Community structure in Congressional cosponsorship networks

We study the United States Congress by constructing networks between Members of Congress based on the legislation that they cosponsor. Using the concept of modularity, we identify the community structure of Congressmen, who are connected via sponsorship/cosponsorship of the same legislation. This an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physica A 2008-03, Vol.387 (7), p.1705-1712
Main Authors: Zhang, Yan, Friend, A.J., Traud, Amanda L., Porter, Mason A., Fowler, James H., Mucha, Peter J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Community structure
Complex networks
Modularity
Social networks
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Summary:We study the United States Congress by constructing networks between Members of Congress based on the legislation that they cosponsor. Using the concept of modularity, we identify the community structure of Congressmen, who are connected via sponsorship/cosponsorship of the same legislation. This analysis yields an explicit and conceptually clear measure of political polarization, demonstrating a sharp increase in partisan polarization which preceded and then culminated in the 104th Congress (1995–1996), when Republicans took control of both chambers of Congress. Although polarization has since waned in the U.S. Senate, it remains at historically high levels in the House of Representatives.
ISSN:0378-4371
1873-2119
DOI:10.1016/j.physa.2007.11.004