network analysis
Definition
Network analysis refers to the examination of relationships and interconnections between variables in psychological systems, revealing underlying structural patterns and their dynamics over time. In political contexts, network analysis has been applied to map the covariation and co-occurrence of emotions expressed by leaders, demonstrating how positive and negative emotions cluster and influence one another through facial expressions during public performances. Additionally, network analysis methods can be leveraged to identify connections between people in social media environments, facilitating the strategic placement of interventions by linking individuals with neighboring communities outside their immediate ideological echo chambers to improve information accuracy and belief updating.
Sources: Tomašević & Major (2024), Pretus et al. (2024)
Related Terms
Applications
Network Analysis and Emotion Dynamics
Network analysis reveals the structural organization of emotional expressions, showing how different emotions covary and interact over time in political speeches. Dynamic exploratory graph analysis demonstrates that positive and negative emotions exhibit distinct network patterns.
Sources: Tomašević & Major (2024)
Network Analysis and Misinformation Interventions
Network analysis methods can be employed to connect individuals with fact-checkers from neighboring communities situated outside their ideological echo chambers, thereby balancing trust in sources with exposure to dissonant information. This approach addresses the challenge of scaling crowdsourcing interventions to reach extreme partisans while maintaining credibility and effectiveness in combating partisan misinformation.
Sources: Pretus et al. (2024)
