The use of network analysis to strengthen community partnerships

Community partnerships or networks of collaborating public and nonprofit organizations are an important way of addressing a wide range of problems and needs that communities face. In the academic literature, network analysis has been used to analyze and understand the structure of the relationships that make up multiorganizational partnerships. But this tool is not well-known outside the small group of researchers who study networks, and it is seldom used as a method of assisting communities. This article briefly discusses network analysis and how community leaders can use the results generated by this tool to strengthen relationships among public and nonprofit organizations, thereby building the community's capacity to address critical needs in areas such as health, human services, social problems, and economic development.