A Local Method for Detecting Communities

Jim Bagrow, Erik Bollt

Published 2004-12-17, updated 2005-03-23Version 2

We propose a novel method of community detection that is computationally inexpensive and possesses physical significance to a member of a social network. This method is unlike many divisive and agglomerative techniques and is local in the sense that a community can be detected within a network without requiring knowledge of the entire network. A global application of this method is also introduced. Several artificial and real-world networks, including the famous Zachary Karate club, are analyzed.