Table I. Comparison between “social... | Emerald Publishing

Table I.

Comparison between “social systems approach” and “social Capital approach” to SNA

	Social system approach	Social capital approach
Main authors	Mitchell, White, Breiger	Coleman, Lin, Burt, Granovetter
Individual actorhood	Emphasis on actorhood as emergent from social relations	Prior to action and relationships
Preferred Unit of Analysis	Whole network	Individual’s ego network
Generability of knowledge	Case-based	Nomological
Types of Relationships	Emergent and multiple, driven by fieldwork	Ex-ante and parsimonious, based on previous studies
Impact of networks on individuals	Ambivalent	Positive, linked to economic gains

	Social system approach	Social capital approach
Main authors	Mitchell, White, Breiger	Coleman, Lin, Burt, Granovetter
Individual actorhood	Emphasis on actorhood as emergent from social relations	Prior to action and relationships
Preferred Unit of Analysis	Whole network	Individual’s ego network
Generability of knowledge	Case-based	Nomological
Types of Relationships	Emergent and multiple, driven by fieldwork	Ex-ante and parsimonious, based on previous studies
Impact of networks on individuals	Ambivalent	Positive, linked to economic gains

Source: Author’s elaboration