Taking Stock and Looking Ahead

Abstract This final chapter highlights the core findings and sketches implications. We review the argument and evidence showing that strong bridges—as trusting ties that span structural holes—are both identifiable and crucial to network advantage. These ties are the key ingredient in durable and effective brokerage. We then suggest an origins story for strong bridges, consider possibilities for replication in other contexts, and offer multiple paths for future research. These include revisiting existing studies through the lens of strong bridges, exploring equivalents to guanxi in other cultures, and identifying strong bridges through event-based or duration-based analysis in European and American populations.