Christoph Stadtfeld Talk

We are very excited to be joined by Christoph Stadtfeld on April 28th, where he’ll discuss The emergence of social networks and how they matter for individuals.

Christoph is an Associate Professor of Social Networks at ETH Zürich. His work investigates how social networks evolve over time and how individuals are affected by the emerging social structures that they are embedded in. The Swiss StudentLife Study that he conducted with his team from 2016 to 2020, for example, studies how friendship networks and social groups evolve among previously unacquainted university students, and how the emerging levels of social integration affect their well-being and academic success. He also develops statistical network models and computational methods to study social networks dynamics.

And Christoph delivers truly award winning science. He received the Raymond Boudon Award of the European Academy of Sociology in 2018 and the Freeman Award of the International Network of Social Network Analysts in 2021. (full bio below)

Title: The emergence of social networks and how they matter for individuals

• Date: Thursday, April 28th, 2022.
• Time: 13:00
• Location: Technical University of Denmark, Building 321, third floor lab-space (at the end of the hall).

Abstract: Individuals have the deep psychological need to form ties with others. The relationships they build – who they become friends with, who they spend time with, who they talk to, who they approach for support – follow certain micro-level patterns. These are partly rooted in individuals’ preferences and partly in the opportunities that come with their existing social networks and environments. Individuals are in turn affected by their position in social networks, for example, through processes of social influence, or the access to social support and resources. Two important questions in social network research are thus, first, to explain how macro-level structures of social networks emerge from micro-level processes and, second, how these emerging, complex social networks affect the individuals they connect. In this talk I will discuss empirical research strategies that can help getting insights into these questions. From a methodological point of view I will discuss the utility of different data collection strategies, statistical data analysis, and agent-based simulations. The talk will further present empirical insights on the emergence of friendship ties and groups in social networks, and on the well-being and academic success of individuals.

Bio: Christoph Stadtfeld is an Associate Professor of Social Networks at ETH Zürich in Switzerland. His empirical work investigates how social networks evolve over time and how individuals are affected by the emerging social structures that they are embedded in. The Swiss StudentLife Study that he conducted with his team from 2016 to 2020, for example, studies how friendship networks and social groups evolve among previously unacquainted university students, and how the emerging levels of social integration affect their well-being and academic success. He also develops statistical network models and computational methods to study social networks dynamics. Probably best-known in recent years is his work on actor-oriented models for relational event data (DyNAM) and corresponding open source software (the goldfish package in R). Christoph’s work appeared in sociological, methodological and interdisciplinary journals. He received the Raymond Boudon Award of the European Academy of Sociology in 2018 and the Freeman Award of the International Network of Social Network Analysts in 2021.