Daniel J. DellaPosta

Daniel J. DellaPosta is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminology at Pennsylvania State University and serves as Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) in Sociology. His research examines how interdependent actors collectively shape social structure through network dynamics in political, economic, and organizational contexts.

Education:

• Ph.D., Sociology, Cornell University, 2017
• B.A., Sociology, University of Chicago, 2011

His core research spans Social Networks, Economic Sociology, Political Sociology, Organizations and Institutions, and Computational Methods, with specific foci on Collective Behavior, Political and Cultural Polarization, Innovation and Diffusion, and Emergence. He investigates how network structures shape—and are shaped by—social expectations, norms, and attitudes using historical archives, surveys, and web data. Current projects include historical network analysis of the American Mafia (700+ members across 24 families) to study organizational solidarity, social influence in 2.2 million beer reviews for market valuation, and diffusion process predictability. He maintains active research on U.S. political and cultural polarization trends.

As DUS, Dr. DellaPosta oversees undergraduate sociology curriculum and student mentoring. His methodological approach combines network analysis, statistical modeling, and computational techniques across diverse empirical contexts without specific grant details provided.