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

The Paradox Of Connection: Social Networks Of Parents Living In Extreme PovertyBess, Kimberly D.; Doykos, BernadetteQualitative and Mixed Method Network studiesSocial Support, Social Capital, Mixed Methods, Parenthood, Urban Neighbourhoods, PovertySAT.PM1Families living in extreme poverty face the daunting task of leveraging limited resources to provide for their children’s health, education, and safety. Whilesocial networks theoretically represent important sources of social capital that can benefit families, many parents in high‐crime urban neighborhoods reportthat they avoid connecting with others. Social relationships are perceived simultaneously as costly and a potential threat to survival. We examine this paradoxin a study of the social support networks of parents involved in a 10‐week parenting program. As part of a broader neighborhood‐based education initiative,Tied Together aims to break patterns of isolation and connect families to resources. Using a mixed‐method approach we examined change in parent networksover time. We employed a network mapping process to collect pre‐ and post‐program data of 30 participants’ social support networks and also conductedsemi‐structured post‐program interviews with parents. Through interviews we investigated participants’ perceptions of their networks and how programparticipation affected their relationships to neighbors and the community. Our analysis of network data yielded five distinct patterns that reveal subtlechanges in types of actor and ties. Analysis of interview data revealed connections that were less apparent in the quantitative data suggesting the ambivalenceparents experience in relationship to their own networks. This study raises questions about the role of alternative settings as venues for the development ofsocial support networks among parents living in extreme poverty as well as the limitations of such interventions in the absence of capital.The Personal Networks Of Homeless People Living In Los Angeles County: An Investigation Of The Multiple Levels Of Unprotected SexKennedy, David P.; Tucker, Joan; Green, Hank; Wenzel, Suzanne ; Munjas, Brett; Zhou, AnnieEgocentric NetworksHIV Risk, Personal Networks, Homeless, Multilevel ModelsFRI.AM2This paper will present analyses of over 700 personal networks of homeless people in Los Angeles County to better understand the social context ofunprotected sex. We use multi‐level modeling with a one‐to‐many dyadic analysis design to investigate the predictors of sex without condoms betweenhomeless respondents and particular partners. Previous studies have investigated condom use primarily at the individual level. This paper will examinepredictors of unprotected sex at multiple levels: the partnership (e.g., characteristics of partners, such as perceived risky characteristics; characteristics ofrelationships with these partners, such as level of commitment to the relationship and relationship quality; history of abuse within the relationships; cooccurrenceof substance use and sex), the individual respondent (e.g., demographic characteristics; depression; beliefs about condoms, pregnancy, and HIV),and the respondent’s social network (e.g., compositional characteristics, such as level of risky behavior in the network; structural characteristics of thenetwork, such as density, number of components, number of isolates, etc.). We will also analyze the association between alter level network characteristics(degree centrality, being an isolate, betweenness, etc.) and likelihood to engage in unprotected sex with this partner. To further explore the context of risky sexand our initial findings, we will present analysis of qualitative data collected with a sample of homeless respondents who were shown their personal networksand asked to describe the characteristics of components, isolates, and key alters who influence their decisions about sex and substance use.