In June 2011 the ValueNetworks firm (value network analysis/VNA) was abruptly dissolved. The reason was no customers and debt. Another reason was a flawed/absent philosophical underpinning.

ValueNetworks had vague, undisciplined notions of axiology. The firm’s unusual focus on intangibles was a certain form of malignant solipsism. VNA output/artifacts amounted to caricatures of business activities. The firm’s product offering was a bombastic notion of ‘Insight.’ The VNA method consisted of turgid, ad hoc phenomenology mostly.

In addition, the few, waning VNA practitioners were dismissive of social network analysis (SNA). They were disdainful of network structure in particular. Bottom line: there were simply no benefits or advantages of ValueNetworks or VNA for business. Hence, there were no customers and non-existent commercial pull-through.

Meanwhile, during the same timeframe (2007-2011), ‘Business SNA’ or ‘SNA for Business’ has experienced exponential growth across virtually all commercial industries, governments, militaries and civil societies worldwide. See --

https://sites.google.com/site/businesssna/

Note to mention the explosion in university research centers --

http://networksingularity.com/2009/09/17/network-research-centers.aspx

These events raise questions concerning the Philosophy of SNA. (The question is specifically concerning social network analysis NOT social networks.)

Does anyone have articles, papers, pointers or opinions on the Philosophy of SNA? In particular, from a contemporary philosophical perspective, how does SNA create meaning and make sense? How do realism, nominalism, rationalism, empiricism, skepticism, idealism, pragmatism, phenomenology, certainty, existentialism, structuralism, post-structuralism, etc., influence, guide or otherwise impact SNA?

Any/all help is welcome. Responses and references will be curated in this blog.