Sanctions in networks: “The Most Unkindest Cut of All”

The extensive literature on sanctions has mainly focused on a dyadic interaction between sender and target. In contrast, this paper examines sanctions when the sender and target are embedded in a network of linkages to other agents. The sender can assemble a sanctioning coalition of neighbors to sever their links (execute multi-link cuts) to the target and her allies. Efficacy of sanctions is now crucially dependent on the network architecture. We characterize the structural properties of networks in which a sender can effectively sanction a target in the short run (when links can only be deleted) and the long run (when links can be both deleted and added).