From more than 50 years of research on social networks, we know that social cohesion - the cement that keeps us together - is not based on strong ties but on weaker ties. In a world where everyone has only strong ties, only islands or bubbles exist, social cohesion is low, and society is fragmented. In a fragmented world, we see only those whom we know already and who are like us. How can we escape from such bubbles? Do we need contacts and access to other social circles? Contact to worlds that are totally different from our own one?
I am a sociologist and the director of the Netherland’s Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR). My interest in social cohesion includes the study of failures of social order and social institutions, hence, this is a wonderful place to work on these themes and related research questions. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx