The 'kula ring' of science: the importance of social capital for success

1. From Athena Unbound by Etzkowitz, Kemelgor, and Uzzi Paraphrased and presented by Jessie Cherry The 'kula ring' of science:the importance of social capital for success

2. Kula ring or potlatch • Elite males in native Pacific Northwest and South Pacific cultures participate in a ceremony called the 'potlatch' or the 'kula ring' during which they give away their most prized possessions. The more they give away, the higher their social status and the more secure their standing in the group. • The authors suggest the kula ring is analogous to the way scientists exchange ideas, resources, and information.

3. Kula ring of science • “Like the gatherings of Melanesian clan leaders, elite scientists who are linked by ongoing networks of relations and governed by norms of trust and reciprocity ritualistically meet to discuss collaborations, discover complementary areas of research, and introduce their graduate students and post-doctoral fellows to each other for future correspondence and employment.” • The configuration of one's social network can effect the way he or she navigates the science world.

4. Gender differences in patterns of networking: some research • Problems of mentorship and networking across sub-areas that differ in status (Ibarra and Smith-Lovin, 1997). • The major issue facing women at the academic level is isolation (Emmett, 1992). • Men get more opportunities for professional advancement through informal sponsors who provide advice and share tacit knowledge on how to get ahead. (Epstein, 1970) • When there are few women in an academic department or in an industrial or government research unit, and women are not well accepted by men in those settings, they experience the effects of isolation (Reskin, 1978).

5. Networked vs. Isolation • Post-grad women in science experience professional isolation more accutely than men as they become aware that they are not being invited, to the same degree as their male peers, to be part of the professional network that leads to contacts and potential job openings. A female grad student commented on the frustration that this kind of perception creates about carreer prospects and said 'If you had a job opening, who would you hire first? Someone you are buddies with, right?' • Early inclusion in a strong network provides a 'jump start' to a scientific career. For example, a professor's invitation to a grad student to deliver a paper at an elite conference allows network building among fellow grad students and their senior sponsors. Such connections create a stable and supportive reference group as well as providing channels by which to disseminate work and share ideas.

6. Social network --> Social capital • Differences in scientists' social networks influence their career success by shaping their level of social capital. • Like human capital (a person's talents and know-how) and financial capital, social capital has exchange value and can be accumulated. It's different in that it depends on relationships to create and sustain it.

7. Social and other capitals • Human capital = 'what you know', intellectual reservoir of ideas, methods, factual knowledge • Social capital = 'who you know', web of contacts and relationships that provide information, validation, and encouragement • Both kinds are key to achievement, reward and recognition in science!

8. Social capital develops out of interaction with prior contacts and network structure in several ways: • Reciprocity governs exchanges between contacts. New faculty members who are invited into a network feel indebted to the others in the network for bringing them into a supportive and status-enhancing social group. • The new members' initial indebtedness and reciprocity expand as members exclusively share tacit knowledge on how to get ahead or allocate discretionary resources to each other. For example, information about jobs, research ideas, funding sources, unpublished data, other researchers (Kenney, 1986; Seashore et al, 1989; Powell et al. 1998).

9. Social capital develops out of interaction with prior contacts and network structure in several ways: 3) The right social network configurations not only get access to but also increase the speed and veracity of the information transferred. This is important for the institution and its system of rewards for achievement. 4) Networks provide social support to their members. Close working relationships with experienced network members help new members interpret critical feedback and motivate commitment to a long-term program of scientific study, which is often punctuated by few immediate rewards. Emotional support and group affiliation create an identity that enhances feelings of self-worth, generate commitment to goals that have delayed payoffs (Ibarra, 1992), and provide a group mechanism for legitimating claims or counteracting against discrimination (White, 1992; Poldolny and Baron, 1997).

10. Discussion • Take a minute, meet your neighbor, describe a situation for which a social connection has helped you in your career or where a lack of a social connection hurt you • Let's get some people to share what they talked about

11. Discussion Questions • What are some ways students and post-docs could raise their social capital? • Are there obstacles to doing so? Ways around them?

12. Discussion Questions • What are ways that junior research officers/faculty could raise their own social capital? • Are there obstacles to doing so? Ways around them?

13. Discussion Question • How can more senior faculty and research officers help raise the social capital of more junior staff and students?

14. Other questions?