Computer-Mediated Communication Online Communities

Some key terms from Cohen Symbol: the means to make meaning Subjectivity: to each her own interpretation Community: inclusion, exclusion, and … ??? Simplexity and multiplexity: like weak and strong ties 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Community Boundaries Revisited: Facebook Fiasco ‘06 “The point is, you're always presenting the identity you want to present - you never have to worry about the identity you used to present … This morning, millions of students were shown that they can't actually rewrite history. Everything they do, all of the groups they join and interests they state or friends they make - it is all being recorded.” (Fred Stutzman) 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

The Beginnings of Online Community… Or, “Why Usenet ???” The first large-scale online communities were Usenet discussion groups and forums Developed around 1979 No official structure Red Letter Dates! http://www.google.com/googlegroups/archive_announce_20.html Explore the history of all messages on Usenet… http://netscan.research.microsoft.com/ 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore http://www.ischool.berkeley.edu/~atf/images/treemap_all.gif 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

One View on Virtual Communities… Jones (1997) Four Qualities that characterize virtual communities: A minimum level of interactivity A variety of communicators Common public space A minimum level of sustained membership 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

And Another view… (Chromatic, from O’reilly Network) http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/network/2002/10/21/community.html Exist for a reason Users draw other users Users will surprise you A sense of ownership A shared history and culture Role of Mischief Barriers are mixed blessings Discuss the Community Openly 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Social Networks and Online Community “Community emerges where the cumulative impact of interactions among individuals adds value above the level of pairwise interactions” - Caroline Haythornthwaite Responding to notions of Gemeinschaft (community) and Gesellschaft (Society) -- Tonnies 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

The network perspective People (nodes) Ties (edges) 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Ties in a social network Directed or undirected Simplex or multiplex Valued or unvalued 7 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Network Approach to Community Examines interconnections to discover where groups exist rather than determining a priori that a group exists based on external criteria. But is this a community? Or “an alliance, a collaborative work group, a collective, a cohort”? 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

The power of social capital 1 + 1 = 2 Fully connected network: N people, N(N-1)/2 ties Connections grow at a much faster rate (quadratic vs. linear) 1 + 1 > 2? 2 + 2 > 4? Bridge 6 + 6 > 12? 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore Other Community Types Communities of Practice Link-Based Communities Community of practice is “a set of relations among persons, activity and world, over time and in relation with other tangential and overlapping communities of practice” -key is joint knowledge and socialization. Link-based communities, “community as a critical mass of interconnection, existing in a universe of more sparsely enacted connections.” 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

The Nature and Function of Online Groups 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore Shyness Minimizes status effects and status cues – can encourage more egalitarian dynamic, contributions from lower-status people. (More about status later.) 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore Aggressiveness 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Types of online groups (McKenna) Organizational groups Social groups Common bond Common identity Stigmatized-population groups Support groups Common bond: groups of friends, probably strong ties Common identity: Identification with something in common, like a sports team, probably weak ties Stigmatized groups: increased sensitivity to feedback (pos and neg) from the group Is this a comprehensive list of types? 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore Group Dynamics Influence Influence due to anonymous communication; depersonalization *absence* of personal accountability leads to higher group identity…influence of the group norms At the same time, anonymity reduces status and power differences (pro’s and con’s?) Leadership: should be person with prototypical group behavior, but anonymity may interact with this in important ways Leadership Status Power 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore Online communities are neither built nor do they just emerge, they evolve organically and change over time. Developers cannot control online community development but they can influence it. Jenny Preece 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

So what makes a community? Common practices? Network ties? Symbols? Poster to post ratio? Affect-laden relationships? How can we reconcile these different definitions of community? 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore Group Projects: A few more comments and descriptions from us Emailing your ideas to the list, building interest and forming groups 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Common Issues: Problem is too Broad “I want to understand how trust develops on IRC or IM chat programs” “What factors influence the use of an interface?” 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Common Issues: Problem is too Narrow “Do undergraduate students use Facebook more than graduate students?” 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

Some Prior Final Project Examples… A Design Annotation Tool Design Considerations for Collaborative Visual Analytics Yo man, Step Off! (Experiment in adding affect to text chat) 11/27/201811/27/2018 Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore