ECO²SCAPE Social Network Analysis

We collected these data within the research project ECO²SCAPE, a transdisciplinary project within the Research Initiative for the Conservation of Biodiversity (FEdA), funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). The purpose for the collection of these data was a social network analysis among farmers in northwest Saxony, Germany. Our aim was to elucidate with whom farmers exchange knowledge on topics related to biodiversity conservation and knowledge on topics related to agricultural production. We also wanted to know from whom farmers receive support for achieving their agricultural goals and their biodiversity conservation goals. Finally, we aimed to understand how the farmers’ social networks influence their participation in agri-environmental schemes. Specifically, we tested two main hypotheses with these data: • Farmers’ social networks related to biodiversity conservation are distinct from those related to agricultural production. • Farmers’ level of participating in AES is associated with their relations to certain actor groups. The corresponding results are described in a paper with the title “Social network analysis among German farmers reveals potentials to overcome the production-conservation dichotomy in land use” that has been accepted for publication in People and Nature. The data comprise three data frames, one including the various farmer attributes (FarmerAttributes.rds), one describing with whom farmers exchange knowledge and by whom they feel supported (NetworkData.rds), and one that assigns each of the 145 actors involved in the network to one of four actor groups (ActorGroups.rds). We collected these data within the research project ECO²SCAPE, a transdisciplinary project within the Research Initiative for the Conservation of Biodiversity (FEdA), funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). The purpose for the collection of these data was a social network analysis among farmers in northwest Saxony, Germany. Our aim was to elucidate with whom farmers exchange knowledge on topics related to biodiversity conservation and knowledge on topics related to agricultural production. We also wanted to know from whom farmers receive support for achieving their agricultural goals and their biodiversity conservation goals. Finally, we aimed to understand how the farmers’ social networks influence their participation in agri-environmental schemes. Specifically, we tested two main hypotheses with these data: • Farmers’ social networks related to biodiversity conservation are distinct from those related to agricultural production. • Farmers’ level of participating in AES is associated with their relations to certain actor groups. The corresponding results are described in a paper with the title “Social network analysis among German farmers reveals potentials to overcome the production-conservation dichotomy in land use” that has been accepted for publication in People and Nature. The data comprise three data frames, one including the various farmer attributes (FarmerAttributes.rds), one describing with whom farmers exchange knowledge and by whom they feel supported (NetworkData.rds), and one that assigns each of the 145 actors involved in the network to one of four actor groups (ActorGroups.rds).