Evolution of Social Networks

This book answers the question of whether we can apply evolutionary theories toour understanding of the development of social structures. Social networks havein... » 

This book answers the question of whether we can apply evolutionary theories toour understanding of the development of social structures. Social networks haveincreasingly become the focus of many social scientists as a way of analyzingthese social structures. While many powerful network analytic tools have beendeveloped and applied to a wide range of empirical phenomena understanding theevolution of social organization still requires theories and analyses of socialnetwork evolutionary processes. Researchers from a variety of disciplines havecombined their efforts in what is an indication of some very promising futureresearch and the work represented in this volume provides a basis for asustained analysis of the evolution of social life. «