Knowledge and networks: An experimental test of how network knowledge affects coordination

Abstract

a b s t r a c tScholars in the social sciences use network theory to study a range of collective action problems. Often the goal is to identify how the structure of the network affects efforts to coordinate or cooperate, and research suggests that adding connections to a network can improve the performance of groups faced with such tasks. On the other hand, theory and empirics also suggest that additional connections can degrade the performance of a network. If connections can have negative effects then it is important to consider if there are alternatives to adding connections to a network that can also improve network performance. Because a primary function of connections in a network is to disseminate information, providing individuals with more information about the network may act as a substitute for adding connections to a network. We test experimentally whether providing subjects with more information about the structure of networks can improve coordination. We find that a more complete view of the network leads to faster coordination, but the magnitude of this effect depends on network structure. These results suggest that changing what actors know about a network can improve outcomes without having to add connections that may impede overall performance.

Coordination and Knowledge Sharing in Construction Project-Based Organization: A Longitudinal Structural Equation Model Analysis

“…The studies by Enemark, et al [15] and Espinosa and Clark [16] support the cognition perspective with theoretical analysis and empirical results. Tsai [59], on the other hand, provided empirical support to the sociology perspective with SNA on a multi-unit organization.…”

“…Sharing common knowledge, such as technical terms, is the basis of communication and coordination. However, when the project team becomes saturated with such common knowledge and awareness, knowledge sharing cannot further improve coordination [15].…”

“…Cognition perspective considers knowledge sharing as the basis of effective coordination [15,38]. Organization knowledge can be classified into long-term knowledge and fleeting knowledge, according to its contribution to the fulfillment of tasks [17].…”

Facts and Figuring: An Experimental Investigation of Network Structure and Performance in Information and Solution Spaces

“…Knowing what your neighbors' neighbors are doing dramatically eases the distributed graph coloring problem (Enemark, McCubbins, and Weller, 2012). Clustering of ties means that (many of) one's neighbors' neighbors are also one's own neighbors, and therefore that there is extensive mutual information in one's neighborhood that can increase performance in search of information spaces.…”

Information Dynamics in Transportation Systems with Traffic Lights Control

“…Other study have investigated methods to facilitate network coordination by disseminating knowledge about the network that may poss less risk than modifying network structure [7]. In contrast to the previous research, we investigate how the global traffic performance is affected by the fact that both drivers and traffic lights systems adapt to the traffic situation at the same time, by using certain traffic information.…”