Canonical · Network Theory · Model
Threshold Models & Cascades
Mark Granovetter / Thomas Schelling · 1978
"Threshold models show identical groups can tip at very different points even with similar average preferences — because cascades depend on the distribution of thresholds, not just the mean, and a few low-threshold early actors determine whether contagion tips."
Granovetter asked in 1978 why two crowds with the same average willingness to riot behave oppositely — one riots, one doesn't. The answer is not averages but thresholds: who needs one other person to join, who needs ten.
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The Strength of Weak Ties
"Granovetter showed that infrequent, bridging acquaintances — weak ties — matter more for new information and job finds than close friends, because close friends overlap in what they already know."
Mark Granovetter · PaperContinue→