Understanding the Dynamics of Social Networks

As social networks grow users tend to “cluster” around affinity activities. topics and users. The cluster effect has historically been applied to urban agglomeration, as most kind of commercial establishments will tend to spontaneously group themselves by category

The cluster effect is similar to (but not the same as) the network effect. It is similar in the sense that the affinity preferences of both the medium and its participants are based on each ones perception of the other rather than the medium simply being the sum of all its participants actions as is usually the case. Thus, by being an effect greater than the sum of its causes, and as it occurs spontaneously, the cluster effect is a usually cited example of emergence.