Participation, Learning, and Social Networks: Thinking About Outcomes and Process

There has been increasing interest in participatory approaches to climate change adaptation, where local stakeholders are brought together with scientists, government, private, and civic actors, to collaboratively develop approaches for understanding and addressing the imminent impacts of climate change. In this paper, we consider the role social networks play in this discussion, and the relevance for thinking about networks in relation to learning, social influence, and collective action. In particular, we look at the literature, to date, on how a networks approach has been adopted in projects that are characterized as being participatory. How can a network approach help us better evaluate some of the outcomes discussed in the participatory literature, in particular, social learning and collective action? To anchor this discussion, we look at findings from a collaborative, 2.5 year-long project, in which we used social network analysis (SNA) as a means to evaluate project goals, i.e. social tie formation, increased understanding and respect, and social learning. The projected yielded three waves of data on multiple relations, including how stakeholders perceived one another in terms of levels of respect and understanding, as well as data on the co-attendance of stakeholders in project activities across the 2.5 years. Alongside these social network data, we were able to gather data on stakeholders’ perceptions of climate change, vulnerability, and resilience. Finally, the project led to two successful, collaborative outcomes – the creation of research report reflecting both local and scientific knowledge, and funding for future shoreline restoration. Thus, we use this case study, and the data that it generated, as an opportunity to rethink how one might conceptualize the role of social networks in the participatory, social learning literature. As such, we offer a new conceptual framework pertaining the processes of participation, learning, and collective action in which social networks are at the center.