Diversity, complexity, and structure of social networks: Study of a smallholder dairy project

Abstract

Network structures have drawn a lot of research interest in recent years. However, little is known about how the diversity, complexity, and structure of the multi-actor networks associated with a project shapes information exchange and linkages in different contexts. This study, conducted in 2017, addresses this deficiency by analyzing the social networks in three villages, and it was directly set up in response to operationalizing a smallholder dairy development project. Social network analysis was used to characterize the networks and to look into network configuration and information exchange dynamics. Data were collected through household-level interviews with the project’s participant farmers and key project stakeholders, supplemented with other Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) techniques. Analysis focused on network visualization and estimation of specific network parameters for comparison. Results indicated that public sector actors were the key drivers in all these smallholder networks. Flow of information was favored both vertically and horizontally in the network, which was configured at a later stage, rather than in the project piloting stages, owing to unique actor alignment and multiplicity of ties. The networks were also found to vary in terms of some of the network attributes, signaling varying levels of network integration and brokerage potential. Better cohesiveness and information spread was observed in the network, which had the right mix of information acquisition and exchange networks. The study offers valuable lessons with respect to connectedness of network actors, need for multi-actor alliance, and implication of centrality measures in determining network dynamics.