Nicholas Christakis at Foundation for Excellence in Higher Education Annual Meeting (2024)

Christakis explains his research in his book, "Connected." He explores the role of social networks in spreading everything from happiness to perceived value in the marketplace and sexually transmitted diseases. Christakis articulates that it is not just ideas or diseases that spread but also human connections. Who we are connected to has many subtle yet powerful influences on our lives: from who we marry, to how quickly we solve problems, to whether or not we’ll vote, to why we would act altruistically at the expense of ourselves, to why men benefit more from a marriage than women, to much, much more.