Chains of Affection: The Structure of Adolescent Romantic and Sexual Networks

Chains of Affection: The Structure of1Adolescent Romantic and Sexual NetworksPeter S. BearmanColumbia UniversityJames MoodyOhio State UniversityKatherine StovelUniversity of WashingtonThis article describes the structure of the adolescent romantic andsexual network in a population of over 800 adolescents residing ina midsized town in the midwestern United States. Precise imagesand measures of network structure are derived from reports of re-lationships that occurred over a period of 18 months between 1993and 1995. The study offers a comparison of the structural charac-teristics of the observed network to simulated networks conditionedon the distribution of ties; the observed structure reveals networkscharacterized by longer contact chains and fewer cycles than ex-pected. This article identifies the micromechanisms that generatenetworks with structural features similar to the observed network.Implications for disease transmission dynamics and social policy areexplored.INTRODUCTIONThis article describes the structure of adolescent romantic and sexualnetworks in an American high school, accounts for the emergence of this1Data for this article are drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of AdolescentHealth (Add Health), a program project designed by J. Richard Udry and Peter Bear-man, and funded by a grant from the National Institute of Child Health and HumanDevelopment (HD31921). The authors thank Douglas White, Martina Morris, MarkHandcock, J ...