Political contexts and hierarchical structures: A dynamic network analysis on social movement organizations

• In Event: 20861 - Section on Collective Behavior and Social Movements Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 9: Network Structures and Dynamics in Social Movements

Abstract

While social movement organizations (SMOs) often challenge powerful authorities, their alliance networks also reflect hierarchical structures. This hierarchy suggests that SMOs do not operate as equals but instead possess different levels of power and resources. Understanding hierarchical patterns is crucial for social movement scholarship, as it reveals how SMOs adopt strategies and choose alliances depending on different positions within their network structures. Drawing on Taiwanese social movement campaigns from 2007 to 2024, this study constructs a complete directed network of SMO potential collaborations to analyze their relational dynamics and hierarchical configurations. This study applies temporal exponential random graph models to analyze the emergence and evolution of hierarchical configurations in SMO networks over time. Particularly, the study focuses on how significant political events influence the collaboration dynamics and hierarchical structures of SMO networks. The study suggests that political events play a critical role in shaping the evolution of SMO collaboration networks, demonstrating SMOs' strategic adaptability to respond to different social contexts and political opportunity structures.

Author

• Jun-Jie Lin, University of Arizona