1. Computer-Mediated Communication
Online Communities

2. 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

3. 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

4. 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!
Explore the history of all messages on Usenet…
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

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

6. 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

7. And Another view… (Chromatic, from O’reilly Network)
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

8. 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
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

9. The network perspective
People
(nodes)
Ties (edges)
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

10. Ties in a social network
Directed or undirected
Simplex or multiplex
Valued or unvalued 7
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

11. 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

12. 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

13. 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

14. The Nature and Function of Online Groups
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

15. 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.)
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

16. Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore
Aggressiveness
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

17. 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

18. 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

19. 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

20. 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?
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

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

22. 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?”
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

23. Common Issues: Problem is too Narrow
“Do undergraduate students use Facebook more than graduate students?”
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Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore

24. 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