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A Social Relationship Response to a Proposed Coal-Fired Power Plant: Network Theory and Community Change

Local community collective action has been identified as a key ingredient in community response to change. Network theorists suggest that the social network structure of a community impacts local capacity to adapt to change. This paper summarizes network theory and then draws upon a case study of a Western community where a proposed coal-fired power plant has created conflict over the environmental, aesthetic, economic, and quality-of-life implications of the proposed development. Within this context we examine empirically the influence of social network structure on positions taken by local leaders in supporting or opposing the proposed energy plant. The findings illustrate that perceptions of economic development and its impact on the environment as well as network structure influence the positions taken toward the proposed coal-fired plant in the community.