FHSS Collaborations: Departmental Cohesion and Inter-Departmental Ties

This project analyzes patterns of faculty collaboration within the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences (FHSS) at BYU using social network analysis of co-authorship data. As part of this research, we compiled data from Google Scholar on the 216 publishing faculty members within FHSS and their co-authorship connections. The study evaluates both internal cohesion and inter-departmental collaboration. Key measures include clustering coefficients to assess within-department cohesion, and degree and strength to capture the breadth and volume of collaborations across departments. Findings indicate that departments such as Sociology, School of Family Life, and Geography exhibit relatively high internal cohesion, suggesting tightly connected research communities. Notably, Sociology, School of Family Life, and Psychology demonstrate high levels of inter-departmental collaboration, positioning them as central “bridges” within the broader FHSS network. Analysis of external ties shows that departments with a higher number of external collaborations tend to also have a wider range of unique collaborators outside of one’s department, indicating a positive relationship between collaboration volume and breadth. Overall, the study highlights meaningful variation in how departments vary in internal cohesion and external engagement. These patterns provide unique insight into the structure of academic collaboration within FHSS.