Social Influence Networks and Collective Preferences: Uniqueness, Intervention, and Path Dependence

We study social preference aggregation when individuals are shaped by peer influence. The stationary distribution of an iterated influence process governs outcomes across three regimes. First, with stable core identities, the network endogenously generates a unique, invariant collective preference, resolving Harsanyi's undetermined weights. Second, this consensus is susceptible to strategic reshaping: egotistical agents can unilaterally maximize their influence, while a centralized intermediary can steer the aggregate outcome within a strictly bounded convex domain. Finally, if core anchors erode, structural determinacy collapses into path-dependency, where unanimous consensus is dictated by historical assimilation rates.

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