Norms and Networks

The Norms and Networks (NNC) cluster focuses on two central societal issues. Firstly, the collaboration between and within groups, especially in so-called ‘social dilemmas’ where there is a conflict between individual self-interest and the collective interest. The second central issue is the integration between groups with different norms, separated networks, or polarized opinions. In both research themes, special attention is paid to the role of networks of social relations within a group, for example in a study into the role of ethnic and social divisions within school classes in emergent negative views about other groups. Characteristic of NNC research is that collaboration and integration are considered to be complex phenomenons in which the interaction between the procedures and choices of many individuals can lead to unexpected and sometimes also undesirable results, such as the failure of an energy initiative in a local community or strong polarization in society. In order to get an accurate picture of this complexity, NNC researchers use mathematical and computer models, experiments, and advanced methods for social network analysis.

Members of the cluster
Prof. Dr. Andreas Flache
Prof. Dr. Jochem Tolsma
Dr. Jacob Dijkstra
Dr. Vincenz Frey 

Postdocs
Dr. Tibor Zingora

PhD Students
Jonas Stein
Echo Teng Li
Alla Loseva
Dennis Nientimp
Daniel Cowen