Culture in networks / Paul McLean.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

McLean, Paul Douglas, 1962- author.

Series:

Cultural sociology (Polity Press)

Cultural sociology

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Social networks.

Culture.

Culture diffusion.

Physical Description:

viii, 235 pages ; 21 cm.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, UK ; Malden, MA : Polity Press, 2017.

Summary:

Today interest in social networks is growing by leaps and bounds, both in scientific discourse and popular culture. Networks are thought to be everywhere - from the architecture of our brains to global trade patterns. Networks are equally ubiquitous in the social world: they provide us with social support, account for the emergence of new trends and markets, and foster social protest, among other functions. Besides, who among us is not familiar with Facebook, Twitter, or, for that matter, World of Warcraft, among the myriad emerging forms of virtual social interaction? It is common to think of networks simply in structural terms - the architecture of connections among objects, or the circuitry of a system. But social networks in particular are thoroughly interwoven with cultural things, in the form of tastes, norms, cultural products, styles of communication, and much more. What exactly flows through the circuitry of social networks? How are people s identities and cultural practices shaped by network structures? And conversely, how do people s identities, their beliefs about the social world, and the kinds of messages they send affect the network structures they create? This book is designed to help readers think about how and when culture and social networks systematically penetrate one another, helping to shape each other in significant ways.

Contents:

Culture and social networks: a conceptual framework

The nuts and bolts of networks, through a cultural lens

Basic culture concepts, with a networks inflection

Culture through networks: diffusion, contagion, virality, memes

Culture from networks: the network genesis of culture

Networks from culture: how norms and tastes shape networks

Networks of culture: culture as relational structures

Networks as culture, or networks and culture fused.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780745687162

0745687164

9780745687179

0745687172

OCLC:

947953918

Publisher Number:

40026637501