Networks and fields

In this chapter, we review some of the key literature on networks and movements. We look first at the issue of networks and mobilization, asking why and how networks can either facilitate or inhibit mobilization and exploring their importance for the diffusion of movement goods. This is followed by a discussion of the role of networks in recruitment. The second part looks at social movements as a particular network form, usually embedded in larger organizational settings (recently and increasingly referred to as “fields”). First, we chart the development since the 1970s in social movement research of approaches looking at collective action fields or related concepts such as areas, sectors, etc. Then we illustrate the variety of network patterns through which collective action may be coordinated within fields. We conclude with a few remarks on how to bring a time dimension into the analysis of movement networks.