Article,
Social Networks and Collective Action: A Theory of the Critical Mass III
AJS, 94 (3): 502--534 (1988)
Abstract
Most analyses of collective action agree that overcoming the freerider problem requires organizing potential contributors, thus making their decisions interdependent. The potential for organizing depends on the social ties in the group, particularly on the overall density or frequency of ties, on the extent to which they are centralized in a few individuals, and on the costs of communicating and coordinating actions through these ties. Mathematical analysis and computer simulations extend a formal microsocial theory of interdependent collective action to treat social networks and organization costs. As expected, the overall density of social ties in a group improves its prospects for collective action. More significant, because less expected, are the findings that show that the centralization of network ties always has a positive effect on collective action and that the negative effect of costs on collective action declines as the group's resource or interest heterogeneity increases. These nonobvious results are due to the powerful effects of selectivity, the organizer's ability to concentrate organizing efforts on those individuals whose potential contributions are the largest.
