Yale University
Conventional wisdom holds that targeting the best-connected individuals in a social network is an effective way to nudge a wider group of people to change their behavior. For example, public-health officials launching a campaign to improve nutrition might target a community's leaders on the assumption that they wield the most influence.
The effectiveness of this approach, however, depends on the structure of the social network, a new Yale study finds. In the study, researchers provide evidence of a structural paradox: When social networks concentrate around a small number of well-connected community members, focusing on those individuals alone does not effectively influence the others' behavior.
/University Release. This material from the originating organization/author(s) might be of the point-in-time nature, and edited for clarity, style and length. Mirage.News does not take institutional positions or sides, and all views, positions, and conclusions expressed herein are solely those of the author(s).View in full here.
