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Updated: Jul 10, 2026
06:48
The HoneyComb Paradigm for Research on Collective Human Behavior
Published on: January 19, 2019
Self-organization versus hierarchy in open-source social networks
Sergi Valverde1, Ricard V Solé
1ICREA-Complex Systems Laboratory, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Dr. Aiguader 80, 08003 Barcelona, Spain.
Physical Review. E, Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics
|November 13, 2007
Summary
Complex networks in technology development groups, like open-source communities, show unique scaling laws. Their network structure is shaped by community goals and hierarchy, deviating from typical local growth rules.
Area of Science:
- Network Science
- Sociology
- Computer Science
Background:
- Complex networks often grow through local rules, common in biological and social systems.
- Technology development groups, such as open-source communities, represent a deviation with non-local growth dynamics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the network structure of technology development groups.
- To model network growth using non-local rules based on betweenness centrality.
- To understand the interplay between community goals and hierarchical organization in shaping network dynamics.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of network structure using email exchange data.
- Development of a network growth model incorporating non-local rules.
- Weighted network analysis to identify scaling laws.
Main Results:
- Open-source communities exhibit complex weighted networks with multi-level scaling laws.
- A model based on betweenness centrality effectively simulates non-local network growth.
- The interplay between community goals and hierarchy significantly influences network dynamics.
Conclusions:
- The network structure of technology development communities is distinct from typical complex networks.
- Non-local rules and community-specific organizational factors are crucial for understanding these networks.
- Findings offer insights into the dynamics of collaborative technology development.
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