Marissa King, a Yale School of Management professor and author of "Social Chemistry," discusses the profound health benefits of building positive relationships. She emphasizes the quality and structure of social networks over sheer numbers. King highlights the importance of humor and reconnecting with old friends. She encourages listeners to explore their networking roles—whether as conveners, brokers, or expansionists—and shares insights on how COVID-19 has impacted social dynamics and the need for intentionality in cultivating connections.
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insights INSIGHT
Network Quality vs. Quantity
Network quality and structure matter more than quantity for various outcomes.
These outcomes include pay, career success, well-being, and even mortality.
insights INSIGHT
Network Structure Analogy
Network structure, like the arrangement of carbon atoms, affects outcomes.
The same group of people in different configurations yields different properties.
insights INSIGHT
Network Types
Most people's networks fall into three types: conveners, brokers, and expansionists.
Conveners have interconnected networks, brokers bridge different groups, and expansionists have large networks.
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In 'Social Chemistry,' Marissa King examines the complex ways humans network with each other. The book introduces three distinct styles of networking: Expansionists, who grow their networks by increasing individual ties; Brokers, who connect distinct networks; and Conveners, who strengthen ties among others within the same network. King blends large-scale research with personal anecdotes and stories from well-known figures to illustrate the benefits and drawbacks of each style. The book emphasizes the importance of understanding one's own networking style to build more meaningful and productive relationships, and it provides practical advice on how to do so effectively.
The idea of networking can be fraught. For some people, it might, at times, seem either icky or pathetic to deliberately try to make friends, either in a personal or professional context -- especially since so many of us may be feeling a bit socially awkward anyway, after months of Covid restrictions. However, my guest today will argue that there are profound health benefits to building positive relationships, and she has advice about how to actually do it, based on neuroscience and psychology. Marissa King is a Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Yale School of Management, where she studies social networks, social influence, and team dynamics. She is also the author of a recently-released book, called Social Chemistry: Decoding the Patterns of Human Connection. In this conversation, we talk about: how your social networks impact your mental health; how, when it comes to social networks, quality and structure are more important than quantity; why you’re not as bad at being social as you may think; the importance of humor; how status and privilege play into networking; the benefits of calling up old friends you haven’t spoken to in a while; and she will ask you to consider whether you are a convener, a broker, or an expansionist. This is actually part two of a two-part series that we're running this week about the hard science and soft skills of social connection. If you missed it on Monday, we had an amazing interview with a researcher named Barbara Fredrickson from UNC Chapel Hill. She has a lot of fascinating things to say about what love actually is and takes a pretty broad view of the concept of love. You don't have to listen to that in order to understand this episode, but I think they work great in concert. One more item of business, and it is an invitation for you to participate in this show. In June, we’ll be launching a special series of podcast episodes focusing on anxiety, something I’m sure we’re all too familiar with. In this series, you’ll learn the mechanics of anxiety: how and why it shows up and what you may be doing to feed it. And this is where you come in. We’d love to hear from you with your questions about anxiety that experts will answer during our anxiety series on the podcast. So whether you’re struggling with social anxiety, anxiety about re-entering the world post-Covid, or have any other questions about anxiety - we want to hear from you. To submit a question or share a reflection call (646) 883-8326 and leave us a voicemail. If you’re outside the United States, you can email us a voice memo file in mp3 format to listener@tenpercent.com. The deadline for submissions is Wednesday, May 12th. And if you don't already have the Ten Percent Happier app, you can download it for free wherever you get your apps or by clicking here: https://www.tenpercent.com/?_branch_match_id=888540266380716858. Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/marissa-king-342
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