Reciprocated Versus Unreciprocated Sharing in Social Networks

We recognize that some sharing relationships in social networks are reciprocated (undirected), while others are unreciprocated (directed). We find that in unreciprocated relationships transfers are likely to flow from more to less wealthy households, while reciprocated risk-sharing relationships are more likely between wealthier households. We are also one of the first papers to empirically explore predictions from the theoretical network literature. This literature finds that networks of undirected two-way transfers should exhibit high levels of support while networks with one-way flows of benefits should exhibit star-like characteristics. These two predictions hold for the reciprocated and unreciprocated networks respectively