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Social networks influence technology diffusion but targeting formal leaders (institutional central nodes) may lead to distributional consequences. This paper analyzes the role of informal social networks in technology diffusion in a socially hierarchical caste-based society. Often, information flow and technology diffusion are constrained by social and economic boundaries where informal nodes such as caste play a very decisive role in everyday life. Proper targeting and dissemination of technology to the marginalized sections of society are very important for their development. We observed that only one-fourth of farmers cultivate newer varieties which include hybrids and recently released high yielding varieties. The results showed that individuals belonging to marginal groups are influential and act as informal leaders when they are the dominant caste in the village. Progressive farmers are found to fail in disseminating new varieties, and targeting influential informal leaders who belong to the dominant caste of the village appears to be a better strategy. Among non-dominant caste members, influential leaders belonging to Other Backward Classes (OBCs) or Scheduled Tribes (STs) are more desirable targets than other caste groups. The more concentrated a network is in terms of its caste composition, the faster will be the spread of any technology.

The question of why some countries or regions experience higher growth rates and levels of development than others has been debated and studied for long time and remains one of the most important issues in political and economic debates. The aim of this thesis is to investigate some of the factors that contribute to the unevenness of economic performance among European regions, focusing in particular regional industrial composition, spatial and network relations and the technological and institutional characteristics of the regions. The role of industrial structure and composition of regions is assessed in relation to their knowledge and technological features (Chapter 1). Our results indicate that related variety exerts positive effects in only regions characterized by higher technological and knowledge capabilities, whereas no significant effect is found for average or less advanced areas. More generally, we conclude that different levels of knowledge endowment may condition the way knowledge-related externalities affect the local economy. Following this insight, we study spatial and network relations as sources for new knowledge (Chapter 2). In line with the previous literature we find that spatial and trade linkages indeed contribute to channeling new ideas and technologies in the regional economy, with a positive effect on local productivity. However, network connections to most advanced regions – which would potentially grant access to highly valuable knowledge - have no beneficial effect unless the "linking-in" region presents high level of absorptive capacity. Recent literature on institutions has shown how quality of government and social capital are important determinant of economic and innovative performance. Following some contributions in Evolutionary Economic Geography, we investigate how institutional factors interplay with industrial compositions. In Chapter 3, we show how industrial relatedness and bridging social capital are key drivers of regional diversification. Unlike, formal institutions ...

AbstractThis article sheds light on the informal institutional settings that guide the social and economic lives of Muslim migrants in Moscow. Mosques andmedresses(Muslim theological schools) serve as central locations from which these institutions emanate, evolve, and transform. Case studies of trade networks andHijama(wet cupping) healing practices demonstrate the inner workings of such institutions. The article draws on the theoretical traditions of informal institutions and new institutionalists focusing on anthropological works on agency and institutions. These analytical frameworks and concepts help explain the mechanisms and processes involved in the institutionalization of Muslim lives in Moscow. I argue that individual agency and charismatic leadership of individual members of the community play formative roles in institutionalizing daily practices and constituting normative orders of Muslims in Moscow. The article is based on fieldwork conducted in Moscow and Perm during 2016, 2017, and 2019.

AbstractThis paper constructs an institutional investor network based on the heavy holdings of the same stock in China and conducts a social network analysis to investigate the influence of this network on stock price volatility from the perspectives of network structure (density) and location (centrality). The study demonstrates that institutional investor network density is negatively related to stock price volatility, while network centrality is positively related to it. Mechanism analyses further reveal that network density reduces stock price volatility by mitigating private information arbitrage behavior among institutional investors, whereas network centrality increases stock price volatility by creating private information arbitrage opportunities within the network. Additionally, the paper finds that information asymmetry enhances the positive effect of network centrality on stock price volatility. These findings are generally consistent across subsample analyses for different market states, reactions to good and bad news, and types of equity ownership, as well as in other robustness tests. The practical implications of these findings are significant for market stability regulation.

This chapter addresses how, and to what extent, public service obligations and institutions may be redefined and extended to facilitate information flows and public deliberation using social network media as a remedy for democratic deficiencies of both older mass media and newer forms of network media. I make a case for three public service functions that have particular importance in social network media: curation, moderation, and monitoring. Building on a critique of the individualistic perspective underlying both cyber-optimist and -pessimist accounts of the potentials of social network media, an alternative and institutional perspective based on mediatization theory is introduced. I focus on the ongoing restructuring of societal spheres through which strategic and sociable forms of communication are challenging deliberative forms of communication. Based on recent studies on public service media's use of social network media in efforts to enhance public deliberation, the chapter examines how networked media can be a focus for intervention in the public interest.