Sunbelt XXXI International Network for Social Network ... - INSNA

A Technique For Analyzing Ergm Behavior Using Bernoulli GraphsButts, Carter T.Exponential Random GraphsGraph Theory, Exponential‐family Random Graph Models, Analytical Methods, Asymptotics, Spatially‐embedded Networks, Stochastic ProcessesSUN.AM1The use of discrete exponential families has revolutionized the modeling of networks with properties such as heterogeneity and/or complex dependenceamong edges. Such exponential‐family random graph models (or ERGMs) constitute a general language for describing distributions of networks, and areincreasingly widely employed both within and beyond the social sciences. While the generality of the ERGM framework is appealing, few techniques otherthan simulation have been available for studying the behavior of models with non‐trivial edgewise dependence. Random graph models with independentedges (i.e., the Bernoulli graphs), on the other hand, are well‐studied, and a large literature exists regarding their properties. Here, I demonstrate a method forleveraging this knowledge by constructing families of Bernoulli graphs that bound the behavior of general ERGMs in a well‐defined sense. By examining thebehavior of these Bernoulli graph bounds, one can thus analyze many properties of the associated ERGMs. Several applications of this method to the study ofcomplex network models are discussed, including the identification of models that avoid asymptotic degeneracy and robustness testing for large‐scale networkmodels based on geographical covariates.A Text And Network Analysis Of Natural Resource Conflict In SudanVan Holt, Tracy; Johnson, Jeffrey C.Words and Networks ‐ Natural Language Processing, ConflictStructural Equivalence, Affiliation Networks, Conflict, Action And Structure, Web Content Analysis, AfricaWED.PM2Many theories of the causes of societal conflicts concern competition over scarce resources. Natural resources oil—oil, agriculturally based commodities, andecosystem services—appear to be among the sources of conflict among ethnic groups in Sudan. We use automated text and social network analysis of SudanTribune data to test this proposition by examining the extent to which 1) environmental concepts that are reported in the Sudan Tribune are linked to conflictas opposed to possible non‐environmental causes, and 2) whether structurally‐equivalent groups have similar conflict patterns. Finally we discuss the utility ofthis approach for building associational models of this kind from newspaper and other textual sources.