Exeley Inc.

Hallak, M.Ed., TVI/COMS Instructor, Tracy L.

Aguerrevere, Ph.D., Luis E.

Volume 8, Number 1, 201684
Evaluating the Validity of Texas 2 
STEPS
Tracy L. Hallak and Luis E. Aguerrevere
The Texas 2 STEPS Evaluation Tool was assessed for face validity. Thirty 
Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialists (COMS) piloted the tool while 
evaluating children under the age of five years. Each participant was asked 
to evaluate their comfort level working with this population and report the 
number of years’ experience they have working as a COMS. The majority 
of participants found the tool useful for assessing orientation and mobility 
(O&M) skills in children. The Texas 2 STEPS was also found to be user friendly 
regardless of the COMS years of experience. Together these findings indicate 
that the Texas 2 STEPS has the potential to be a valid and reliable tool for 
assessing O&M skills in children with vision impairment.
Orientation and mobility begins at birth. In typically developing children, sensory motor 
functioning: muscle tone, reflexes, and reactions are the foundational skills for gross and fine 
motor skills, posture, balance, and gait. However, many children with vision impairment 
are delayed at the very early stages of sensory motor development (Rosen, 2010). While 
early intervention services are more universally understood to be a major contributor for 
any child with a disability (Pogrund, 2002) few norm referenced assessment instruments 
have been developed specifically for assessing orientation and mobility (O&M) skills in 
children with vision impairment (Bina, Naimy, Fazzi, & Crouse, 2010, p. 424).
The Texas 2 STEPS Successfully Teaching Early Purposeful Skills Evaluation Tool (Brown 
et al., 2014) was designed to be a guide to practitioners in assessing developmentally 
appropriate O&M skills of children between birth and five-years of age. The Texas 2 STEPS 
Evaluation Tool was developed according to the standards set by Smith and Hill (1990), by 
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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORIENTATION & MOBILITY
professionals in the field of vision impairment, both COMS and Teachers of Students with 
Visual Impairments (TVI) from across Texas.
During the development of the Texas 2 STEPS, 16 evaluations and one developmental 
resource were disaggregated and discussed for their relevance to O&M skills. Eight of 
the protocols were designed for the assessment of students with vision and/or multiple 
impairments. Though all skills in the evaluated assessments were considered important 
by the developers, they were not all considered essential skills necessary for evaluation 
specifically related to O&M. Gross motor skills and concept development comprise the 
majority of skills in Texas 2 STEPS. Fine motor, expressive and receptive language, and 
cognition were included to the extent in which they were determined to directly impact 
O&M skills and would be appropriate for instruction by an O&M specialist. In addition, 
age ranges for each skill area were taken into consideration and compared. The Texas 2 
STEPS is divided into two domains: mobility skills and orientation skills. These domains 
are subdivided into 17 mobility skill areas and 10 orientation skill areas identified as the 
categories to be evaluated using Texas 2 STEPS.
The purpose of the current study was to determine whether or not professionals in the 
field of visual impairment believed that the Texas 2 STEPS Evaluation Tool is a useful 
measure of O&M skills for children with vision impairment. Results of this investigation 
will serve as a first step in testing a valid measure of O&M in children birth through five 
years and children with vision and multiple impairments. Results will also be used to drive 
revision in the evaluation tool.
METHOD
Participants
During the presentations at Texas Association for Education and Rehabilitation of Blind 
and Visually Impaired (TXAER) Conference (March 2014) and Association for Education 
and Rehabilitation of Blind and Visually Impaired (AER) International Conference (July 
2014), COMS were asked to volunteer to pilot the Texas 2 STEPS Evaluation Tool. Twenty 
Texas Educational Service Centers (ESC) sent information to COMS in their regions 
requesting volunteers. Individuals were solicited using the American Foundation for 
the Blind (AFB) Directory of Services for each state. Individual universities with COMS 
programs were sent information regarding the Texas 2 STEPS Evaluation Tool that required 
distribution to the COMS.
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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORIENTATION & MOBILITY
A total of 83 COMS volunteered to participate in the pilot study and were contacted by 
email. Document packets were sent to 83 volunteers. Participants were asked to complete 
a 10-question survey regarding the evaluation tool, including their comfort using the 
tool and the overall usability of the tool. In addition, participants were asked to provide 
information about their experience in the field and conduct a self-evaluation on their 
comfort level working with children aged from birth through to five years, and with 
children with multiple and vision impairments (Table 1).
Table 1. Texas 2 STEPS: Evaluation pilot feedback.
1. Average amount of total time spent on each evaluation.  __________________
2.  Were all of the concepts in orientation and mobility for early intervention 
included in this  evaluation?
Other suggestions  _______________________________________________
Yes No
3.  Did the evaluation cover a sufficient range of skills in all concept areas of need? 
Other suggestions  _______________________________________________
Yes No
4. Was Texas 2 S.T.E.P.S. Evaluation ‘user friendly’?  Yes No
5. Strengths:
6. Weaknesses:
7. Additional suggestions:
8.  Is this an assessment that you would use again?
  Why or why not?
Yes No
9. Would you like training on the use of this assessment? Yes No
10. Overall rating of Texas 2 S.T.E.P.S. Evaluation Tool Low 1 2 3 4 5 High
COMS Evaluation Information
Name:  ____________________________________________________________
Number of years as a COMS ___________________________________________
State of employment  _________________________________________________
Number of years of experience working with children birth to 6 years 
of age  ____________________________________________________________
How many individuals did you assess using this Texas 2 S.T.E.P.S 
Pilot?  _____________________________________________________________
Comfort level working with infants Low 1 2 3 4 5 High
Comfort level working with students with MIVI Low 1 2 3 4 5 High
Comfort level using this assessment Low 1 2 3 4 5 High
RESULTS
Out of the 83 participants, surveys were returned by 32 participants who piloted the 
Texas 2 STEPS Evaluation. Moreover, two participants were dropped from the study as 
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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORIENTATION & MOBILITY
they did not answer enough questions to enable analyses; totalling 30 participants. For 
this final sample, on average, participants completed 2.27 (SD=1.7) evaluations and these 
evaluations were completed on an average of 1.6 hours (SD=0.62). Most were located 
in Texas (n=17; 56.7%) and had an average years of experience of 10.76 years (SD=8.0). 
The majority of participants had graduated from an O&M program (n=22; 73.3%) and 
29 participants (96.7%) reported that they were currently working on a range of O&M 
programs. Almost half of the participants (46.9%) reported high comfort level working 
with individuals with vision impairment who also had multiple disabilities.
Table 2. Strengths and weaknesses of the Texas 2 STEPS.
Strengths
Information on Age/Grouping Use of Tool/Resources Improvements/Enhancements
Age in months (n=7)*
Skills in months (n=2)
Chronological order
Developmental order
Age equivalents identified
Concepts in developmental 
sequence
Easy to use (n=0)
Ease of evaluation (n=2)
Ability to look at each concept
Liked formatting (n=13)
Instructions for evaluation (n=5)
Easy to use to evaluate MDVI
Good for comprehensive exams
Simple areas of strength and 
weakness
Glossary (n=4)
Appendix (n=4)
Skills not previously been 
considered
Physical Therapists impressed
Items not previously known
Only tool for this age group
Effective for tracking progress
Useful because training did not 
cover this material
Ability to see where child aligns
Effective for goal writing
The tool provided good references 
for the evaluator
Weaknesses
Information on Age/Grouping Use of Tool/Resources Difficulties/Hindrances
Not sufficient for MDVI**
Early development is for OT/PT
Needs ‘not observed or age 
appropriate’
Some items ambiguous (n-3)
Needs matrix/scale (n-4)
No scores for verbal/physical 
development
Needs functional vision evaluation
Needs ‘not observed or age 
appropriate’
Some items ambiguous (n-3)
Needs matrix/scale (n-4)
No scores for verbal/physical 
development
Needs functional vision evaluation
Long but necessary
Impractical to find all positions
Finding time
Finding the environment
Needs guidelines for qualification 
for services
Unsure how to use all of the 
information
(n=x) is the number of participants with the same comments
MDVI=multiply disabled & visually impaired
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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORIENTATION & MOBILITY
Participants reported that the Texas 2 STEPS was user friendly (n=28; 93.3%). The 
vast majority of participants (n=22; 73.3%) reported that the Texas 2 STEPS was helpful 
in identifying areas of need because it was easy to use, had clear instructions, included 
many skill areas, included basic concept development, and tracked progress. Almost all 
participants (96.7%) reported that they would use it again. On a scale of 1 (not useful) to 
5 (useful), 26 (86.7%) participants reported the Texas 2 STEPS to be useful or very useful 
(X2 = 17.1, p < .001). However, weaknesses of the tool were noted by some respondents. 
Participants indicated that the layout should be improved by reorganising the sections 
and reducing the increments of each skills level. Table 2 shows qualitative descriptions of 
strengths and weaknesses of the tool.
DISCUSSION
Results of the study indicated that the majority of participants found the Texas 2 STEPS 
to be a useful tool for assessing O&M skills in children from birth to five years of age. 
Specifically, the majority of participants responded that the Texas 2 STEPS provided 
information that was useful for determining areas of strengths and weaknesses of the 
child’s development as they related to O&M. The participants also reported that the Texas 
2 STEPS identified skills by age in months and years. Additionally, participants believed 
that the tool was useful for determining goals and tracking progress.
While the majority of participants believed that the tool was useful, a few participants 
indicated weaknesses. For example, two participants commented that early intervention, 
and more specifically, early motor development, is an area that should be more appropriately 
addressed by physical therapists (PTs) rather than O&M professionals. Although it is true 
that the role of the PT is to provide therapeutic instruction in movement and restore 
function, the purpose of the Texas 2 STEPS is to measure O&M as it relates to vision 
impairment and blindness, an area in which PTs are not necessarily competent. Hence, 
future revisions of the Texas 2 STEPS should clarify that the tool is designed for O&Ms 
working with children with vision impairment.
Two participants found that some descriptions of desired behaviours were unclear 
though the specific behaviours were not indicated. In addition, some participants requested 
that there be a graph for charting the evaluation and progress. A companion tool should be 
considered, and feedback taken into consideration.
This study has several limitations. For example, it enlisted participants who were certified 
by Academy for the Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals 
(ACVREP). Not all states or agencies require that OMSs be certified. The Texas 2 STEPS 
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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORIENTATION & MOBILITY
was developed by experienced specialists in vision impairment. It might be implied from 
the results that both certified and non-certified OMSs are likely to benefit from the use 
of Texas 2 STEPS as a tool for assessing and program planning for children with vision 
impairments under the age of five.
Further validity assessment of the tool is required using a larger pool of participants. 
Additionally, an accompanying curriculum should be developed and used with the tool.
REFERENCES
Bina, M. J., Naimy, B. J., Fazzi, D. L., & Crouse, R. J. (2010). Administration, assessment, 
and program planning for orientation and mobility services. In W. R. Wiener, R. L. 
Welsh, & B. B. Blasch (Eds.), Foundations of orientation and mobility (Vol. 1, pp. 389-
433). New York: AFB Press.
Brown, J., Hallak, T. L., Johnson, M., Sewell, D., Uriegas, O., Utley, S., Walker, S., & Wood, 
M. (2014). Texas 2 STEPS (Successfully teaching early purposeful skills). Manuscript 
submitted for publication.
Pogrund, R. (2002). Refocus setting the stage for working with children who are blind 
or visually impaired. In R. Pogrund & D. Fazzi (Eds.), Early focus working with young 
children who are blind or visually impaired and their families (p 5). New York: AFB Press.
Rosen, S. (2010). Improving sensory motor functioning for orientation and mobility. In W. 
R. Wiener, R. L. Welsch, & B. B. Blasch (Eds.), Foundations of Orientation and Mobility 
(3rd ed.) (Vol. 2, pp. 118-137). New York: AFB Press.
Smith, B., & Hill, E. W. (1990). The development of a motor curriculum for preschool 
children with visual impairments. Peabody Journal of Education, 67(2), 41-53. 
doi:10.1080/01619569009538680
Tracy L. Hallak, M.Ed., TVI/COMS Instructor, Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, TS, 75962-
3019, USA; email: <hallaktracy@gmail.com>. Luis E. Aguerrevere, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Psychology, 
Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, TS, 75962-3019, USA; email: <aguerrevle@sfasu.edu>.


Evaluating the Validity of Texas 2 STEPS

Deverell, MEd, Ph.D., COMS., Lil

O&amp;M for Independent Living: Strategies for Teaching Orientation and Mobility to Older Adults

International Journal of Orientation & Mobility • Volume 7, Number 1, 2015 7
Editorial
We join Dr. Steve La Grow in welcoming you to the IJOM’s seventh volume. Steve’s 
analysis of our content to date is heartening. When we commenced publishing in 2008 
we expressed the ideals of an international O&M community sharing ideas, research, and 
innovation primarily to improve practice and build upon the great work that had been 
already completed. Reviewing the content of seven volumes, it seems, together, we are 
achieving this goal. For example, the IJOM has tracked a contemporary evolution from basic 
electronic travel aids and GPS systems to the current iPhone through which individuals with 
vision impairment can use a range of mainstream applications to refine and enhance their 
independent mobility. Further, the IJOM tracks the positive development of O&M policy 
and standards in some countries; new guide dog training approaches; as well as important 
O&M skills like echolocation and its eventual inclusion in post-graduate O&M degrees. 
The tracking of progress and improvement in existing research and practice is essential to 
prevent the profession going around in unproductive circles. The development of the O&M 
profession depends upon us asking ourselves: “what’s next?” “what’s relevant?” and “is this 
idea, research, or practice truly useful for a person with vision impairment?”  This is your 
journal available to publish and promote your work. 
Our original intention was to publish this volume after the International Mobility 
Conference 15 (IMC 15), July 6-9, 2015, in Montreal, Canada so that we could share with 
you some of the innovative ideas that come out of the conference and discuss possible 
future directions for O&M. The IMC conference will be addressing such varying themes 
as environment accessibility; intervention for older people; intervention with clients with 
additional complexities; guide dog training; and innovations in technology. However, we 
have received a number of valuable papers which we were impatient to share with you. 
However, be assured that Volume 8 will, in part, contain an overview of the useful O&M 
ideas and approaches reported at IMC 15. 
In this volume the lead article by La Grow, Towers, Kim, and Haneline investigated the 
applicability of the Difficulty with Mobility Questionnaire (DMQ) as an outcome measure 
for guide dog instruction on mobility-related behaviours, for example, identifying drop-offs 
(curbs/steps); crossing at busy or complex intersections. The authors reported that their 
instrument was reliable and valid, making this a valuable tool by which O&M organisations 
could potentially evaluate the quality of their dog guide service. For those interested in 
adding to this important body of work, the authors suggested that the instrument be trialled 
with larger numbers of participants, using controls, together with such objective measures 
as travel logs and geo mapping. 
Keay and associates investigated the applicability of a successful fall prevention program 
(i.e., LiFE) for older people with vision impairment. The LiFE program has the advantages 
of being home-based, incorporating exercises that are easy to use and lifestyle integrated, 
aimed at enhancing strength and balance to decrease the likelihood of falls. For example, 
International Journal of Orientation & Mobility • Volume 7, Number 1, 20158
tightening and relaxing the lower limbs; standing/walking on heels or toes; leaning sideways; 
all of which can  be performed while engaging in daily activities within the home. Their 
conclusions were positive with recommendations that additional research be powered to 
measure differences in outcome measures. The implications of this program are immense 
given that it might assist to reduce the alarming statistic that 1 in 3 older adults fall each 
year.
An emphasis on student O&M occurred across three papers. First, Banda and associates 
used an experimental design to assess the efficacy of behavioural-based training techniques 
used to teach O&M to two students with autism and additional disability. Results suggested 
that training clients with complex conditions will most likely be effective when reinforcers 
and systematic instruction are applied. Second, Perla and Maffit discussed the benefits 
of students creating O&M portfolios when participating in O&M programs. Portfolios 
allow students to track their own effort and progress during O&M. This tracking seems to 
help students engage positively in their O&M by assisting them to reflect on their effort, 
acknowledge their achievements and progress, and allow families to also understand and 
appreciate the student’s progress. Third, De Pountis and Sheriff introduced an adapted 
mobility device (AMD) to a child with congenital blindness and multiple disabilities. 
Using music as a positive reinforcer, the student was able to grasp and use the AMD for a 
greater distance than previously thought possible. These papers highlight the power of using 
positive reinforcers when training and most importantly, reinforcers that have meaning to 
the individual student.
New ideas were explored in the work completed by Holmes and Prentice; and Hower 
and Still. First, Holmes (traveller who is blind) and Prentice (mobility specialist seated 
in an office) described using the iPhone application Facetime during O&M sessions. The 
traveller initiated contact with the mobility specialist when she required assistance, for 
example, looking into a glass cabinet in a shop to seek an item of interest; to have the layout 
of a new intersection explained; to identify hazards in the environment. The implication 
of an experienced traveller with vision impairment initiating assistance from a mobility 
specialist in an office is exciting. For instance, it is resource efficient in that the specialist 
does not have to be with the traveller in person; and it allows people with vision impairment 
to experience even greater independence in unfamiliar environments knowing they can 
seek assistance immediately in real-time when needed. Second, Hower and Still described 
a unique tracking/scanning-program approach to assist people with post-stroke visual field 
loss. Using a display of dispersed sports cones (i.e., 70 brightly coloured plastic cones 
placed on the ground) the authors identified a client’s functional field loss; and overtime 
develop the client’s scanning and tracking skills so that he was able to move freely through 
complex environments. Importantly, scanning commenced from ground level so that the 
client avoided tripping or falling when travelling.
Two papers require readers to question their notion of O&M. First, Deverell and her 
associates presented a set of tasks and measures that might capture the true essence of 
contemporary O&M for measuring program outcome. The authors propose that O&M 
International Journal of Orientation & Mobility • Volume 7, Number 1, 2015 9
is much more that travel efficiency but also encompasses, for example, such elements 
as pleasure, interdependence, and self-regulation. Dodson-Burk, Peterson, and Olsson 
discussed the necessary expansion of O&M, renamed in the U.S as ‘Travel Instruction,’ 
to include individuals with disability other than blindness. In the US, the O&M Division 
of a major blindness organisation adopted a position paper that supports certified O&M 
specialists teaching travel skills to persons with disabilities other than blindness. Such a 
shift in service delivery might have numerous benefits to O&M organisations as well as 
clients who would otherwise not receive this professional service.
We trust you will enjoy these papers and of course invite you to submit evidence of your 
practice, research, and theoretical papers to the IJOM. We welcome letters to the editor – 
please confront us; challenge us; join us – but above all – write to us.  
Desirée Gallimore Ph.D & Mike Steer Ph.D
Editors


Editorial

Lazega, Emmanuel

Networks and Institutionalization: A Neo-structural Approach

Rivero Ostoic, J. Antonio

Compositional Equivalence with Actor Attributes: Positional Analysis of the Florentine Families Network

McCulloh, Ian

  
   
insna.org | Issues 1&2 | Volume 37 | 89 
 
IkeNet: Email and Friendship Evolution 
 
 
Ian McCulloh 
 
 
Abstract  
Network evolution is an important problem for social scientists, management consultants, and 
social network scholars. Unfortunately, few empirical data sets exist that have sufficient data 
to fully explore evolution dynamics. Increasingly, more and more online data sets are used in 
lieu of offline, face-to-face data. The veracities of these findings are questionable, however, 
because there are few studies exploring the similarity of online-offline dynamics.  The IkeNet 
project investigated online and offline network evolution. Empirical data was collected on a 
group of 22 mid-career military officers going through a one-year graduate program. Data 
collection included email communication collected from the Exchange server, as well as self-
reported friendship, and time spent together, over a course of 20 weeks. Numerous attribute 
data on the individual actors was collected from their military personnel files. The data allows 
network scholars to conduct research into the dynamics of network evolution and allows edu-
cators a real-world example data set for use in classroom instruction. 
 
Author 
Ian McCulloh holds joint appointments as a Parson’s Fellow in the Bloomberg School of 
Public health, a Senior Lecturer in the Whiting School of Engineering and a senior scientist at 
the Applied Physics Lab, at Johns Hopkins University. He is the Chief Technology Officer for 
Arrow Analytics, a management and neural marketing consulting firm. His current research is 
focused on strategic influence in online networks. His most recent papers have been focused 
on the neuroscience of persuasion and measuring influence in online social media firestorms. 
He is the author of “Social Network Analysis with Applications” (Wiley: 2013), “Networks 
Over Time” (Oxford: forthcoming) and has published 48 peer-reviewed papers, primarily in 
the area of social network analysis. He retired as a Lieutenant Colonel from the US Army 
after 20 years of service in special operations and improvised explosive device forensics. He 
founded the West Point Network Science Center and created the Army’s Advanced Network 
Analysis and Targeting (ANAT) program. 
 
Please send all correspondence to imccull4@jhu.edu 
 
 
 
 
 
  
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90 | Volume 37 | Issues 1&2 | insna.org 
 
1. Overview 
 
The IkeNet data is from one year of a five-
year strategic study of social networks 
among mid-career military officers admit-
ted to a one-year graduate program run 
jointly by Columbia University and the 
U.S. Military Academy at West Point. 
Most of these students/officers serve for 
two to three years as tactical officers at 
West Point following completion of their 
master’s degree program. Tactical officers 
are responsible for overseeing the cadet 
chain of command at the U.S. Military 
Academy and for providing the primary 
leadership training for cadets. 
This data focuses on friendship 
formation and evolution during the first 20 
weeks of their program. The stu-
dents/officers were recruited for this study 
on the first morning of their graduate pro-
gram, prior to meeting other participants 
for the first time, although some subjects 
may have had random interaction with 
each other in the past. The first network 
survey was collected during that morning, 
and then weekly for the following time pe-
riods. One subject out of 22 chose not to 
participate in this study. The response rate 
on self-reported survey data among the 
participants was 97%, which creates a 92% 
overall response rate. Email data was cap-
tured at the exchange server, therefore that 
response rate is 100%. This presents a 
unique data set for exploration of friend-
ship formation, multi-level network analy-
sis, longitudinal network analysis, and 
comparison between email and face-to-
face networks. 
 
2. Data Collection 
 
Social network data was collected on a 
group of 21 mid-career officers in the U.S. 
Military. The officers were all enrolled in 
the Eisenhower Leadership Development 
Program (ELDP) where they complete a 
one-year graduate program administered 
jointly by Columbia University and the 
U.S. Military Academy. Social networks 
included self-reported friendship, time 
spent together, and email communication 
collected from the central email exchange 
server (Ring et al., 2008). Data was col-
lected beginning on the first day that the 
officers reported for duty and met each 
other for the first time. They were all given 
blackberries that allowed them to be con-
nected to their military email accounts to 
facilitate email communication for the 
purpose of the project.  
The specific year of this data is in-
tentionally omitted to protect the privacy 
of the respondents. The “IkeNet” project 
was conducted over five years from 2006 
to 2011. In this particular year, 21 of 22 of-
ficers in the program consented to be par-
ticipants in this project. All data from the 
non-consenting officer were removed to 
protect their privacy. The U.S. Army and 
the West Point Institutional Review Boards 
approved this research. 
 Surveys were conducted on a week-
ly schedule, collecting network data on 
friendship and time spent together for 20 
weeks. The boundary of the network was 
defined using a realist approach (Wasser-
man and Faust, 1994; McCulloh et al., 
2013). The boundaries in this experiment 
were the members of the Eisenhower 
Leadership Development Program 
(ELDP). This group consisted of 21 offic-
ers. Two of the officers were women and 
19 were men. One of the men was a U.S. 
Coast Guard officer, while the other 20 of-
ficers were in the U.S. Army. There were 
17 Caucasian officers to include the two 
women. Three of the officers were Black 
and one was Asian. The ages of the offic-
ers ranged from 26 to 33, with most offic-
ers aged 30. 
Attribute data was collected on the 
participants from their officer record brief 
(ORB). The ORB contains a wealth of in-
formation on the officers. Six officers to 
include the two women were Roman Cath-
olic. 12 officers were of various protestant 
Christian denominations. For the purpose 
of this study, they were coded as 
protestant. This decision was made, be-
cause on military installations all 
protestant faiths meet in a non-
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insna.org | Issues 1&2  | Volume 37 | 91 
 
denominational protestant service, while 
Roman Catholics meet in a different ser-
vice. Therefore, it is likely that if 
protestant officers attend church, they are 
likely to attend the same church regardless 
of their specific denomination. One officer 
was Buddhist, one had no preference re-
ported for religion, and no data was availa-
ble for the Coast Guard officer.  
Several experiments have recently 
been run out of West Point concerning the 
formation of email networks. Two collec-
tion methods identified include decentral-
ized, client-side collection and a central-
ized collection of messages from the mail 
server (Ring et al., 2008). The IkeNet stud-
ies conducted at West Point have demon-
strated findings that favor a centralized da-
ta collection method over a client-side 
method (McCulloh and Ring, 2008). Addi-
tionally, research has been conducted on 
how to unobtrusively collect these net-
works to reduce respondent burden 
(McCulloh and Ring, 2008).  
The source and time of commission 
was also collected from the ORB. Nine of-
ficers to include the two women were 
graduates of the U.S. Military Academy. 
The Coast Guard officer was a graduate of 
the Coast Guard Academy. Eight officers 
were commissioned through the Reserve 
Officer Training Corps (ROTC) and the 
remaining three were commissioned 
through Officer Candidate School (OCS). 
The military tracks officer promotions and 
career management by year groups. There-
fore, each officer’s year group was also 
recorded. One officer was commissioned 
in 2000, 11 in 2001, seven in 2002, one in 
2003, and the Coast Guard officer was 
commissioned in 2005.  
Another important attribute for so-
cial interaction may be competence or ex-
perience. The undergraduate grade point 
average (GPA) was collected for each of-
ficer from his or her application to the 
graduate program. The GPA ranged from 
2.3 to 4.0 with an average GPA of 3.05 and 
a standard deviation of 0.51. For experi-
ence, the number of months an officer 
spent in command was recorded from their 
ORB. Command is the “key developmental 
job” (KD) for a captain and is an experien-
tial requirement that an officer must com-
plete prior to being admitted into the 
ELDP program. The only exception is for 
the Coast Guard officer who must meet 
different career milestones respective to 
his military branch of service. The maxi-
mum time any officer spent in command 
was 32 months and the minimum time was 
13 months. The average was 23.2 with a 
standard deviation of 6.1. 
Each week the officers completed 
two surveys: friendship and time spent to-
gether. There was a 97% response rate 
among participants. With one out of 22 of-
ficers choosing not to participate, the over-
all response rate was 92%. In the cases of 
non-response, the dyadic rating between 
the preceding and proceeding weeks did 
not change, so it was simple to interpolate 
the missing data. Unfortunately, there was 
no indicator coded in the data for where 
this occurred. The missing data were ran-
dom and believed to be due to oversight. 
Given that the omission was not discov-
ered for about a week and that the ratings 
for those omissions did not change, there 
was no attempt to go back to respondents 
to correct their response. 
The friendship survey question 
asked respondents, “Please rate how well 
you like the other members of your ELDP 
cohort according to the following scale:” 
The scale was a seven-point Likert scale as 
follows: 
 
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Coded Rating (this is what was shown to respondents) 
1 “I strongly dislike this person” 
2 “I do not care for this person” 
3 “I am neutral toward this person” 
4 “I like this person” 
5 “This person is one of my better friends at this duty station” 
6 “This person is one of my better friends overall” 
7 “I consider this person one of my closest friends” 
 
The time spent together survey 
question asked respondents, “Please rate 
the time you spend with the other members 
 
of your ELDP cohort according to the fol-
lowing scale:” The scale was a seven-point 
Likert scale as follows: 
 
 
Coded Rating (this is what was shown to respondents) 
1 “I avoid this person” 
2 “I associate with this person only for official business at work” 
3 “I socialize with this person at work” 
4 “I occasionally (monthly) get together with this person outside of work” 
5 “I regularly (weekly) get together with this person outside of work” 
6 “I regularly (weekly) spend time with this person at their/my home” 
7 “I go on pass/leave [vacation] with this person” 
 
This project collected a rich group 
of networks surrounding 21 mid-career 
Army officers. Three networks were col-
lected from the participants: friendship, 
email and the time spent together. The 
friendship and time spent together were 
collected through the use of questionnaires 
on a weekly basis. The email network was 
collected at the server level and only col-
lected the header information of emails 
(Ring et al., 2008).   
 
 
3. Data Files and Formats 
 
The data are provided as flat comma sepa-
rated value files. The file “Attributes.csv” 
provides the attribute data. There are 34 
columns in this file, corresponding to dif-
ferent attributes and described by the table 
below. 
 
 
 
 
Column Attribute Description 
A long tour Number of overseas assignments the officer has had that exceed 
one year 
B short tour Number of overseas assignments the officer has had that are one 
year or less 
C commands Number of command assignments the officer has had 
D birthplace Officer’s state of birth 
E branch Two letter designation of the officers career field 
F Cbt Tour Number of combat deployments completed 
G Kids Number of children the officer lists as dependents 
H CmdMos Number of months spent in command assignments 
I comm Source of commission: United States Military Academy (US-
MA), Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC), or Officer Candi-
date School (OCS) 
J followon Follow-on assignment after officer finishes program 
IkeNet: Email and Friendship Evolution   Connections
   
insna.org | Issues 1&2  | Volume 37 | 93 
 
Column Attribute Description 
K GPA Undergraduate GPA on program application 
L GRE1 Verbal score on graduate record exam from application 
M GRE2 Math score on graduate record exam from application 
N height Height, in inches 
O HOR State listed as home of record 
P lang1 Secondary language after English 
Q lang2 Tertiary language after English 
R marital Marital status: single, married, or divorced 
S OPNTour Number of operational deployments, not classified as combat 
T Race Caucasian (C), Black (B), and Asian (A) 
U Religion Religion as reported in personnel file 
V Rest Tour Unknown – Included in personnel file 
W sex Sex 
X skill1 Additional skill identifier to denote certain skills used in assign-
ment decisions, such as paratrooper or ranger. 
Y skill2 As above 
Z skill3 As above 
AA skill4 As above 
AB skill5 As above 
AC spousebirth Spouse’s location of birth 
AD state State of residence on record for tax purposes 
AE Undergrad 
Major 
Academic major studied in undergraduate program 
AF Undergrad 
School 
Name of the undergraduate academic institution 
AG Weight Officer’s weight in pounds 
AH YG Officer’s year group, usually the year they commissioned 
 
The email network data is con-
tained in files “email01.csv”, 
“email02.csv”, …, “email20.csv” corre-
sponding to weeks one through 20. Each 
csv contains an adjacency matrix, where 
the elements of the matrix represent the 
number of email messages sent from the 
row element to the column element. The 
ordering of the rows and columns are con-
sistent with the ordering of attributes in the 
“Attributes.csv” file and with other adja-
cency matrices included. 
The friendship network data is con-
tained in files “like01.csv”, “like02.csv”, 
…, “like20.csv” corresponding to weeks 
one through 20. Each csv contains an adja-
cency matrix, where the elements of the 
matrix represent the friendship rating that 
the row element assigns to each column el-
ement. The rating follows a seven-point 
 
Likert scale. Subjects do not rate them-
selves, so “0” represents an N/A value. 
The ordering of rows and columns are con-
sistent with the ordering of attributes in the 
“Attributes.csv” file and with other adja-
cency matrices included. 
The time spent together network 
data is contained in files “time01.csv”, 
“time02.csv”, …, “time20.csv” corre-
sponding to weeks one through 20. Each 
csv contains an adjacency matrix, where 
the elements of the matrix represent the 
friendship rating that the row element as-
signs to each column element. The rating 
follows a seven-point Likert scale. Sub-
jects do not rate themselves, so “0” repre-
sents an N/A value. The ordering of rows 
and columns are consistent with the order-
ing of attributes in the “Attributes.csv” file 
and with other adjacency matrices includ-
ed. 
Connections   IkeNet: Email and Friendship Evolution
   
94 | Volume 37 | Issues 1&2 | insna.org 
 
  
4. Data Details  
Response Rate 100% for email networks, collected at the central server 
92% for self-reported survey networks 
100% for attribute data, collected from personnel files 
Non-Respondent  
Bias 
None. There was no dyadic change from the data collected in the pre-
ceding and following time periods for the few cases of missing data, 
allowing easy interpolation of data 
Theoretical  
Grouping 
N/A 
Publication Using 
These Data 
None to date 
Data Context Friendship formation among a group of mid-career military officers in 
a one-year graduate school program 
Respondents Mid-career military officers in the Eisenhower Leadership Develop-
ment Program of the US Army and Columbia University 
Longitudinal The first 14 weeks of the program. 
Temporality Multiple ties are recorded between actors on a weekly basis. Assign-
ment cycles typically involved major assignments due every other 
week.  
Analytical or  
Pedagogical Utility 
 Longitudinal network data with 14 time periods 
 Multi-level networks with three relations: self-reported friend-
ship, self-reported time spent together, email 
 Network evolution, capturing data as the actors meet for the 
first time 
 Node and edge covariates 
Known Issues  
 
References 
 
McCulloh, I., Armstrong, H. & Johnson, A.N. (2013). 
Social Network Analysis With Applications. Hobo-
ken, NJ: Wiley. 
McCulloh, I. & Ring, B. (2008). Unobtrusive Social 
Network Data from E-mail. In Proceedings, 26th 
Army Science Conference. Orlando, FL.  
Ring, B., Henderson, S., & McCulloh, I. (2008). Gath-
ering and Studying Email Traffic to Understand 
Social Networks. In H.R. Arabnia & R.R. Hashe-
mi (Eds.), Proceedings of The 2008 International 
Conference On Information & Knowledge Engi-
neering (pp. 338-343). Las Vegas: CSREA Press. 
Wasserman, S., & Faust, K. (1994). Social network 
analysis: Methods and applications (Vol. 8). 
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 


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