Similarly to my peers, my network map clearly depicts two distinct groups. The larger of the two contains high school friends, family, and all other people I know through my experiences prior to coming to Vancouver. The other is smaller, yet is a much more tightly knit friend group, and consists of those whom I have become closest with since moving here. Both vary in nature, arguably because of various influencing factors which were relevant at the time which the network was being formed. The people within our networks are greatly related to the environment as well as the context in which we live.
The part of my network map which corresponds to my network back home in Toronto displays mostly weak ties. For the majority within this group, I am the connection. That is to say, many know each other because of me; I am the mutual friend. Consequentially, weak ties exist between many of my close friends because they have only met a handful of times at my birthday parties or other friend gatherings over the years. It’s also notable that within this larger group which makes up my network, there are sub-networks. Strong ties exist between those who went to high school together and between family members, for example.
Interestingly, those who I have met in the University setting here in Vancouver, and stayed close with are all from the GTA (Greater Toronto Area). In other words, we all come form the same geographic location. However, although we all met through the same institution, and come from the same geographic area, we all come from various ethnic backgrounds. I, like the others within this group, consider myself Canadian, however I come from mainly German and Scottish roots. Within the group are two Filipinos, an Iraqi and a Chinese-mixed Persian. While this variety in ethnicity hints at a small-scale example of the theory of globalization, the similarities in geographic origin and context points to the homophily principle in an unconventional way. Especially considering we had all just moved to a new city, where, for the first time, we would be living on our own, it isn’t surprising that the friends we became closest with were all from the same general area (Toronto and surrounding cities). This sharing of origin – although not necessarily ethnic or socio-economic, as the homophily principle suggests – offers a sense of familiarity in a very unfamiliar context and place.
My main focus has been the qualitative awareness I have gained with respect to my network, through the network map, however the E.I. index offered important insight into my network which I won’t overlook. After calculating homophily for each attribute, it immediately became clear that the gender value calculated was a very negative value, indicating that in terms of gender, my network is homophilous in nature. In other words, almost all of those within my closest circle of friends are female. This is not surprising, as, again, the homophily principle states that we associate ourselves with those who are most similar to us by way of being able to relate more easily to each other.