2025 Simmel Award Presentation

Blueprints of Cohesion and Conflict. Network Structures, Dynamics, and Social Capital

Beate Völker studied social psychology in Heidelberg/Germany and transitioned into sociology during her PhD research (1995), which focused on changes in social networks in the former GDR following the silent revolution. Since then, her work has centered on social networks and the social capital they generate in diverse contexts, such as neighborhoods, workplaces, hospitals, and correctional institutions. The negative potential of social networks also drew her attention, particularly in the context of studying negative relationships in the workplace. Her research consistently explores how social environments shape individual relationships and behaviors, forming a lasting foundation for her theoretical and empirical inquiries.

She argued, innovatively, that weak ties can become liabilities in the context of totalitarian regimes, where trust and openness are constrained. She also argued - and demonstrated empirically - that the COVID-19 measures disproportionately affected weaker social ties, which may explain the rise in feelings of loneliness during and after the pandemic. Beyond these macro-level disruptions, she has also shown that collective efficacy and social cohesion in neighborhoods not only help prevent crime, but also give rise to other-regarding behavior expressed through small acts of kindness.

In collaboration with colleagues in Utrecht, she collected longitudinal egocentric network data, spanning a period of almost 20 years to examine how personal networks and specific types of relationships evolve over time and across the life course. Beate Völker is the scientific director of the Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR). She previously held a chair in social networks in urban settings at Utrecht University and will soon take up a new chair in social networks, cooperation, and conflict at VU Amsterdam.