Connected
The Surprising Power of Our Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives
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3.9 • 34 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Celebrated scientists Nicholas Christakis and James Fowler explain the amazing power of social networks and our profound influence on one another's lives.
Your colleague's husband's sister can make you fat, even if you don't know her. A happy neighbor has more impact on your happiness than a happy spouse. These startling revelations of how much we truly influence one another are revealed in the studies of Dr. Christakis and Fowler, which have repeatedly made front-page news nationwide.
In Connected, the authors explain why emotions are contagious, how health behaviors spread, why the rich get richer, even how we find and choose our partners. Intriguing and entertaining, Connected overturns the notion of the individual and provides a revolutionary paradigm-that social networks influence our ideas, emotions, health, relationships, behavior, politics, and much more. It will change the way we think about every aspect of our lives.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Harvard professor and health care policy specialist Christakis (Death Foretold: Prophecy and Prognosis in Medical Care) became interested in social connectivity when observing that the mortality rate of spouses spike after a partner passes away. Christakis sought out a collaboration with Fowler, a health systems and political scientist, and together they compare topology (the hows of a given structure) across different social networks to better explain how participation and positioning enhances the effectiveness of an individual, and why the "whole" of a network is "greater than the sum of its parts." Five basic rules describe the relationship between individuals and their networks-including mutual adaptation, the influence of friends and friends' friends, the network's "life of its own"-but the results do more than promote the good of the group: they also spread contagions; create "epidemics" of obesity, smoking and substance abuse; disseminate fads and markets; alter voting patterns; and more. A thorough but popular take on a complex phenomenon, this volume offers an entertaining guide to the mechanics and importance of human networking. 13 b/w illustrations, 8-page color insert.
Customer Reviews
Good read, popular subject
This one is a good read. The subjects were supported with data acquired from various experiments which adds interesting insight into the notion of social networks. Sometimes the subject's flow a little too slow, but in general it isa good one
Life Changer
My dissertation professor in Greece recommended this book to me. The book broadened my mind. Before it, I was leaning more to the fact that an individual isn’t effected by their environment heavily, yet after reading it acknowledged how connected we are. By reading how an individual affects others in a social network, it helped me spread positivity and realize how much that can help my own social network.