Evolution of Network- Formation, Decay and Churning: Evidence from a five year Ph.D. program in India

Abstract

Network evolution is a topic which has been relatively less explored in the network literature. This study is an attempt to fulfil this gap by trying to understand evolution of networks using the context of a doctoral programme in India. In the current inductive study, two rounds of unstructured in-depth interviews of 12 doctoral students were conducted over a month’s time. The results suggest three different outcomes in network evolutions namely, network formation, decay and churn and the factors impacting them. Network formation factors include academic / functional similarities, social / informal interactions, need for stable support system, linguistic and regional similarities and individual proactivity. Decay factors include academic / functional dissimilarity, spatial distance, unavailability of time, and lack of interest of the other party. Network churn factors include the structural aspects of the program, cognitive limitations of the individual and variations in interaction over time. Implications of the paper towards growing body of Network related research are discussed along with suggestions for the future research in this direction.