The new method of Exponential Random Graph Modelling to analyse interactions in participatory processes of place branding

Abstract

By introducing the statistical network method of Exponential Random Graph Modelling (ERGM) we adhere to the call of Lucarelli and Brorström (2013) in The Marketing Review to think of new ways to analyse and make inferences about participatory processes of place branding. The ERGM is more suited for studying the interactive dynamics in participatory processes of place branding than traditional methods like case study research or regression analysis. ERGM is a relatively new methodology. Only a few scholars in the neurosciences, international relations, and political sciences have worked with the inferential social network method. We show that the new ERGM methodology helps to gain more insights into the social processes and tie-formation mechanisms which generate emergent interaction patterns in participatory processes of place branding. Hence, this article brings a novel methodology to the area of place branding.