JOURNAL ARTICLES
Tied Together: Adolescent Friendship Networks, Immigrant Status, and Health Outcomes (Demography 2019)
In this project, I find that adolescents are more likely to form friendships with peers who share their immigrant generation status, especially if they are first-generation immigrants. Immigrant youth with greater proportions of same-generation friends are less likely to report several negative health behaviors, such as drinking, smoking, and reporting symptoms of depression. I argue that this pattern may help account for why we observe an immigrant health paradox.
Dynamic Patterns of Terrorist Networks: Efficiency and Security in the Evolution of Eleven Islamic Extremist Attack Networks (Journal of Quantitative Criminology 2019)
with Diane Felmlee and Dave Braines
Here, we consider how the security/efficiency tradeoff shapes the evolution of terrorist networks by focusing on the structural properties of these collectives. As terrorist networks approach an attack, we find that they become increasingly well-connected and defined by higher levels of transitivity. Additionally, highly central nodes acquire even more ties in the years directly preceding an attack.
Peer Influence, Friend Selection, and Gender: How Network Processes Shape Adolescent Smoking, Drinking, and Delinquency (Social Networks 2018)
with Diane Felmlee and Wayne Osgood
My coauthors and I examine whether gender differences define the social network processes of peer influence and friend selection for three different problem behaviors. While both processes explain patterns of risky activities for girls and boys, girls are more susceptible to their friends delinquent behaviors and girls are especially likely to select friends who have similar smoking habits as their own.
Falling Behind: Lingering Costs of the High School Transition for Youth Friendships and Grades (Sociology of Education 2018)
with Diane Felmlee, Paulina Inara Rodis, and Wayne Osgood
Here, we consider how the structural transition to high school shapes adolescents' friendship patterns and academic grades. Results underscore the challenging nature of these compulsory school changes. Students who transition schools between eighth and ninth grade are expected to receive fewer friendship nominations and report lower grades, and these penalties persist until the end of high school.