Dr. Matthew Friesen, Bluffton University’s new assistant professor of sociology, will discuss his recently completed doctoral dissertation and a related research method in a Bluffton colloquium on Friday, Feb. 27.

His presentation on "Movements, Majors and Networks, Oh My!  A Snapshot of Social Network Analysis Software and Research Applications" will begin at 4 p.m. in Stutzman Lecture Hall in Centennial Hall. It is free and open to the public.

Friesen will briefly review his dissertation, titled “Parsing the Palate: A Mixed Methods Analysis of the U.S. Food Advocacy Network.” His research integrates social network analysis with statistical and interview data to reveal a portrait of national food movement organizations. He will also introduce and suggest advantages and disadvantages of several software programs that can be used to conduct social network analysis, and share how it might be used in a variety of research fields.

Social network analysis is used by sociologists, anthropologists and others to study connections among different people or groups in society, Friesen says. Such analysis frequently generates network “maps” that illustrate how particular people, villages or companies, for example, are connected to each other via various ties, such as friendship or business dealings.