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| SOCIAL NETWORK ANALYSIS APPROACH IN THE INDUSTRIAL CLUSTER STUDIES——The Case Study of the Steel Measuring Tape Cluster in Nanzhuang Village, Yucheng County, Henan Province |
| LI Er-ling, LI Xiao-jian |
| Research Center of the Yellow River Sustainable Development and Civilization, College of Environment and Planning, Henan University, Kaifeng 475001, China |
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Abstract In recent years, the method of social network analysis (SNA) has been introduced into cluster studies. It describes the structural forms and the characteristics of networks in the industrial clusters from a microcosmic perspective, which helps to improve cluster studies. However, such kind of structural analysis as SNA is simple and insufficient for the mechanism to a certain extent or the dynamic analysis of the networks. Corresponding analysis is needed to study it's phenomenon and then to gain a deeper understang of it's social relationships. This paper firstly presents a brief introduction to SNA; then, taking the steel measuring tape cluster in Nanzhuang Village, Yucheng County, Henan Province as an example, it examines the application of SNA incluster network studies in detail. By probing into the deep social relationships lying behind, the method of SNA is modified and improved, which can enrich cluster study methodology and help to draw some important conclusions. Meanwhile, based on the detailed survey to the sample enterprises, this paper examines the spin-off network, emotion network, advice network and cooperation network in the cluster in order to find out the crucial reason for the formation of the network. By contrasting the network structure and the characteristics of the four networks, the authors find that the focal enterprises and the intermediary institutes play important roles in the formation of the enterprise networks both inside and outside of the clusters. Dynamically, the variations of the network patterns of the enterprises are also found, For example, the SME network in rural clusters evolves from the family-extensive network. The division-production network to the local innovation network by comparing the differences between the spin-off network, advice network and the cooperation network.
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Received: 11 September 2006
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2007, Vol. 22 
