Communication and organizational social networks: a simulation model

  • Authors:

  • Liang Chen;Guy G. Gable;Haibo Hu

  • Affiliations:

  • School of Business, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, China 200237;Faculty of Science and Technology, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia 4001;School of Business, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, China 200237

  • Venue:
  • Computational & Mathematical Organization Theory
  • Year:
  • 2013

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Abstract

Recent management research has evidenced the significance of organizational social networks, and communication is believed to impact the interpersonal relationships. However, we have little knowledge on how communication affects organizational social networks. This paper studies the dynamics between organizational communication patterns and the growth of organizational social networks. We propose an organizational social network growth model, and then collect empirical data to test model validity. The simulation results agree well with the empirical data. The results of simulation experiments enrich our knowledge on communication with the findings that organizational management practices that discourage employees from communicating within and across group boundaries have disparate and significant negative effect on the social network's density, scalar assortativity and discrete assortativity, each of which correlates with the organization's performance. These findings also suggest concrete measures for management to construct and develop the organizational social network.