Social Network Analysis Can Help Donor Agencies Make Decisions When Funding Projects

Tanay Tatum

(not taking second part of the course)

Background

In 2009, President Manuel Zelaya was ousted by a military backed coup d’état in Honduras. Since the coup, the security forces have perpetrated many human rights violations and the judicial system has not held them responsible. This has resulted in an increased level of distrust between the government and Honduran citizens.[1] As Honduras transitions to a more accountable democratic system, civil society organizations (CSOs) are in a unique position to monitor the process. Coalitions of CSOs advocating for security reform have already begun to form, however, it is unclear which organization is best suited to serve this purpose. One metric for determining the capabilities of a CSO is to examine their social network to see if the organization has ties with government agencies. Established relationships with government officials makes it more likely that the CSO will have access to the information needed to monitor the security reform process.

Since USAID invested $27 million dollars into Democracy and Governance projects in Honduras last year, it is important to know whether or not the organizations receiving funds are strategically located in the social network of government agencies and CSOs.[2] This proposal will look specifically at how international donor agencies (e.g. USAID, Open Society Foundation, etc) can use social network analysis to better understand which CSOs are in the most strategic position to oversee the security reform process in Honduras. Prior research on social network mapping of CSOs has focused on the networks between donors and the nonprofits they fund.[3] However, I am proposing using social network analysis to better understand the network between CSOs and the government agencies with whom they collaborate.

Primary Question

Main Question: Can social network analysis help international donor agencies determine which civil society organizations are in the most strategic position to oversee the security reform process in Honduras?

Sub-Questions: Which civil society organizations are most connected to government agencies? Are some government agencies more likely to communicate with CSOs than others?

Methodology

Data: The first step is to create an exhaustive list of CSOs who are currently involved or have expressed interest in monitoring the security reform process. Examples include Alianza Por la Paz y la Justicia, Committee for Free Expression, and the Inter-American Commission.[4] The next step is to identify all government agencies that are connected to the security sector, including the Judiciary, Attorney General’s Office, regional police offices, etc. Data could be collected through a survey sent out to all of the key offices and CSOs that assesses how frequently their organization communicates or collaborates with the other CSOs and government agencies on the list. This type of survey may not yield high response rates, therefore, looking up public records of meetings held between CSOs and government agencies might also help determine which organizations and government agencies have ties with one another.

Network ties between CSOs and government agencies are representative of a level of trust between the two groups. Although the network is analyzing connections at the organizational level, any connection between two individuals from different organizations will be represented as a tie between the two organizations on the network map. Each individual office and organization will be represented by a node. Attribute data should include the following: size of organization/agency, frequency of communication between offices, demographics of constituencies (only applicable to CSOs), frequency of communication with constituencies, size of constituency, and role in the security reform process.

Network measures: The most important network measures for understanding how connected CSOs are to government agencies are degrees, eigenvector, and closeness. Degrees would allow us to see how many government agencies each CSO is connected to, while eigenvector will highlight the organizations who are most connected to other well connected organizations. Since the network ties are at an organizational level, it would be difficult to attain data that could account for reciprocity in a meaningful way. However, if this data did exist, then reciprocal ties would be indicators of strong mutual relationships. Finally, analyzing the ego networks of government agencies who are key actors in the security reform process will highlight the CSOs who have already established relationships with these agencies.

Conclusion

If CSOs have strong ties with government agencies, then they will have greater influence in the security reform process. Social network analysis can be used in democracy building to assess which CSOs are in the best position to serve as intermediaries between government, other CSOs, and citizens in transitioning states. It is a powerful tool that can help international donor agencies understand the networks of CSOs, and thus, help them make informed decisions when funding projects.

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[1] Taraciuk, Tamara. "After the Coup: Ongoing Violence, Intimidation, and Impunity in Honduras." Human Rights Watch (n.d.): www.hrw.org. Human Rights Watch, Dec. 2010

[2] Civil Society in Honduras." USAID. 22 Oct. 2015. <https://results.usaid.gov/honduras/democracy-and-governance/civil-society#fy2014>

[3] Marshall, David J., and Lynn Staeheli. "Mapping Civil Society with Social Network Analysis: Methodological Possibilities and Limitations." Geoforum 61 (2015): 56-66. 

[4] Honduras Country Profile." International Security Sector Advisory Team (ISSAT). International Security Sector Advisory Team (ISSAT), 02 Feb. 2015. <http://issat.dcaf.ch/Learn/Resource-Library/Country-Profiles/Honduras-Country-Profile>