Core-like groups result in invalidation of identifying super-spreader by k-shell decomposition

Area of Science:

• Network Science
• Complex Systems Analysis
• Information Diffusion

Background:

• Identifying influential spreaders is crucial for understanding and controlling processes on complex networks.
• Previous research suggested k-shell decomposition identifies core nodes as most influential.
• However, this is not universally true across all real-world networks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate why core nodes are not always the most influential spreaders.
• To differentiate between 'true core' and 'core-like' groups within networks.
• To develop a new method for accurately identifying influential nodes.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of the k-core structure of complex networks.
• Numerical simulations to test node influence.
• Introduction of a novel measure based on link diversity within shells.

Main Results:

• True core nodes exhibit diverse links to network shells.
• Core-like groups show highly localized internal connections.
• The k-shell index is insufficient for identifying influential nodes in core-like groups.

Conclusions:

• Network structure significantly impacts the influence of core nodes.
• Link diversity is a key factor in distinguishing influential node groups.
• The proposed measure effectively identifies core-like groups and enhances understanding of network influence.