Resource Tangibility and Patterns of Interaction in a Publicly Funded Health and Human Services Network

This article examines a publicly funded mental health servicesnetwork, focusing on the patterns of interaction in five resource-basedsubnetworks. We argue that the structure of network relationshipscan be explained by the nature of the resources that are atthe source of the interaction. Depending on whether a particularresource is tangible or tacit, subnetwork structures will differin predictable ways. We found that the pattern of interactionsamong network organizations in resource-based subnetworks appearsto be dependent on the organizations controlling these resources(the Network Administrative Organization versus network members)as well as the nature of the resource (tangible versus knowledgebased). Our research extends theory on network interactionsas well as having implications for network practice.