information

Examples of information in the following topics:

• Informal Economy

  • The informal economy consists of economic activity that is neither taxed nor regulated by a government.
  • All economies have informal elements.
  • Arguably the most influential book on informal economy is Hernando de Soto's The Other Path.
  • Dealing drugs is an example of participation in the informal economy.
  • Many workers in Burkina Faso participate in the country's informal economy.

• Informal economy

  • An informal economy is economic activity that is neither taxed nor monitored by a government and is contrasted with the formal economy as described above.
  • The informal economy is thus not included in a government's Gross National Product or GNP.
  • Although the informal economy is often associated with developing countries, all economic systems contain an informal economy in some proportion.
  • The term black market refers to a specific subset of the informal economy.
  • Examples of informal economic activity include: the sale and distribution of illegal drugs and unreported payments for house cleaning or baby sitting.

• Informal Structure

  • Certain values are usually already held in common among informal group members.
  • For example, a college management class of 50 students may contain several informal groups that constitute the informal organization within the formal structure of the class.
  • For example, a college management class of 50 students may contain several informal groups that constitute the informal organization within the formal structure of the class.
  • Third, the informal group develops a communication channel to keep its members informed about what management actions will affect them in various ways.
  • Many astute managers use the grapevine to "informally" convey certain information about company actions and rumors.

• Confidentiality

  • Even seemingly trivial information should be kept safe, because it is impossible to predict what the repercussions would be in the event that this information becomes public.
  • Unless subjects specifically and explicitly give their consent to be associated with the published information, no real names or identifying information of any kind should be used.
  • It is the obligation of the researcher to protect the private information of the research subjects, particularly when studying sensitive and controversial topics like deviance, the results of which may harm the participants if they were to be personally identified.
  • By ensuring the safety of sensitive information, researchers ensure the safety of their subjects.
  • This form, from 1920, has been released because the information contained is too old to have any likely consequences for people who are still alive.

• Optimization by Tabu search

  • The first class (actor 7) has dense sending ties to the third (actors 5 and 2); and receives information from all three other classes.
  • The second, and largest, class sends information to the first and the third class, and receives information from the third class.
  • The third class (5 and 2) send information to the first and second class, as well as among themselves; they receive information from the second class.
  • how good is the fit of this simplification into equivalence classes in summarizing the information about all the nodes?
  • Figure 13.16 Optimized four-block solution for structural equivalence of Knoke information network.

• Role algebras for multiplex data

  • When we multiply the information matrix by its transpose and take Boolean products, we are identifying linkages like "sends information to a node that sends information to..."
  • When we multiply the information matrix times the money matrix, we are identifying the relationship: "sends information to a node that sends money to..."
  • Relation 3 is a compound of information with itself; relation four is the compound of information with money, etc.
  • Matrix 3 is the compound of information with information -- which actors are tied by a relationship "Ego sends information to someone who sends information to Alter?"
  • That is, I may send money, and receive information; I may send information, and receive money.

• An example: Knoke's information exchange

  • In this chapter, we will look at a single directed binary network that describes the flow of information among 10 formal organizations concerned with social welfare issues in one mid-western U.S. city (Knoke and Burke).
  • Still, it can be rather surprising how much information can be "squeezed out" of a single binary matrix by using basic graph concepts.
  • Figure 7.1 shows the di-graph (directed graph) for the Knoke information exchange data:
  • If you look closely, you can see that some actor's connections are likely to be reciprocated (that is, if A shares information with B, B also shares information with A); some other actors (e.g. 6 and 10, are more likely to be senders than receivers of information).
  • As we mentioned in the chapter on using matrices to represent networks, the row is treated as the source of information and the column as the receiver.

• Postindustrial Societies: The Birth of the Information Age

  • In the "Information Age," individuals can transfer and have instant access to information, leading to a profound economic transformation.
  • The Information Age is a concept that characterizes the current age by the ability of individuals to transfer information freely and have instant access to information that would have been difficult or impossible to access in the past.
  • The idea is linked to the concept of a digital age or digital revolution, as most of this information is instantaneously available online.
  • It carries with it the ramifications of a shift from an industrialized economy to an economy based on the manipulation of information, or an information society.
  • Examine the impact the Information Age has on the accessibility and breadth of information available to society

• Deviance

  • Karen Halnon of Pennsylvania State University studies informal deviance and focuses on what she calls "deviance vacations," whereby people of a certain socioeconomic status voluntarily enter another, usually lower, social strata.
  • Deviance, in a sociological context, describes actions or behaviors that violate informal social norms or formally-enacted rules.
  • The second type of deviant behavior involves violations of informal social norms (norms that have not been codified into law) and is referred to as informal deviance.
  • Examples of informal deviance include picking one's nose, belching loudly, or standing unnecessarily close to another person.
  • Karen Halnon of Pennsylvania State University studies informal deviance and focuses on what she calls "deviance vacations," whereby people of a given socioeconomic status voluntarily enter a different, often lower, social strata.

• Formal Structure

  • Formal rules are often adapted to subjective interests giving the practical everyday life of an organization more informality.
  • Practical experience shows no organization is ever completely rule-bound: all real organizations represent some mix of formal and informal characteristics.
  • When attempting to create a formal structure for an organization, it is necessary to recognize informal organization in order to create workable structures.
  • Tended effectively, the informal organization complements the more explicit structures, plans, and processes of the formal organization.
  • This deviation was referred to as informal organization.