Resource allocation as a networked process: An experiential social network analysis game

This teaching note presents an experiential classroom activity that introduces resource allocation as a networked process rather than a linear mechanism. Students assume roles within a simulated ecosystem and negotiate resources under constraints of legitimacy, mission alignment, and institutional rules. Their interactions generate a relational dataset for analysis using standard social network measures. The activity is adaptable across undergraduate and graduate courses and demonstrates how inequality emerges through cumulative advantage, brokerage, and path dependence. It also highlights how context and institutional constraints shape outcomes and why qualitative interpretation is essential for understanding how and why network ties form.