.025Isolation, cohesion and contingent network effects: the case of school attachment and engagementGauthier G. Robin0Smith Jeffrey A.1Harcey Sela2Markowski Kelly3Department of Sociology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nebraska, USADepartment of Sociology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nebraska, USADepartment of Sociology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nebraska, USADepartment of Sociology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nebraska, USAIsolation and cohesion are two key network features, often used to predict outcomes like mental health and deviance. More cohesive settings tend to have better outcomes, while isolates tend to fare worse than their more integrated peers. A common assumption of past work is that the effect of cohesion is universal, so that all actors get the same benefits of being in a socially cohesive environment. Here, we suggest that the effect of cohesion is universal only for specific types of outcomes. For other outcomes, experiencing the benefits of cohesion depends on an individual’s position in the network, such as whether or not an individual has any social ties. Network processes thus operate at both the individual and contextual level, and we employ hierarchical linear models to analyze these jointly to arrive at a full picture of how networks matter. We explore these ideas using the case of adolescents in schools (using Add Health data), focusing on the effect of isolation and cohesion on two outcomes, school attachment and academic engagement. We find that cohesion has a uniform effect in the case of engagement but not attachment. Only non-isolates experience stronger feelings of attachment as cohesion increases, while all students, both isolates and non-isolates, are more strongly engaged in high cohesion settings. Overall, the results show the importance of taking a systematic, multi-level approach, with important implications for studies of health and deviance.https://doi.org/10.2478/connections-2019.025adolescencesocial networkscohesionisolationattachmentengagement
spellingShingle Gauthier G. Robin
Smith Jeffrey A.
Harcey Sela
Markowski Kelly
Isolation, cohesion and contingent network effects: the case of school attachment and engagement
Connections
adolescence
social networks
cohesion
isolation
attachment
engagement
title Isolation, cohesion and contingent network effects: the case of school attachment and engagement
title_full Isolation, cohesion and contingent network effects: the case of school attachment and engagement
title_fullStr Isolation, cohesion and contingent network effects: the case of school attachment and engagement
title_full_unstemmed Isolation, cohesion and contingent network effects: the case of school attachment and engagement
title_short Isolation, cohesion and contingent network effects: the case of school attachment and engagement
title_sort isolation cohesion and contingent network effects the case of school attachment and engagement
topic adolescence
social networks
cohesion
isolation
attachment
engagement
url https://doi.org/10.2478/connections-2019.025
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AT markowskikelly isolationcohesionandcontingentnetworkeffectsthecaseofschoolattachmentandengagement