Network analysis in the study of gender differences

This article aims at evaluating how network analysis can contribute to studies on gender differences as also considered in different ethnic contexts. The article shows how the concept of network can be used in new ways and discusses the theoretical foundations of the two main research traditions in this field: (1) on one hand, the anthropological development of social networks within the framework of a situational and processual analytical interpretation; (2) on the other hand, the development of the mathematical and quantitative analysis of the relations between the individual units of the social system, within the framework of a structural analytical interpretation. The paper analyses some of the most interesting contributions of each tradition to show their differences with regard to theoretical elaboration, investigation perspectives and objects, and methods and techniques. It ends by identifying the areas in gender research to which each research tradition can be most appropriately applied.