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In this contribution to the colloquium, I argue why and how I lost interest in the overall structure of social networks even though Big Data techniques are increasingly simplifying the collection, organisation, and analysis of ever larger networks. The challenge that Big Data techniques pose to the social scientist, I think, is of a different nature. Big Data on social actors mainly record events, e.g. interactions between human beings that happen at a point in time. In contrast, social network analysts tend to think in terms of social relations that exist over a timespan. The challenge, then, is to rethink our conceptions and models of social relations and social structure. I conceptualize social structure and social relations as forces. I propose modelling these forces with regression models for longitudinal interaction data.

Symbolic interactionism is generally known as a theory typically linked with a qualitative methodology. Recent developments in quantitative social network analysis, however, can analyze processes theorized within this theoretical tradition. Thick description can be complemented with statistical analyses of network structure and dynamics, expanding the scope and detail of results. This paper argues that social network analysis can bridge the divide between qualitative and quantitative analysis. Results from a long-term project on literary criticism substantiate the argument and illustrate a major development in social network analysis.

Internet forums are theorized to be important social platforms for peer influence. Current research tends to conceptualize peer influence as adoption processes, investigating whether information received from network contacts stimulate the adoption of a product, service, taste, or attitude. Accordingly, research interest is focused on the first time a product is used. In contrast, the present study investigates mutual and recurrent adaptation between users of an internet forum. This adaptation is theorized to signal engagement in the discussion, which is part of a bonding process. It is essential to internet forum use because this social medium offers no facilities for selecting and evaluating your discussion partners. Using communication accommodation theory, linguistic style matching, and a statistical network model, we analyze style adaptation on an internet forum for the Moroccan minority in the Netherlands. Our results show that posters adapt their style to the style of previous posters within the same thread (discussion) as well as previous posts in other threads within the same section (topic), especially in the case of style elements related to a shared identity. Significant others on the forum—other posters quoted or referenced directly at least two times—also function as style examples provided that they are present in the current discussion. We argue that these effects have wider significance for research into gratifications of online forums for participants and practical relevance for monitoring and moderating discussions on online forums.