ABSTRACT
In an interconnected world, everyone seems to be connected. There is an increased recognition that social networks can be important catalysts for change and transformation. Educational research has recently developed a strong interest in relational and structural phenomena of social networks. Nonetheless, the increased reliance of social network analysis (SNA) on quantitative data has lately been criticized. Especially in educational research the ongoing quantification of concepts and relations in SNA seems overly simplistic. Indeed, the call for the inclusion of qualitative methods – the root of SNA – has become louder and clearer.
Therefore, this book brings together 20 exciting chapters of how 42 authors from 11 countries have conceptualized, designed, implemented, and evaluated mixed method social network analysis (MMSNA) in their complex, diverse, and unique perspectives. We formally define MMSNA as any SNA study that draws from both qualitative and quantitative data or uses qualitative and quantitative methods of analysis and thoughtfully integrates the different research strands with each other. With contributions from international experts from both the mixed methods (MM) and SNA communities, this book aim to establish an informed theoretical and methodological basis for research using MMSNA and to provide an integrated and cohesive perspective of the affordances and limitations of integrating MM research with SNA. We build a bridge that connects these two research communities that draw theoretically, conceptually, and analytically from each other, but have not always engaged in discussions to learn from each other’s perspectives.
