| Social networks, a rapidly growing area of investigation across many disciplines, received increased attention in the past decade. The vast majority of research has involved gathering and analyzing existing social network data to reveal and understand network structure. However, very little experimental research has been conducted -- at either the level of the individual or the network -- to both change the shape of networks and understand their underlying psychological properties. The three essays in this dissertation begin to fill this gap with a multi-method approach. My research takes an experimental intervention approach to social networks, at multiple levels of analysis. At one end of the continuum, I examine how altering the mere salience of different social networks (e.g., whether you are thinking of your friends or your family) impacts consumers; at the other end, I infiltrate pharmaceutical sales teams and change the networks within those teams to examine the impact on team performance.;In the first essay, I explore how experimental manipulations can change the salience of different networks and subsequent consumer behavior. Specifically, I demonstrate that mere exposure to different products can bring to mind distinct social networks (e.g., friends or family), and that such "product priming" causes members of those networks to feel subjectively closer and be more preferred as targets of subsequent communication. I also present data demonstrating how the mere salience of different networks can impact consumer preferences. The second essay examines how interventions that strengthen social networks in teams --- by inducing team members to engage in prosocial behavior toward one another via "prosocial incentives" --- changes team performance. I propose ways in which companies can induce prosocial behavior among employees to increase employee happiness, job satisfaction and performance. In the third and final essay, I explore people's desire to shape social networks, in particular, by making matches between others ("have you two met?"). These matchmakers, in return, receive benefits for their efforts: connecting others leads to increased well-being. This investigation offers a model for how behavior at the micro level (matchmaking) can translate into social capital at the macro level (increasing social network density).;Through laboratory and field experiments, I explore social relationships at the individual and the network level, bridging micro and macro level outcomes. At the organizational level, I offer novel ways to think about social networks and the actors within those networks. Finally, I offer a subtle approach for marketers to shape consumers' behavior in and toward their social networks. |
