Social Essay - How Diversity Affects Social Cohesion: A Homophilic Approach

1
How Diversity Affects Social Cohesion: A Homophilic Approach

By Tria Rahayu Ramadhani
Amidst the era of globalization, diversity is an issue that sparks debate amongst scholars.
Some researchers have discovered that diversity is an asset for development as it introduces
different perspectives and ideas to the conversation. While others argued that it instead poses a
threat to social cohesion, as shown in numerous studies. These studies found that individuals
tend to group themselves with similar others in the presence of dissimilar ones. This tendency to
associate with similar others is also known as homophily. Although homophily can stimulate the
formation of close-knit communities, it can also reinforce outgroup bias and further aggravate
social divisions. Understanding this issue is essential to creating a harmonious society amidst
diversity. In this essay, we aim to analyze how diversity can threaten social cohesion as an
answer to the essay prompt: "Why is it important to find things in common with someone
different than you?" using the homophily principle to address the issue. First, I will illustrate how
diversity can endanger social cohesion by creating conflict and social divisions. Second, I will
define the concept of homophily and its impact on social cohesion. Lastly, I will introduce an
alternative perspective on homophily that can reinforce social cohesion. By the end of this essay,
it will be clear why finding things in common with someone different is crucial to forging a more
interconnected and harmonious community.
How diversity may undermine social cohesion can be explained through the concept of
feelings of anomie. It refers to individuals' anxiety caused by the breakdown of societal norms
and values. According to this reasoning, dissimilarities in language, social norms, and values
create a sense of normlessness and induce feelings of anomie. Lack of intergroup contacts and
insufficient understanding of shared social norms give rise to feelings of exclusion and
purposelessness (Smith & Bohm, 2008). This social condition of instability and disintegration
often encourages conflict between differing groups. For instance, individuals from
underprivileged backgrounds might go to the United States of America to pursue the "American
Dream" and fail to meet society's expectations. As a result, they might feel disconnected from
fellow community members and resort to illegal and violent activities (Baron, 2014).
This concept of feelings of anomie implicitly assumes the homophily principle that states
individuals gravitate towards those similar to themselves. McPherson et al. (2001) differentiate
2
homophily into two categories: status homophily and value homophily. Status homophily refers
to socio-demographic attributes such as race, religion, ethnicity, gender, or occupation, while
value homophily concerns shared beliefs, values, or goals. Many researchers held different views
towards homophily within a community. While some argue that it can accelerate the integration
process of a newcomer into the social network due to the similarities among members, others
contend that over time, members of the same community will form sub-groups tied to specific
shared attributes. This constrains individuals in a way that impacts the information they acquire,
the attitudes they develop, and the interactions they experience. Limited resources and lack of
access to diverse information can slow down the development of a community, leading to
stagnation or even collapse.
Due to that reason, Block & Grund (2014) proposed a multidimensional homophily
model with the basis that humans are multidimensional beings. Therefore, one individual has
multiple attributes that can aid them foster association or disassociation with others in social
settings. Another perspective from social identity theory (Tajfel, 1974) supports the concept that,
in the context of a given activity (e.g., human rights campaigns), individuals with a particular
attribute (e.g., human rights activists) may attach less significance to other dimensions like race,
religion, or gender and instead prioritize similarity on the attribute that defines the activity.
The understanding of multidimensional homophily can aid in eliminating the potential

danger diversity has towards social cohesion. From the two categories of homophily (status and
value), we inferred that status homophily is more common in a homogeneous community, while
living in a heterogeneous community more often is inclined toward value homophily rather than
status homophily. Therefore, to combat social division caused by diversity and promote social
cohesion, the right thing to do is to overcome status differences by internalizing shared goals,
interests, values, and experiences within the community. By focusing on common grounds
between differing individuals, group members inside the networks can feel a sense of belongings
in the community, thus maintaining and fostering social cohesion.
Studies regarding the consequences of diversity show results in two distinct outcomes.
One of the arguments presented is that diversity is linked to weakening social cohesion and can
result in unfavorable consequences (e.g., conflicts and social divisions). These studies display
that individuals in diverse communities tend to make associations within social contexts based
3
on similar attributes, also known as the homophily principle. Illustrating how diversity might
compromise social cohesion by understanding the mechanism of feelings of anomie, we can
establish a connection between preventing further aggravation of social cohesion through
homophily (finding things in common). Block & Grund (2014) put forward a homophily model
with multiple dimensions to display that one individual has multiple attributes that can help them
establish or sever connections with others. Another perspective from social identity theory also
puts forth the idea that individual differences are irrelevant in front of the shared attribute related
to current situations. These approaches reduce the contrasting outcomes of one-dimensional
homophily. Therefore, to tackle the negative impacts of diversity and promote social cohesion, it
is right to surmount differences in status by sharing common goals, interests, values, and
experiences within the community. By emphasizing mutual areas between dissimilar individuals,
members of groups within the networks can experience a sense of belongings in the community
and uphold social cohesion as a result.
4
References
Baron, S. W. (2014). Crime and the American Dream. The Encyclopedia of Theoretical
Criminology. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118517390.wbetc125
Block, P., & Grund, T. (2014). Multidimensional homophily in friendship networks. Network
Science, 2(2), 189–212. https://doi.org/10.1017/nws.2014.17
McPherson, M., Smith-Lovin, L., & Cook, J. M. (2001). Birds of a Feather: Homophily in Social
Networks. Annual Review of Sociology, 27(1), 415–444.
Smith, H. P., & Bohm, R. M. (2007). Beyond Anomie: Alienation and Crime. Critical
Criminology, 16(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10612-007-9047-z
Tajfel, H. (1974). Social identity and intergroup behaviour. Social Science Information, 13(2),
65–93. https://doi.org/10.1177/053901847401300204

Social Essay - How Diversity Affects Social Cohesion: A Homophilic Approach

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Social Essay - How Diversity Affects Social Cohesion: A Homophilic Approach

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Social Essay - How Diversity Affects Social Cohesion: A Homophilic Approach

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

1

How Diversity Affects Social Cohesion: A Homophilic Approach

The understanding of multidimensional homophily can aid in eliminating the potential

You might also like