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Negative ties and gender (as a contextual variable) have remained under-studied in the social networks research in management. Drawing on occupational gender-typing theory, the paper hypothesizes that the relationship between indegree centrality of employees in a positive ties-based network and their tendency to cite their colleagues in negative ties differs in a feminine and a masculine occupation. Using network data from two organizations in India, the paper shows that in a feminine occupation (nursing), the higher the indegree centrality of the employees in a positive ties-based network, the less likely are they to cite negative ties whereas, in a masculine occupation (mining), the higher the indegree centrality of the employees in a positive ties-based network, more likely are they to cite negative ties. We make a theoretical contribution by extending the occupational gender-typing theory in social networks research by theorizing and examining the distinctive effects of the context – feminine and masculine occupations – on networks and work relations. We also discuss the managerial implications of the study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traffic network is basically a "network of networks" consisting of mainly two types of networks: road network and a travel network. Due to drastic increase in population of vehicles, traffic congestion in metro cities of India is a severe problem. To resolve this use, we have proposed an approach to dynamic and automatic road traffic light management system. The approach is based on arithmetic mean theorem. The input to the control interface of traffic light of proposed approach are six different parameters : velocity of traffic units (v), queue length (l), inter-arrival time between vehicles (t), centrality measures value(c) and predicted value (prdt v) of traffic congestion by historical database and output is level of congestion. On the basis of congestion level, we build inference rules. The proposed approach automatically updates duration of green and red light as per the level of congestion at a particular junction. Proposed approach follows forward reasoning of If–Then rules. A study of this approach is done in this paper on various traffic situations of Delhi, India depending on queue length of vehicles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we explore the problem of establishing a network among the stocks of a market at high frequency level and give an application to program trading. Our work uses high frequency data from the National Stock Exchange, India, for the year 2014. To begin, we analyse the spectrum of the correlation matrix to establish the presence of linear relations amongst the stock returns. A comparison of correlations with pairwise mutual information shows the further existence of non-linear relations which are not captured by correlation. We also see that the non-linear relations are more pronounced at the high frequency level in comparison to the daily returns used in earlier work. We provide two applications of this approach. First, we construct minimal spanning trees for the stock network based on mutual information and study their topology. The year 2014 saw the conduct of general elections in India and the data allows us to explore their impact on aspects of the network, such as the scale-free property and sectorial clusters. Second, having established the presence of non-linear relations, we would like to be able to exploit them. Previous authors have suggested that peripheral stocks in the network would make good proxies for the Markowitz portfolio but with a much smaller number of stocks. We show that peripheral stocks selected using mutual information perform significantly better than ones selected using correlation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we study the Indian highway network as a complex network where the junction points are considered as nodes, and the links are formed by an existing connection. We explore the topological properties and community structure of the network. We observe that the Indian highway network displays small-world properties and is assortative in nature. We also identify the most important road-junctions (or cities) in the highway network based on the betweenness centrality of the node. This could help in identifying the potential congestion points in the network. Our study is of practical importance and could provide a novel approach to reduce congestion and improve the performance of the highway network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we model the bus networks of six major Indian cities as graphs in L-space, and evaluate their various statistical properties. While airline and railway networks have been extensively studied, a comprehensive study on the structure and growth of bus networks is lacking. In India, where bus transport plays an important role in day-to-day commutation, it is of significant interest to analyze its topological structure and answer basic questions on its evolution, growth, robustness and resiliency. Although the common feature of small-world property is observed, our analysis reveals a wide spectrum of network topologies arising due to significant variation in the degree-distribution patterns in the networks. We also observe that these networks although, robust and resilient to random attacks are particularly degree-sensitive. Unlike real-world networks, such as Internet, WWW and airline, that are virtual, bus networks are physically constrained. Our findings therefore, throw light on the evolution of such geographically and constrained networks that will help us in designing more efficient bus networks in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Terrorist network may be defined as collection of suspected terrorist nodes which may function in disguise towards accomplishing a terrorist activity. They use extensive communication channel for sharing crucial information. Terrorist network analysis is highly efficacious for intelligence analysis and deriving useful conclusions from available data. Computer Science and Network analysis act as pertinent fields for the study and graphical interpretation of these networks. In this paper, we examine the 26/11 Mumbai attack terrorist network dataset and employ the ELECTRE method for identification of key node in the terrorist network. ELECTRE is an effective multi-criteria decision-making model. It provides a framework for structuring a decision problem integrates the quantitative and qualitative factors of the problem and facilitates easy computation. From the 26/11 Mumbai attack dataset of terrorist network, we have determined that out of several terrorists in the network "Wassi" was the momentous and mastermind of all. The proposed work also demonstrates improvement of result in terms of concurrence, generalization accuracy and genuineness. Based on the solution of ELECTRE framework, it is resolved that the obtained (terrorist) nodes will step up the work of law enforcement agencies and enable them to confine their focus on important members of the terrorist network. Identification of key terrorist is highly important for developing long-term strategies to counter forthcoming terrorist attacks. It can be better implemented during the development of smart city especially for India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The centrality of South Indian cinemas in ‘New Indian Cinema’, one of the many cultural constellations of the turbulent and vibrant 1970s, has been widely acknowledged. Focusing on the aesthetic structuring of select moments from Adoor Gopalakrishnan's Swayamvaram, K.P. Kumaran's Athithi and P.A. Backer's Kabaneenadhi Chuvannappol, this paper investigates the contestations central to the emergence of a realist aesthetic in Malayalam cinema. It unpacks the movement towards the consolidation of realism as a mode of address that generates certain spectatorial responses, as opposed to understanding this turn in Malayalam cinema as foregrounding a new version of the social. The status of popular cinema and cinephilia are at the center of these contestations, as these film texts actively intervene in debates around aesthetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a study of service-based centrality and hierarchical distribution of settlements in a rural district of Assam state in India, namely Dibrugarh. A compound Centrality Index has been constructed using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). The centrality of a settlement (for this study, Gram Panchayat-rural administrative unit) has been computed using the index, which considers the relative importance of the available services and facilities (within the settlement) that the rural people regularly access. AHP, a systematic and reliable tool, has been used to measure the relative importance of the available services and facilities. Ward's method has been implemented for determining the hierarchy of a settlement based on its computed centrality. The results indicate the centrality of the rural settlements varies from moderate to poor, and the spatial distribution of the hierarchy of settlements is unorganised. The study provides an in-depth understanding of the regional development status in Dibrugarh. Policy implications are suggested, and scopes for further studies are identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proper regionalisation (identification of homogeneous regions) is key to reliable regional flood frequency analysis. Several methods have been proposed in the literature for regionalisation, including the method of residuals, L-moment method, and fuzzy c-means clustering algorithm. The present study explores the suitability of the theory of complex networks for regionalisation of watersheds, with an aim to perform regional flood frequency analysis. The west-flowing rivers of Kerala in India are considered for this study. Two complex networks-based methods, namely degree centrality and clustering coefficient, are applied for regionalisation, and daily streamflow data are analysed. To identify possible links between streamflow gauging stations, different correlation threshold values (i.e. linear correlations in streamflow between stations) are used. Two approaches are adopted in the use of correlation threshold values: the first (Method I) with threshold as mean, median, and mode of correlation values; and the second (Method II) with arbitrary threshold values. The regionalisation results suggest that Method II yields better results, both with degree centrality and clustering coefficient. Based on Method II, the use of degree centrality results in seven regions (five homogeneous and two heterogeneous) and clustering coefficient results in eight regions (seven homogeneous and one heterogeneous). Comparison of predicted and observed flood quantiles indicates that the degree centrality-based regionalisation yields R2 values in the range 0.94–0.86 for return periods 2, 5, 20, 50, and 100 years, whereas the clustering coefficient-based regionalisation yields R2 values in the range 0.98–0.91. The results from this present study suggest that complex network theory is a suitable alternative for identifying homogeneous regions for regional flood frequency analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Can we identify highly central individuals in a network without collecting network data, simply by asking community members? Can seeding information via such nominated individuals lead to significantly wider diffusion than via randomly chosen people, or even respected ones? In two separate large field experiments in India, we answer both questions in the affirmative. In particular, in 521 villages in Haryana, we provided information on monthly immunization camps to either randomly selected individuals (in some villages) or to individuals nominated by villagers as people who would be good at transmitting information (in other villages). We find that the number of children vaccinated every month is 22% higher in villages in which nominees received the information. We show that people's knowledge of who are highly central individuals and good seeds can be explained by a model in which community members simply track how often they hear gossip about others. Indeed, we find in a third data set that nominated seeds are central in a network sense, and are not just those with many friends or in powerful positions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As population health and well-being are influenced by multiple factors that cut across sectoral boundaries, an intersectoral approach that acknowledges and leverages the multiple determinants, actors and sectors at play is increasingly seen as critical for achieving meaningful and lasting improvements. In this study, we utilize social network analysis (SNA) to characterize the intersectoral collaboration between the organizations working on maternal & child health (MCH) and water & sanitation (WASH) before and immediately after the implementation of HCL Foundation (HCLF)-funded HCL Samuday Project (2015–2017) in a rural block of Uttar Pradesh state, India. While SNA has been used to examine public health issues, few have used it monitor stakeholder relationships, intervene, improve and facilitate project implementation involving intersectoral partnerships, particularly in the context of a low-and middle-income countries. Method: An organization-level SNA was conducted with 31 key informants from 24 organizations working on MCH and/or WASH in Kachhauna, Uttar Pradesh, India. Data were collected using face-to-face, semi-structured interviews between June and September 2017. Density, centrality and homophily were calculated to describe the network and a qualitative analysis was also conducted to identify the strengths and weaknesses of collaboration between organizations working on MCH and WASH. Results: Overall, our findings showed that the network of organizations working on MCH and WASH in Kachhauna grew in number since the implementation of Samuday. HCLF rapidly achieved centrality, thus positioning the organization to serve as a gatekeeper of information and enabling it to play a coordinator role within the network. Direct collaboration between other organizations working on MCH and WASH was low at both time points. Interviews with key informants indicated widespread interest in increasing interorganizational interactions and engagement throughout the network. Conclusion: This study demonstrates the feasibility and practical application of SNA for projects like Samuday that involve intersectoral collaboration. It also provides lessons about the use of SNA with organizations as the unit of analysis and in the context of rural India, including challenges, practical considerations, and limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The essay examines variations in the meanings attached to old age by upper-caste Hindu women of all ages in the temple town of Bhubaneswar, Orissa, India. Based on ethnographic data, it suggests that there are two competing cultural constructions of old age: one as withdrawal from the struggles of the mundane world and the other as a second childhood. Through the narratives of two old women, it demonstrates the ways in which these constructions shape and influence their experience of this phase of life. It analyses the satisfaction that Oriya Hindu women derive during mature adulthood in terms of three indigenously derived measures: centrality, dominance and coherence. Finally, it examines the two constructions of old age in light of these three measures of satisfaction in order to see the degree to which they provide or do not provide old women with meaning and purpose during this, their final phase of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined relationships at the individual level of analysis between work group collectivism and work centrality and pride in work, and the moderating effects of nations on these relationships. Participants from Ecuador, Germany, India, Mexico, and the United States completed questionnaire measures of the constructs of interest. Multiple-groups confirmatory factor analyses were performed to evaluate and control for psychometric nonequivalence in the measurement of latent constructs, prior to multiple-groups structural equation modeling analyses of the relationships between work group collectivism and work centrality and pride in work. Results showed positive relationships between collectivism and work centrality and work pride in each country, and non-significant differences between countries in these relationships. Tests of mean differences at the nation level of analysis also showed somewhat higher work centrality and pride in work among countries that scored higher in work group collectivism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]