Assignment 7, Option 1: TEAM

Aside from being a student, my other main social network at Cornell would be with the Varsity Ice Hockey team. Reflecting on Haythomwaite’s (2007) study discussed properties of social network analyses (SNA), common ground and reciprocity.

Our social network is very rich: where contact with each other is highly frequent, everyone knows their roles on the TEAM, seeks improvement and is driven to win. We have obligations with the team almost every day (with a day off a week) that entails on and off ice practices, meetings, extra workouts for people who want to do more, events, community outings, etc. Alumni and past players, and or coaches also still play a party of this community. This social network is obviously, primarily face-to-face based but it also has multiple online communities as well. For instance, many of our alumni are contacted through CMCs as a source to keep in touch, as well as our TEAM site (http://www.cornellbigred.com/News/whockey/2007/10/21/2007%20game%202%20vermont.asp?path=whockey ), listserv within the TEAM, and of course a Facebook group: http://cornell.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2200231068 (which actually has not been updated for 2 years).

As a TEAM our common ground is the TEAM and the goals we have set as a unit. We even have our goals, and attributes painted on our dressing room walls to reiterate the importance of them. Collectively, we also have to pass the same standards to be able to play and are personally accountable for being on time for anything that is TEAM related. In more depth, within this social network (focusing just on the TEAM this year) players are grouped into categories: coaches, staff, forwards, defense, goalies, and “speciality teams” (Penalty Kill and Power Play): where these groups can identify with one another more closely since they also play the same position and understand the roles of that position in more detail than people who do not play the same position.

Reciprocity is a key factor with any sport. Sports deal with a lot of “reading and reacting”: everyone has their roles on the team, as previously stated, however, things do not always play out as practiced. This is when reciprocity will come into play where it is known that if player X was not the first man into the zone when they are “supposed to be” then player Y will take on that role – in which player X will presumably take on the role of player Y. Also, being a part of a TEAM is like being a part of a family where if people do something nice or good to you – that act will tend to be reciprocated. This also ties in with alumni, coaches, and other staff on the TEAM. We get a bunch of alumni support and through the years of doing “Phone-a-thons”, even recent alumni are donating to help the upcoming TEAM, just as the elder alumni.

As I had previously stated, this social network has both online and offline synergies which help tie in the “extended”, not just the immediate,TEAM together through listservs, emails, groups, and such. Let’s go Red!