The evolution of collaborative networks: A social network analysis of Chinese environmental protection policy
| Author | Yanwei Li,Jing Huang |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/09520767211034664 |
| Published date | 01 January 2023 |
| Date | 01 January 2023 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Article
The evolution of
collaborative networks:
A social network
analysis of Chinese
environmental
protection policy
Yanwei Li
Department of Public Administration, School of Public
Management, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing City,
China
Jing Huang
Department of Public Administration, School of
Government, Nanjing University, Nanjing City, China
Abstract
Interagency collaboration helps governments to better resolve various complex soci-
etal problems. This contribution examines the mechanisms underlying the collaboration
of disparate national government agencies engaged in Chinese environmental protec-
tion. We test three dominant mechanisms, namely, the institutionalization of collabo-
rative networks, resource interdependence and exchange, and preferential attachment.
It is concluded that a collaborative network over time becomes cohesive, that national
government agencies prefer to collaborate with popular agencies and tend to collab-
orate with those whose resources are different from their own, and that popular
agencies tend to maintain their core positions over time. Our study enriches the cur-
rent governance and policy literature through adding building blocks for the evolution
of collaborative network and network partner selection.
Corresponding author:
Jing Huang, Department of Public Administration, Nanjing University, Nanjing City 210023, China.
Email: hj070495@outlook.com
Public Policy and Administration
!The Author(s) 2021
Article reuse guidelines:
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DOI: 10.1177/09520767211034664
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2023, Vol. 38(1) 34–57
Li and Huang 35
Keywords
China, collaborative network, dynamic evolution, environmental protection, exponen-
tial random graph model, social network analysis
Introduction
Governance and policy scholars all agree that interagency collaboration helps
governors to better resolve various complex societal problems, such as environ-
mental protection, elder care, energy provision, education, poverty, crime, and
youth care (Agranoff, 2012; Bardach, 2001; Bouckaert et al., 2010; Busuioc,
2015; Daley, 2009; Erridge and Greer, 2000; Mu et al., 2018; Peters, 1998).
However, some authors have suggested that interagency collaboration is not an
easy task to accomplish (Molenveld et al., 2019). The trend toward decentraliza-
tion, for instance, may hinder this (Peters, 1998), and agencies’ tendency to main-
tain autonomy or protect their turf creates many difficulties for interagency
collaboration (Daley, 2009). Erridge and Greer (2000) explicitly proposed that
“departments have strong organisational values, as well as being individually
accountable, which created an in-built resistance to co-ordination and caused dif-
ficulties in implementation” (p.36).
Interagency collaboration often takes place in a network-like context, in which
various agencies with different perspectives, interests, and goals interact with one
another to jointly influence the evolution of the network (Klijn et al., 2010; Liu
et al., 2016). The relationships of various agencies might undergo changes over the
life of their collaborative network (Lee et al., 2012). Initially, agencies might be
unfamiliar with one another. Over time, they may formulate a close relationship,
or their relationship might become adversarial as their network evolves.
Furthermore, agencies in collaborative networks tend to choose their potential
partners strategically, with the aim of maximizing their own interests (Lee et al.,
2012). Scholars have suggested that it is necessary to uncover network partner
selection mechanisms to better advance the emergence of collaboration (Berardo
and Scholz, 2010). To date, few studies have systematically investigated this. This
raises an interesting question: how can we understand the evolution of collaborative
networks and the selection of network partners? To answer this question, we
adopted the social network analysis (SNA) approach to analyze the evolution of
collaborative networks and the selection of network partners by Chinese national
government agencies engaged in environmental protection. Our study contributes
to existing governance theory through adding building blocks to identify the mech-
anisms underlying the evolution of collaborative networks and the selection of
network partners.
The remainder of this contribution is structured as follows. In the next section,
the theories and hypotheses are elaborated. After that, information is given regard-
ing the collaborative network in Chinese environmental protection, and the data
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