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The Concept of Configuration of Interpersonal Relations in a Group as a Time-Dependent Stochastic Process

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2025

Leo Katz
Affiliation:
Michigan State University
Charles H. Proctor
Affiliation:
Michigan State University

Abstract

To explain changes in the sociometric configuration of a group through time, a problem arises of the extent to which such changes may be viewed as the aggregation of part-processes occurring at the level of two-person choice structures. A possible model is a Markov chain in which three possible states are mutual choice, one-way choice, and indifference, one realization for each pair of choosing individuals in the group. Choice data for an eighth-grade classroom are fitted to this model and are used to answer questions of constancy of transition probabilities, order of the chain, and sex differences.

Type
Original Paper
Copyright
Copyright © 1959 The Psychometric Society

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References

Anderson, T. W.and Goodman, L. A. Statistical inference about Markov chains. Ann. math. Statist., 1957, 28, 89110.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Feller, W. An introduction to probability theory and its applications. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.), New York: Wiley, 1957.Google Scholar
Taba, H. With perspective on human relations: a study of peer group dynamics in an eighth grade, Washington, D. C.: Amer. Council Educ., 1955.Google Scholar