Enterprise social network - a proposal for an interdisciplinary, multi-theoretical and integrative approach

ABSTRACT This research mapped how scientific theories discuss different facets of the Enterprise Social Network - ESN. The goal is to provide a study that organizes some of the existing knowledge at the intersection of media studies and network science. As a field map, it is intended to think of several types of links involved in a relational perspective on ESN. The literature review identified 15 theories, four were selected: the Social Capital theory analyzes the network's ability to link people to each other; the theory of Affordance analyzes the resources that it offers; the motivation to participate is analyzed through the theory of Social Change; and one of the main challenges of organizations in general, the location of expertise is analyzed by the theory of Transitive Memory. These theories do not exhaust the possible theoretical bases for the conceptualization of ESN, but they have proved in fact appropriate to explain important organizational processes in the search for a more integral vision. Finally, the Conceptual Map is presented with the main key concepts related to theories and their interconnections in order to help create a better understanding of the existing integration between them and serve as an instrument to establish the created knowledge.

摘要
本研究系统梳理了科学理论对企业社交网络（Enterprise Social Network，ESN）不同维度的探讨。本研究旨在整合传播学与网络科学交叉领域的既有研究成果，形成一项系统性梳理工作。作为一份领域图谱，本研究旨在从关系视角厘清企业社交网络所涉及的各类联结类型。
本次文献综述共检索出15种相关理论，最终选取4种展开剖析：社会资本理论（Social Capital Theory）用于解析网络实现人际联结的能力；可供性理论（Affordance Theory）用于阐释其所能提供的各类资源；借助社会变迁理论（Social Change Theory）分析用户参与动机；而针对各类组织普遍面临的核心挑战之一——专业人才定位问题，则采用传递性记忆理论（Transitive Memory Theory）进行解读。
上述理论并未穷尽企业社交网络概念化所需的全部理论基础，但实践证明它们能够有效阐释诸多重要的组织过程，助力构建更为完整的研究视角。
最后，本研究构建了概念图谱，收录与上述理论相关的核心概念及其相互关联，旨在帮助研究者更好地理解各理论间的内在整合逻辑，并为后续衍生研究成果的构建提供工具支撑。