Why is it easier to bridge conflicting interests in one neighbourhood than in another? Social scientists think that the residents’ social networks may play an important role in the answer to this question. Sociologists and theoretical physicists from Utrecht University have recently created a theoretical model for this complex problem. Using the popular game Battle of the Sexes, they have shown how different social network structures have different effects on overcoming conflicts of interest. The results of their study were recently published in Scientific Reports.