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At once a connection between micro and macro level social theory as well as an epistemic link between abstract concepts and empirical re search, network models offer a powerful framework for describing social differentiation in terms of relational patterns among actors in a system. This chapter is an analytical synopsis of such models. Purpose limits scope. Causes and consequences of social differenti ation are topics set aside for other chapters, as are the many substantive applications of network models, the complete range of proposed network models, and the various problems of using alternative algorithms to apply network models. References to other reviews are given where appropri ate, and a detailed elaboration of the principal ideas in this paper is given elsewhere (Burt 1981).

Network analysis is not a single corpus of knowledge cumulating with each passing year. Anyone reading through what purports …