Improving business history through social network analysis and data

This chapter reviews and discusses the application of Social Network Analysis (SNA) to corporate networks in a long-term and historical perspective. Starting with the basic concepts of corporate networks and the main research themes it has addressed in business history, the chapter then introduces how historical quantitative archival data can be turned into excel data suitable for the study of social networks by using software such as UCINET or Pajek. The chapter provides some examples of how this methodology has been used at the macro, meso the micro levels: national corporate networks in Argentina, Chile and Italy from 1900 to 2017; local business networks and permanence of economic elites in Southern Italy in the 19th century; the social club memberships, partnership ties, and interlocking directorates of J.P. Morgan & Co. in the early 20th century. These case studies elucidate how SNA can unveil new connections and spark creative thinking that open new research perspectives from the use of traditional sources such as lists of firms and their directors, syndics, managers and shareholders. The chapter also demonstrates how SNA allows researchers to ask and answer questions in a more systematic way than it had previously been possible but in surprising ways to reveal the absence of ties.