Leveraging networks to access basic services: Understanding preference for patronage and collective action networks based on housing precarity

This study examines how housing precarity shapes households' utilization of social networks for accessing basic services in urban India. Research across diverse global contexts demonstrates that households facing precarious housing conditions rely on social networks to access services, yet the choice between different network types—and its implications for equity—remains underexplored. Using data from the 2011-2012 India Human Development Survey (n = 13,174 urban households), we analyze how households employ two distinct network types— patronage networks and collective action networks—to access services. Moving beyond the traditional formal-informal housing dichotomy, we measure housing precarity through material housing conditions (construction materials of walls and roofs). Our findings reveal that precarious households demonstrate greater reliance on both network types but show a stronger preference for collective action networks over patronage networks compared to non-precarious households. While socioeconomic factors influence network effectiveness, their impact varies by housing precarity level: precarious households derive stronger indirect benefits from income and education through networks than non-precarious households. Contrary to existing scholarship, we find that caste and residential duration have limited influence on network formation in contexts of material precarity, suggesting that material conditions better explain network utilization than social identity markers or formal-informal classifications. These findings demonstrate how collective action networks emerge as crucial intermediaries in service provision, contributing to multi-stakeholder urban governance models. However, persistent inequalities in network effectiveness linked to socioeconomic advantages suggest that such governance frameworks must carefully address equity concerns.