ABSTRACT
Cognitive social structures (CSS) are individuals’ mental representations of the social networks around them. In this chapter, we explore the mutually constructive relationship between CSS and the organizations in which they exist. Specifically, we show how organizational contexts provide the structural and psychological antecedents that shape CSS, and how CSS in turn shape organizations and behavior within them. We argue that CSS provide a micro–macro bridge that helps reveal people’s cognitions and strategies as they navigate—and indeed shape—their actual social reality.
