This function requires sociometric network data and identifies ties that bridge niches. The preferred format is a named edgelist, although an adjacency matrix with properly named rows and columns is also acceptable. Network information will be matched to organization and demographic information by these names.
For individuals i
and j
in niches alpha
and beta
, if individual i
is in niche alpha
and individual j
is in niche beta
, and i
and j
have an edge between them, then i
spans to niche beta
and j
spans to niche alpha
. However, if i
is in both niche alpha
and niche beta
, i
would not span to beta
because i
is already in niche beta
.