Nan Lin
Encyclopedia
Nan Lin is the Oscar L. Tang Family Professor of Sociology
of the Trinity College, Duke University
. He is most notable for his research and writing on social network
s and social capital
.
, Taiwan, in 1960; his M.A. from Syracuse University
in 1963; and his doctorate degree from Michigan State University
in 1966. He entered the sociology department at the University at Albany, SUNY
in 1971, became a full professor there in 1976 and served as department chair from 1979 to 1982. In 1979, he established contacts with sociologists in the People's Republic of China
and established an exchange program between Albany
and Nankai University
. He also helped organize the first U.S.-China doctoral program in sociology
.
In 1990 he took a position as sociology professor at Duke University
, where he also served as Director of the Asian-Pacific Studies Institute.
A former Vice President of the American Sociological Association
, he has also taught at Johns Hopkins University
. He has worked in the United States, Central America, Haiti, and China (both mainland and Taiwan).
s, social support
and social capital
. He has contributed theory, devised measurements and conducted empirical research in each of these areas. He has applied the theory and measurements to the study of social stratification
and mobility
, stress
and coping
, and individual, organization and community well-being.
Lin has employed both quantitative
methods—such as large-scale national surveys, and surveys in organizations and communities—and qualitative
methods, such as intensive long-term observations in villages, for example.
Having written about social network
s since the early 1980s, Lin contributed to the economically-oriented branch of the literature on social capital
defined by Mark Granovetter
and James Coleman, seeking to establish a research paradigm which integrates theory with empirical testing. His definition of social capital as access to resources through network ties is one of the most widely accepted conceptualizations of the term. This definition of social capital is quantifiable and widely held to be more precise than the one popularized by Robert Putnam. Lin also rejects Putnam's thesis, put forward in Bowling Alone
, that social capital is decreasing; he maintains that it is, in fact, on the ascent thanks to increasingly pervasive online networking.
at the Academia Sinica
, Taiwan. He delivered the Fei Xiao-tong Memorial Lecture at Peking University
in 2008, was honored the same year at the “Re-construction and Development of Sociology in China and Nan Lin’s Intellectual Thoughts” at Tsinghua University
, and gave the Famous Foreign Lectures at the Interuniversity Center for Social Science Theory and Methodology at the University of Groningen
in 2006. He holds an honorary doctorate degree from the National Chengchi University
and distinguished visiting or honorary professorships at many Chinese universities and institutes, including Nankai University
, Renmin University, Fudan University
, Peking University
, Academia Sinica
, Huazhong University of Science and Technology
, Jilin University
, Tianjin Academy of Social Sciences and Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences
. Lin received the Distinguished Research Contribution Award by the International Association of Chinese Management Research in 2010.
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
of the Trinity College, Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
. He is most notable for his research and writing on social network
Social network
A social network is a social structure made up of individuals called "nodes", which are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige.Social...
s and social capital
Social capital
Social capital is a sociological concept, which refers to connections within and between social networks. The concept of social capital highlights the value of social relations and the role of cooperation and confidence to get collective or economic results. The term social capital is frequently...
.
Biography
Lin received his undergraduate degree from Tunghai UniversityTunghai University
Tunghai University was founded by Methodist missionaries in 1955 as a comprehensive university. It is a top-ranked private school and a leading institution in Taiwan. Moreover, Tunghai University was founded as the first private university making it the second oldest university in Taiwan, which...
, Taiwan, in 1960; his M.A. from Syracuse University
Syracuse University
Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
in 1963; and his doctorate degree from Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
in 1966. He entered the sociology department at the University at Albany, SUNY
University at Albany, SUNY
The State University of New York at Albany, also known as University at Albany, State University of New York, SUNY Albany or simply UAlbany, is a public university located in Albany, Guilderland, and East Greenbush, New York, United States; is the senior campus of the State University of New York ...
in 1971, became a full professor there in 1976 and served as department chair from 1979 to 1982. In 1979, he established contacts with sociologists in the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
and established an exchange program between Albany
University at Albany, SUNY
The State University of New York at Albany, also known as University at Albany, State University of New York, SUNY Albany or simply UAlbany, is a public university located in Albany, Guilderland, and East Greenbush, New York, United States; is the senior campus of the State University of New York ...
and Nankai University
Nankai University
Nankai University , commonly known as Nankai, is a public research university based in Tianjin on mainland China. Founded in 1919 by educators Zhang Boling and Yan Fansun , Nankai University is a member of the Nankai serial schools. It is the alma mater of former Chinese Premier and key historical...
. He also helped organize the first U.S.-China doctoral program in sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
.
In 1990 he took a position as sociology professor at Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
, where he also served as Director of the Asian-Pacific Studies Institute.
A former Vice President of the American Sociological Association
American Sociological Association
The American Sociological Association , founded in 1905 as the American Sociological Society , is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the discipline and profession of sociology by serving sociologists in their work and promoting their contributions to serve society.The ASA holds its...
, he has also taught at Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. He has worked in the United States, Central America, Haiti, and China (both mainland and Taiwan).
Research
Lin's research interest lies in social networkSocial network
A social network is a social structure made up of individuals called "nodes", which are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige.Social...
s, social support
Social support
Social support can be defined and measured in many ways. It can loosely be defined as feeling that one is cared for by and has assistance available from other people and that one is part of a supportive social network...
and social capital
Social capital
Social capital is a sociological concept, which refers to connections within and between social networks. The concept of social capital highlights the value of social relations and the role of cooperation and confidence to get collective or economic results. The term social capital is frequently...
. He has contributed theory, devised measurements and conducted empirical research in each of these areas. He has applied the theory and measurements to the study of social stratification
Social stratification
In sociology the social stratification is a concept of class, involving the "classification of persons into groups based on shared socio-economic conditions ... a relational set of inequalities with economic, social, political and ideological dimensions."...
and mobility
Social mobility
Social mobility refers to the movement of people in a population from one social class or economic level to another. It typically refers to vertical mobility -- movement of individuals or groups up from one socio-economic level to another, often by changing jobs or marrying; but can also refer to...
, stress
Stress (biology)
Stress is a term in psychology and biology, borrowed from physics and engineering and first used in the biological context in the 1930s, which has in more recent decades become commonly used in popular parlance...
and coping
Coping (psychology)
Coping has been defined in psychological terms by Susan Folkman and Richard Lazarus as "constantly changing cognitive and behavioral efforts to manage specific external and/or internal demands that are appraised as taxing" or "exceeding the resources of the person".Coping is thus expending...
, and individual, organization and community well-being.
Lin has employed both quantitative
Quantitative research
In the social sciences, quantitative research refers to the systematic empirical investigation of social phenomena via statistical, mathematical or computational techniques. The objective of quantitative research is to develop and employ mathematical models, theories and/or hypotheses pertaining to...
methods—such as large-scale national surveys, and surveys in organizations and communities—and qualitative
Qualitative research
Qualitative research is a method of inquiry employed in many different academic disciplines, traditionally in the social sciences, but also in market research and further contexts. Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that govern such...
methods, such as intensive long-term observations in villages, for example.
Having written about social network
Social network
A social network is a social structure made up of individuals called "nodes", which are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige.Social...
s since the early 1980s, Lin contributed to the economically-oriented branch of the literature on social capital
Social capital
Social capital is a sociological concept, which refers to connections within and between social networks. The concept of social capital highlights the value of social relations and the role of cooperation and confidence to get collective or economic results. The term social capital is frequently...
defined by Mark Granovetter
Mark Granovetter
Professor Mark Granovetter is an American sociologist at Stanford University who has created theories in modern sociology since the 1970s. He is best known for his work in social network theory and in economic sociology, particularly his theory on the spread of information in social networks known...
and James Coleman, seeking to establish a research paradigm which integrates theory with empirical testing. His definition of social capital as access to resources through network ties is one of the most widely accepted conceptualizations of the term. This definition of social capital is quantifiable and widely held to be more precise than the one popularized by Robert Putnam. Lin also rejects Putnam's thesis, put forward in Bowling Alone
Bowling Alone
Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community is a book by Robert D. Putnam. It was originally a 1995 essay entitled Bowling Alone: America's Declining Social Capital.-Summary:...
, that social capital is decreasing; he maintains that it is, in fact, on the ascent thanks to increasingly pervasive online networking.
Honors and Awards
Lin is an academicianAcademician
The title Academician denotes a Full Member of an art, literary, or scientific academy.In many countries, it is an honorary title. There also exists a lower-rank title, variously translated Corresponding Member or Associate Member, .-Eastern Europe and China:"Academician" may also be a functional...
at the Academia Sinica
Academia Sinica
The Academia Sinica , headquartered in the Nangang District of Taipei, is the national academy of Taiwan. It supports research activities in a wide variety of disciplines, ranging from mathematical and physical sciences, to life sciences, and to humanities and social sciences.Academia Sinica has...
, Taiwan. He delivered the Fei Xiao-tong Memorial Lecture at Peking University
Peking University
Peking University , colloquially known in Chinese as Beida , is a major research university located in Beijing, China, and a member of the C9 League. It is the first established modern national university of China. It was founded as Imperial University of Peking in 1898 as a replacement of the...
in 2008, was honored the same year at the “Re-construction and Development of Sociology in China and Nan Lin’s Intellectual Thoughts” at Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University , colloquially known in Chinese as Qinghua, is a university in Beijing, China. The school is one of the nine universities of the C9 League. It was established in 1911 under the name "Tsinghua Xuetang" or "Tsinghua College" and was renamed the "Tsinghua School" one year later...
, and gave the Famous Foreign Lectures at the Interuniversity Center for Social Science Theory and Methodology at the University of Groningen
University of Groningen
The University of Groningen , located in the city of Groningen, was founded in 1614. It is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands as well as one of its largest. Since its inception more than 100,000 students have graduated...
in 2006. He holds an honorary doctorate degree from the National Chengchi University
National Chengchi University
National Chengchi University is a prestigious public university at Muzha in Wenshan District, Taipei City, Taiwan. It is well-known for its concentration on the social sciences, law, commerce, communication, liberal arts and for its MBA programs....
and distinguished visiting or honorary professorships at many Chinese universities and institutes, including Nankai University
Nankai University
Nankai University , commonly known as Nankai, is a public research university based in Tianjin on mainland China. Founded in 1919 by educators Zhang Boling and Yan Fansun , Nankai University is a member of the Nankai serial schools. It is the alma mater of former Chinese Premier and key historical...
, Renmin University, Fudan University
Fudan University
Fudan University , located in Shanghai, is one of the oldest and most selective universities in China, and is a member of the C9 League. Its institutional predecessor was founded in 1905, shortly before the end of China's imperial Qing dynasty...
, Peking University
Peking University
Peking University , colloquially known in Chinese as Beida , is a major research university located in Beijing, China, and a member of the C9 League. It is the first established modern national university of China. It was founded as Imperial University of Peking in 1898 as a replacement of the...
, Academia Sinica
Academia Sinica
The Academia Sinica , headquartered in the Nangang District of Taipei, is the national academy of Taiwan. It supports research activities in a wide variety of disciplines, ranging from mathematical and physical sciences, to life sciences, and to humanities and social sciences.Academia Sinica has...
, Huazhong University of Science and Technology
Huazhong University of Science and Technology
The Huazhong University of Science and Technology is a public, coeducational research university located in Wuhan, Hubei province, China. As a national key university, HUST is directly affiliated to the Ministry of Education of China. HUST has been referred as the flagship of China's higher...
, Jilin University
Jilin University
Jilin University is a leading national university under the direct jurisdiction of China's Ministry of Education.-History:Founded in 1946 as the Northeast College of Administration in Harbin, Heilongjiang, Jilin University merged with many Universities and colleges and changed its name many times...
, Tianjin Academy of Social Sciences and Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences
Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences
The Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences was founded in 1958 and is China's oldest institution for the humanities and social sciences. It is the country's second largest such institution, after the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing...
. Lin received the Distinguished Research Contribution Award by the International Association of Chinese Management Research in 2010.