Abstract
The mutual influence of smoking behavior and friendships in adolescence is studied. It is attempted to disentangle influence and selection processes in reciprocal and non-reciprocal friendships. An actor-based model is described for the co-evolution of friendship networks and smoking behavior. This model considers alternative selection and influence mechanisms, and models continuous-time changes in network and behavior. The data consists of a longitudinal sample of 1326 Finnish adolescents in 11 high schools. Findings suggest that selection as well as influence Processes play air important role in adolescent smoking behavior. Selection had a relatively stronger role than influence, in particular when selecting non-reciprocal friends. The strength of both influence and selection processes decreased over time.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 72-81 |
| Journal | Social Networks |
| Volume | 32 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jan 2010 |
Keywords
- Smoking
- Adolescents
- Selection
- Influence
- Friends
- Reciprocity
- Sierra