WorldWideScience

Sample records for multiple online social

  1. In-person and online social participation and emotional health in individuals with multiple sclerosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sparling, Alica; Stutts, Lauren A; Sanner, Haley; Eijkholt, Marleen M

    2017-11-01

    Individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) sometimes have barriers to social participation. The advent of the internet has created online support systems for social participation such as websites for individuals with MS. However, minimal research has been conducted about determinants of individuals' in-person and online social participation or how types of social participation contribute to emotional well-being. The present study aims are: (1) to assess the role of access to resources and other determinants as enabling in-person and online social participation, and (2) to analyze the association between social participation and emotional health of individuals with MS. The sample consisted of 508 individuals diagnosed with relapsing/remitting or secondary/progressive MS. Data from NARCOMS registry and data from original questionnaire on determinants of social participation and emotional health were merged. Logistic and linear regression analyses were performed. Individuals with access to the internet were more likely to participate online with friends (OR 5.47, p social participation with friends reported being happier (B = .38, p health and online social participation. Increasing access to in-person social participation with friends will likely have the most positive impact on emotional health. Future research should examine the aspects of online participation that are helpful or harmful.

  2. Enforcement of Privacy Policies over Multiple Online Social Networks for Collaborative Activities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Zhengping; Wang, Lifeng

    Our goal is to tend to develop an enforcement architecture of privacy policies over multiple online social networks. It is used to solve the problem of privacy protection when several social networks build permanent or temporary collaboration. Theoretically, this idea is practical, especially due to more and more social network tend to support open source framework “OpenSocial”. But as we known different social network websites may have the same privacy policy settings based on different enforcement mechanisms, this would cause problems. In this case, we have to manually write code for both sides to make the privacy policy settings enforceable. We can imagine that, this is a huge workload based on the huge number of current social networks. So we focus on proposing a middleware which is used to automatically generate privacy protection component for permanent integration or temporary interaction of social networks. This middleware provide functions, such as collecting of privacy policy of each participant in the new collaboration, generating a standard policy model for each participant and mapping all those standard policy to different enforcement mechanisms of those participants.

  3. Online Social Support for Patients with Multiple Sclerosis: A Thematic Analysis of Messages Posted to a Virtual Support Community

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Masoumeh Abbasi Shavazi

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Background: Currently with the emergence of the Internet, patients have an opportunity to exchange social support online. However, little attention has been devoted to different dimensions of online social support exchanged in virtual support communities for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS. Methods: To provide a rich insight, the aim of this qualitative study was to explore and categorize different dimensions of online social support in messages exchanged in a virtual support community for patients with MS. A total of 548 posted messages created during one year period were selected using purposive sampling to consider the maximum variation sampling. Prior-research-driven thematic analysis was then conducted. In this regard, we used the Cutruna and Suhr’s coding system. The messages that could not be categorized with the used coding system were thematically analyzed to explore new additional social support themes. Results: The results showed that various forms of social support including informational, emotional, network, esteem and tangible support were exchanged. Moreover, new additional social support themes including sharing personal experiences, sharing coping strategies and spiritual support emerged in this virtual support community. Conclusion: The wide range of online social support exchanged in the virtual support community can be regarded as a supplementary source of social support for patients with MS. Future researches can examine online social support more comprehensively considering additional social support themes emerging in the present study.

  4. The Double Meaning of Online Social Space: Three-Way Interactions Among Social Anxiety, Online Social Behavior, and Offline Social Behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koo, Hoon Jung; Woo, Sungbum; Yang, Eunjoo; Kwon, Jung Hye

    2015-09-01

    The present study aimed to investigate how online and offline social behavior interact with each other ultimately to affect the well-being of socially anxious adolescents. Based on previous studies, it was assumed that there might be three-way interactive effects among online social behavior, offline social behavior, and social anxiety regarding the relationship with well-being. To measure social anxiety, online and offline social behavior, and mental well-being, self-report questionnaires such as the Korean-Social Avoidance and Distress Scale, Korean version of the Relational Maintenance Behavior Questionnaire, and Korean version of Mental Health Continuum Short Form were administered to 656 Korean adolescents. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that the three-way interaction of online social behavior, offline social behavior, and social anxiety was indeed significant. First, online social behavior was associated with lower well-being of adolescents with higher social anxiety under conditions of low engagement in offline social behavior. In contrast, a higher level of online social behavior predicted greater well-being for individuals with high social anxiety under conditions of more engagement in offline social behavior. Second, online social behavior was not significantly related to well-being in youths with low social anxiety under conditions of both high and low engagement in offline social behavior. Implications and limitations of this study were discussed.

  5. Online Advertising in Social Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bagherjeiran, Abraham; Bhatt, Rushi P.; Parekh, Rajesh; Chaoji, Vineet

    Online social networks offer opportunities to analyze user behavior and social connectivity and leverage resulting insights for effective online advertising. This chapter focuses on the role of social network information in online display advertising.

  6. Characterizing interactions in online social networks during exceptional events

    Science.gov (United States)

    Omodei, Elisa; De Domenico, Manlio; Arenas, Alex

    2015-08-01

    Nowadays, millions of people interact on a daily basis on online social media like Facebook and Twitter, where they share and discuss information about a wide variety of topics. In this paper, we focus on a specific online social network, Twitter, and we analyze multiple datasets each one consisting of individuals' online activity before, during and after an exceptional event in terms of volume of the communications registered. We consider important events that occurred in different arenas that range from policy to culture or science. For each dataset, the users' online activities are modeled by a multilayer network in which each layer conveys a different kind of interaction, specifically: retweeting, mentioning and replying. This representation allows us to unveil that these distinct types of interaction produce networks with different statistical properties, in particular concerning the degree distribution and the clustering structure. These results suggests that models of online activity cannot discard the information carried by this multilayer representation of the system, and should account for the different processes generated by the different kinds of interactions. Secondly, our analysis unveils the presence of statistical regularities among the different events, suggesting that the non-trivial topological patterns that we observe may represent universal features of the social dynamics on online social networks during exceptional events.

  7. Online Identities and Social Networking

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maheswaran, Muthucumaru; Ali, Bader; Ozguven, Hatice; Lord, Julien

    Online identities play a critical role in the social web that is taking shape on the Internet. Despite many technical proposals for creating and managing online identities, none has received widespread acceptance. Design and implementation of online identities that are socially acceptable on the Internet remains an open problem. This chapter discusses the interplay between online identities and social networking. Online social networks (OSNs) are growing at a rapid pace and has millions of members in them. While the recent trend is to create explicit OSNs such as Facebook and MySpace, we also have implicit OSNs such as interaction graphs created by email and instant messaging services. Explicit OSNs allow users to create profiles and use them to project their identities on the web. There are many interesting identity related issues in the context of social networking including how OSNs help and hinder the definition of online identities.

  8. Digital Social Norm Enforcement: Online Firestorms in Social Media.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rost, Katja; Stahel, Lea; Frey, Bruno S

    2016-01-01

    Actors of public interest today have to fear the adverse impact that stems from social media platforms. Any controversial behavior may promptly trigger temporal, but potentially devastating storms of emotional and aggressive outrage, so called online firestorms. Popular targets of online firestorms are companies, politicians, celebrities, media, academics and many more. This article introduces social norm theory to understand online aggression in a social-political online setting, challenging the popular assumption that online anonymity is one of the principle factors that promotes aggression. We underpin this social norm view by analyzing a major social media platform concerned with public affairs over a period of three years entailing 532,197 comments on 1,612 online petitions. Results show that in the context of online firestorms, non-anonymous individuals are more aggressive compared to anonymous individuals. This effect is reinforced if selective incentives are present and if aggressors are intrinsically motivated.

  9. Social Media Use and Online Political Participation Among College Students During the US Election 2012

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hongwei “Chris” Yang

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available A total of 4,556 US college students were surveyed immediately after Election 2012 to investigate what social media–related psychological and behavioral factors predicted their online political participation. Structural equation modeling and hierarchical multiple regression results showed that online social capital, political self-efficacy, and Facebook group participation were positive predictors of online political participation, while social trust did not directly influence online political participation. General political use of Facebook and Twitter was a positive predictor of online political participation; however, extensive Facebook and Twitter use was a negative predictor. Implications for research and political practice are discussed.

  10. An Exploratory Study on Multiple Intelligences and Social Work Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matto, Holly; Berry-Edwards, Janice; Hutchison, Elizabeth D.; Bryant, Shirley A.; Waldbillig, Amy

    2006-01-01

    This study surveyed social work educators about the importance of multiple intelligences for social work practice and social work education. The sample consisted of 91 faculty members who responded to an online survey that asked them to rate the importance of 7 intelligences (linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, bodily-kinesthetic, spatial,…

  11. Understanding the role of social media in online health: A global perspective on online social support

    OpenAIRE

    Lee, Roderick Lamar; Kvasny, Lynette M.

    2013-01-01

    Around the globe, people are increasingly using social media for the provision of online social support. Online social support may be especially relevant for parents who have children that are afflicted with rare chronic diseases such as MECP2 Duplication Syndrome. Despite increasing evidence that online social support enhances a person’s psychological well-being, there is little research that seeks to understand how and why various forms of social media facilitate social support. This study ...

  12. Online Interactions and Social Presence in Online Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Sang Joon; Huang, Kun

    2018-01-01

    The community of inquiry framework identified three essential elements of cognitive, social, and teaching presences for a successful online learning experience. Among them, social presence is key for developing personal relationships and enhancing collaboration and critical discourse in online courses. This study examined whether providing more…

  13. Online social networking for radiology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Auffermann, William F; Chetlen, Alison L; Colucci, Andrew T; DeQuesada, Ivan M; Grajo, Joseph R; Heller, Matthew T; Nowitzki, Kristina M; Sherry, Steven J; Tillack, Allison A

    2015-01-01

    Online social networking services have changed the way we interact as a society and offer many opportunities to improve the way we practice radiology and medicine in general. This article begins with an introduction to social networking. Next, the latest advances in online social networking are reviewed, and areas where radiologists and clinicians may benefit from these new tools are discussed. This article concludes with several steps that the interested reader can take to become more involved in online social networking. Copyright © 2015 AUR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Link prediction in multiplex online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jalili, Mahdi; Orouskhani, Yasin; Asgari, Milad; Alipourfard, Nazanin; Perc, Matjaž

    2017-02-01

    Online social networks play a major role in modern societies, and they have shaped the way social relationships evolve. Link prediction in social networks has many potential applications such as recommending new items to users, friendship suggestion and discovering spurious connections. Many real social networks evolve the connections in multiple layers (e.g. multiple social networking platforms). In this article, we study the link prediction problem in multiplex networks. As an example, we consider a multiplex network of Twitter (as a microblogging service) and Foursquare (as a location-based social network). We consider social networks of the same users in these two platforms and develop a meta-path-based algorithm for predicting the links. The connectivity information of the two layers is used to predict the links in Foursquare network. Three classical classifiers (naive Bayes, support vector machines (SVM) and K-nearest neighbour) are used for the classification task. Although the networks are not highly correlated in the layers, our experiments show that including the cross-layer information significantly improves the prediction performance. The SVM classifier results in the best performance with an average accuracy of 89%.

  15. Patient seeking behaviors and online personas: social media's role in cosmetic dermatology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ross, Nicholas A; Todd, Quintin; Saedi, Nazanin

    2015-02-01

    Social media sites, composed of providers, patients, and their social circles, facilitate health and healthcare delivery. To examine patients' perspective on social media as an information source, communication tool, and referral service through an anonymous survey. In addition, influences on patient Internet personas, an actively constructed online identity, around the time of cosmetic procedures are examined. Patients completed an anonymous institutional review board-approved survey during their initial cosmetic visit. Patients are highly active on social media using it as a multipurpose tool for physician referral services, support groups, and disease education. Patients gathered dermatology information from multiple sources, including friends, family, social media pages, and other online sources, often sharing their own experiences through social media platforms. Patients indicated a desire for provider educational materials on interactive media pages. Most preferred material written by a physician, but some indicated a preference for both physician and lay material. Online images highlighting dissatisfying skin features were influential to select patients, prompting manipulation of online personas and evaluation for aesthetic procedures. Although the study examines cosmetic patient perspectives, data highlight valuable trends for all dermatologists. Social media can improve patient education, collaboration, recruitment, and online professional image, leading to healthier patient-centered care.

  16. The Relationship Between Online Social Networking and Depression: A Systematic Review of Quantitative Studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baker, David A; Algorta, Guillermo Perez

    2016-11-01

    Online social networking sites (SNSs) such as Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace are used by billions of people every day to communicate and interact with others. There has been increasing interest in the potential impact of online social networking on wellbeing, with a broadening body of new research into factors associated with both positive and negative mental health outcomes such as depression. This systematic review of empirical studies (n = 30) adds to existing research in this field by examining current quantitative studies focused on the relationship between online social networking and symptoms of depression. The academic databases PsycINFO, Web of Science, CINAHL, MEDLINE, and EMBASE were searched systematically using terms related to online social networking and depression. Reporting quality was critically appraised and the findings discussed with reference to their wider implications. The findings suggest that the relationship between online social networking and symptoms of depression may be complex and associated with multiple psychological, social, behavioral, and individual factors. Furthermore, the impact of online social networking on wellbeing may be both positive and negative, highlighting the need for future research to determine the impact of candidate mediators and moderators underlying these heterogeneous outcomes across evolving networks.

  17. CSR communication through online social media

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Araceli Castelló-Martínez, Ph.D.

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Online social networks such as Facebook and Twitter have become essential channels in business strategies. Corporate Social Responsibility communication faces new challenges in these spaces of the Web 2.0, where companies can interact with users, generate a brand community, increase their visibility, and strengthen their position in the market. This research study aims to analyse the way companies use the major online social media to communicate their Corporate Social Responsibility programmes. The methodology involves the examination of the presence in online social platforms and the online corporate reputation of ten companies/brands. The results show that companies use these spaces as channels for business and advertising communication, but not so much for Corporate Social Responsibility communication, despite these social media offer many possibilities for interaction and dialogue.

  18. From Offline Social Networks to Online Social Networks: Changes in Entrepreneurship

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yang SONG

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper reviewed studies of entrepreneurship based on the emergency of online social networks. Similar to offline social networks, entrepreneurs’ online social networks have their own unique characteristics. We first reviewed the offline network based research on entrepreneurship. Then we reviewed the studies of entrepreneurship in the context of online social networks including those focusing on topics of network structures and network ties. We highlighted online network communities based on the data collected from LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Our research implies that both researcher and entrepreneurs are facing new opportunities due to the emergence of online social networks.

  19. Bridging Social Capital in Online Communities: Heterogeneity and Social Tolerance of Online Game Players in Japan

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kobayashi, Tetsuro

    2010-01-01

    This article examines the democratic potential of online communities by investigating the influence of network heterogeneity on social tolerance in an online gaming environment. Online game communities are potential sources of bridging social capital because they tend to be relatively heterogeneous. Causal analyses are conducted using structural…

  20. An agent-based model for emotion contagion and competition in online social media

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fan, Rui; Xu, Ke; Zhao, Jichang

    2018-04-01

    Recent studies suggest that human emotions diffuse in not only real-world communities but also online social media. However, a comprehensive model that considers up-to-date findings and multiple online social media mechanisms is still missing. To bridge this vital gap, an agent-based model, which concurrently considers emotion influence and tie strength preferences, is presented to simulate the emotion contagion and competition. Our model well reproduces patterns observed in the empirical data, like anger's preference on weak ties, anger-dominated users' high vitalities and angry tweets' short retweet intervals, and anger's competitiveness in negative events. The comparison with a previously presented baseline model further demonstrates its effectiveness in modeling online emotion contagion. It is also surprisingly revealed by our model that as the ratio of anger approaches joy with a gap less than 12%, anger will eventually dominate the online social media and arrives the collective outrage in the cyber space. The critical gap disclosed here can be indeed warning signals at early stages for outrage control. Our model would shed lights on the study of multiple issues regarding emotion contagion and competition in terms of computer simulations.

  1. Online networks destroy social trust

    OpenAIRE

    Sabatini, Fabio; Sarracino, Francesco

    2014-01-01

    Studies in the social capital literature have documented two stylised facts: first, a decline in measures of social participation has occurred in many OECD countries. Second, and more recently, the success of social networking sites (SNSs) has resulted in a steep rise in online social participation. Our study adds to this body of research by conducting the first empirical assessment of how online networking affects two economically relevant aspects of social capital, i.e. trust and sociabilit...

  2. Online social network sites and social capital: a case of facebook

    OpenAIRE

    Naseri, Samaneh

    2017-01-01

    The present study is a theoretical and literary review of online social network sites and their impact on social capital. In this review, the Facebook is selected as one popular and important online social networking site in the world today. To This end, first two main concepts of social capital, bridging and bonding social capital has been provided. Next, the concept of online social networks and the impact of FB on social networks are discussed.

  3. Designing Social Online Math Activities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gedeborg, Samuel

    2016-01-01

    One of the major benefits of the face-to-face teaching environment is that social interaction opportunities are a natural part of the course: Learners meet in the same room for the same allotted period of time each week. This social opportunity is not organic to online courses; therefore, to have this social interaction as a part of online classes…

  4. Impacto de la ansiedad social, las habilidades sociales y la cibervictimización en la comunicación online (Impact of Social Anxiety, Social Skills and Cyberbullying on Online Communication

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Raúl Navarro

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available The present research examined online communication behaviour in a sample of preadolescents (10-12 years, n= 812. In addition, we examined the effect of social anxiety, social skills and experiences of cyberbullying on online communication behaviour. Online communication measures included items related to time online, platforms used, relationships and motives to go online. Social anxiety was assessed using the Social Anxiety Scale of Children Revised, social skills were measured using the Matson Questionnaire subscale and cyberbullying using the Victimization Scale via Internet. The results show that the group with high social skills and low levels of anxiety spend more time communicating online and use instant messages to talk to friends. In contrast, the online behaviour of the group with high levels of anxiety and low social skills are more motivated to communicate online by their desire to make new friends. Cybervictims spend more time online, use chat rooms and communicate more with strangers than those who do not suffer cyberbullying. These findings suggest that the Internet offers opportunities to maintain and extend social networks but also exposes young people to online risks.

  5. An Online Discursive Inquiry into the Social Dynamics of Multi-stakeholder Brand Meaning Co-creation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vallaster, Christine; von Wallpach, Sylvia

    2013-01-01

    Brand research increasingly recognizes the active role of multiple stakeholders in co-creating brand meaning and the importance of new social media supporting stakeholders in their co-creation efforts. However, empirical insights into the social process of online multi-stakeholder brand meaning co......-creation are so far missing. This study contributes to existing research by illuminating the social dynamics that characterize multi-stakeholder brand meaning co-creation in a virtual environment. The authors undertake an online discursive inquiry focusing on stakeholders’ textual interactions regarding the UK...

  6. Online social support networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mehta, Neil; Atreja, Ashish

    2015-04-01

    Peer support groups have a long history and have been shown to improve health outcomes. With the increasing familiarity with online social networks like Facebook and ubiquitous access to the Internet, online social support networks are becoming popular. While studies have shown the benefit of these networks in providing emotional support or meeting informational needs, robust data on improving outcomes such as a decrease in health services utilization or reduction in adverse outcomes is lacking. These networks also pose unique challenges in the areas of patient privacy, funding models, quality of content, and research agendas. Addressing these concerns while creating patient-centred, patient-powered online support networks will help leverage these platforms to complement traditional healthcare delivery models in the current environment of value-based care.

  7. Social networking in online support groups for health: how online social networking benefits patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chung, Jae Eun

    2014-01-01

    An increasing number of online support groups (OSGs) have embraced the features of social networking. So far, little is known about how patients use and benefit from these features. By implementing the uses-and-gratifications framework, the author conducted an online survey with current users of OSGs to examine associations among motivation, use of specific features of OSG, and support outcomes. Findings suggest that OSG users make selective use of varied features depending on their needs, and that perceptions of receiving emotional and informational support are associated more with the use of some features than others. For example, those with strong motivation for social interaction use diverse features of OSG and make one-to-one connections with other users by friending. In contrast, those with strong motivation for information seeking limit their use primarily to discussion boards. Results also show that online social networking features, such as friending and sharing of personal stories on blogs, are helpful in satisfying the need for emotional support. The present study sheds light on online social networking features in the context of health-related OSGs and provides practical lessons on how to improve the capacity of OSGs to serve the needs of their users.

  8. Social support and social interaction ties on internet addiction: integrating online and offline contexts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Edward Shih-Tse; Wang, Michael Chih-Hung

    2013-11-01

    This study explores the relationship between social support and social interaction ties on Internet addiction by integrating both online and offline social encounters. A total of 1,642 members of online social communities participated in this research, for which structural equation modeling was used for analysis. The findings show that social support is positively associated with social interaction ties in both online and offline contexts. In addition, online social support and online social interaction ties are positively associated with Internet addiction, whereas offline social support and social interaction ties on Internet addiction are negatively associated. This finding has important implications not only for understanding the cause of Internet addiction but also for understanding the diminishing Internet addiction due to social support and social interaction ties.

  9. The Online Social Support Scale: Measure development and validation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nick, Elizabeth A; Cole, David A; Cho, Sun-Joo; Smith, Darcy K; Carter, T Grace; Zelkowitz, Rachel L

    2018-05-21

    A new measure, the Online Social Support Scale, was developed based on previous theory, research, and measurement of in-person social support. It includes four subscales: Esteem/Emotional Support, Social Companionship, Informational Support, and Instrumental Support. In college and community samples, factor analytic and item response theory results suggest that subtypes of in-person social support also pertain in the online world. Evidence of reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity provide excellent psychometric support for the measure. Construct validity accrues to the measure vis-à-vis support for three hypotheses: (a) Various broad types of Internet platforms for social interactions are differentially associated with online social support and online victimization; (b) similar to in-person social support, online social support offsets the adverse effect of negative life events on self-esteem and depression-related outcome; and (c) online social support counteracts the effects of online victimization in much the same way that in-person friends in one social niche counterbalance rejection in other social niches. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

  10. Information diffusion in structured online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Pei; Zhang, Yini; Qiao, Fengcai; Wang, Hui

    2015-05-01

    Nowadays, due to the word-of-mouth effect, online social networks have been considered to be efficient approaches to conduct viral marketing, which makes it of great importance to understand the diffusion dynamics in online social networks. However, most research on diffusion dynamics in epidemiology and existing social networks cannot be applied directly to characterize online social networks. In this paper, we propose models to characterize the information diffusion in structured online social networks with push-based forwarding mechanism. We introduce the term user influence to characterize the average number of times that messages are browsed which is incurred by a given type user generating a message, and study the diffusion threshold, above which the user influence of generating a message will approach infinity. We conduct simulations and provide the simulation results, which are consistent with the theoretical analysis results perfectly. These results are of use in understanding the diffusion dynamics in online social networks and also critical for advertisers in viral marketing who want to estimate the user influence before posting an advertisement.

  11. SOCIAL INTEGRATION: TESTING ANTECEDENTS OF TIME SPENT ONLINE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lily Suriani Mohd Arif

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The literature on the relationship of social integration and time spent onlineprovides conflicting evidence of the relationship of social integration with timespent online. The study identifies and highlightsthe controversy and attempts toclarify the relationship of social integration withtime spent online bydecomposing the construct social integration into its affective and behavioraldimensions . Thestudy tests antecedents and effects of time spent online in arandom sample of senior level undergraduate students at a public university inMalaysia. The findings indicated that while self-report measures of behavioralsocial integration did not predict time spent online, and, the affective socialintegration had an inverse relationship with time spent online.

  12. Modern Social Support Structures: Online Social Networks and their Implications for Social Workers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kala Chakradhar

    2009-03-01

    Full Text Available Mapping and assessing social networks and the quality of their social support is a valuable intervention strategy for social workers. These networks have now spread onto the digital realm in the form of Online Social Networks (OSNs. This study investigated the nature of social support provided by such networks to their users in a rural mid-South University (USA and explored parallels with the current understanding of social support in conventional social networks. A web-based survey administered to college students revealed that users of these online networks were predominantly undergraduate first year students, female, single, unemployed and from a variety of academic disciplines. The examination of the components of OSNs appears to mirror those of offline networks. They also seem to complement the effects of each other while contributing to an individual's support system. The paper concludes with critical implications of such online social networking for University students and social workers in practice and education.

  13. HIV/AIDS, social capital, and online social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drushel, Bruce E

    2013-01-01

    The prospects for online social networks as sites of information-gathering and affiliation for persons with AIDS and others concerned about HIV/AIDS not only represent the latest development in a trend toward circumventing traditional media and official information sources, but also may offer hope for a revitalization of HIV/AIDS discourse in the public sphere. This article provides an overview of three decades of information-seeking on the pandemic and its social and personal implications, as well as case studies of three examples of social networking surrounding HIV/AIDS. It finds preliminary evidence of the formation of strong and weak ties as described in Social Network Theory and suggests that the online accumulation of social capital by opinion leaders could facilitate dissemination of messages on HIV/AIDS awareness and testing.

  14. Graduate Inquiry: Social Capital in Online Courses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mays, Thomas

    2016-01-01

    As colleges and universities increase their online course offerings, student social experiences in online learning environments require further examination, specifically for nonresidential students who may already be less integrated into college social networks. A social capital framework was used to guide this qualitative study of 17…

  15. Teaching and Learning Social Justice through Online Service-Learning Courses

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kathy L. Guthrie

    2010-10-01

    Full Text Available Creating a virtual classroom in which diverse students feel welcome to discuss and experience topics related to social justice, action, and change is a study in the value of connectedness and collaboration. Through a combination of technologies, pedagogies, and on-site experiences, virtual cultures develop that encourage the formation of demanding yet stimulating learning environments in which communications and interactions are intellectually transformative. This article explores student perceptions of their participation in an online service-learning course while working in local service organizations. Qualitative methodology was used to identify the philosophical intersection at which multiple pedagogies meet: social justice, service-learning, civic engagement, and leadership as instructed in a web-based environment. This study illustrates the capacity for intentionally constructed online educational experiences focused on social justice, civic engagement, and leadership to affect learning and to provide educators with pedagogical best practices to facilitate requisite change in teaching practice.

  16. Exploring Self-Disclosure in Online Social Networks

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    Velasco-Martin, Javier

    2013-01-01

    This project explores how experienced adult users of social media disclose personal information over online social networks (OSN). This work introduces a four-dimensional model to serve as a foundational framework for the study of online self-disclosure (OSD); these four dimensions are personal, social, technological and contextual, and support…

  17. Online Social Networks - Opportunities for Empowering Cancer Patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohammadzadeh, Zeinab; Davoodi, Somayeh; Ghazisaeidi, Marjan

    2016-01-01

    Online social network technologies have become important to health and apply in most health care areas. Particularly in cancer care, because it is a disease which involves many social aspects, online social networks can be very useful. Use of online social networks provides a suitable platform for cancer patients and families to present and share information about their medical conditions, address their educational needs, support decision making, and help to coping with their disease and improve their own outcomes. Like any other new technologies, online social networks, along with many benefits, have some negative effects such as violation of privacy and publication of incorrect information. However, if these effects are managed properly, they can empower patients to manage cancer through changing behavioral patterns and enhancing the quality of cancer patients lives This paper explains some application of online social networks in the cancer patient care process. It also covers advantages and disadvantages of related technologies.

  18. Online Social Networking: Usage in Adolescents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raju, Nevil Johnson; Valsaraj, Blessy Prabha; Noronha, Judith

    2015-01-01

    Online social networking (OSN) has played a significant role on the relationship among college students. It is becoming a popular medium for socializing online and tools to facilitate friendship. Young adults and adolescents are the most prolific users of OSN sites. The frequent use of OSN sites results in addiction toward these sites and…

  19. Using posts to an online social network to assess fishing effort

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martin, Dustin R.; Chizinski, Christopher J.; Eskridge, Kent M.; Pope, Kevin L

    2014-01-01

    Fisheries management has evolved from reservoir to watershed management, creating a need to simultaneously gather information within and across interacting reservoirs. However, costs to gather information on the fishing effort on multiple reservoirs using traditional creel methodology are often prohibitive. Angler posts about reservoirs online provide a unique medium to test hypotheses on the distribution of fishing pressure. We show that the activity on an online fishing social network is related to fishing effort and can be used to facilitate management goals. We searched the Nebraska Fish and Game Association Fishing Forum for all references from April 2009 to December 2010 to 19 reservoirs that comprise the Salt Valley regional fishery in southeastern Nebraska. The number of posts was positively related to monthly fishing effort on a regional scale, with individual reservoirs having the most annual posts also having the most annual fishing effort. Furthermore, this relationship held temporally. Online fishing social networks provide the potential to assess effort on larger spatial scales than currently feasible.

  20. Aggregated trustworthiness: Redefining online credibility through social validation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jessen, Johan; Jørgensen, Anker Helms

    2012-01-01

    This article investigates the impact of social dynamics on online credibility. Empirical studies by Pettingill (2006) and Hargittai, et al. (2010) suggest that social validation and online trustees play increasingly important roles when evaluating credibility online. This dynamic puts pressure...

  1. Online social networking in people with psychosis: A systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Highton-Williamson, Elizabeth; Priebe, Stefan; Giacco, Domenico

    2015-02-01

    Online social networking might facilitate the establishment of social contacts for people with psychosis, who are often socially isolated by the symptoms and consequences of their disorder. We carried out a systematic review exploring available evidence on the use of online social networking in people with psychosis. The review was conducted following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Included studies examined the use of the online social networking by people with an a priori diagnosis of psychosis (inclusive of bipolar disorder). Data from included studies were extracted and narratively synthesised. A total of 11 studies, published between 2005 and 2013, reported data on online social networking in people with psychosis. People with psychosis seem to spend more time in chat rooms or playing online games than control groups. The use of other online tools, such as Facebook or communication through e-mail, is lower or the same than controls. Online social networking was used by patients with psychosis for establishing new relationships, maintaining relationships/reconnecting with people and online peer support. Online social networking, in the form of forums or online chats, could play a role in strategies aimed at enhancing social networks and reduce the risk of isolation in this population. © The Author(s) 2014.

  2. Online Chat Dependency: The Influence of Social Anxiety

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Chih-Chien; Chang, Shu-Chen

    Recent developments in information technology have made it easy for people to “chat” online with others in real time, and many do so regularly. “Virtual” relationships can be attractive, especially for people with social interaction problems in the “real world”. This study examines the influence on online chat dependency of three dimensions of social anxiety: general social situation fear, negative evaluation fear, and novel social situation fear. Participants of this study were 454 college students. The survey results show that negative evaluation fear and general social situation fear are relative to online chat dependency, while novel social situation fear does not seem to be a relevant factor.

  3. The relationship between social anxiety and online communication among adolescents in the city of isfahan, iran.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Esfandiari, Narges; Nouri, Abolghasem; Golparvar, Mohsen; Yarmohammadian, Mohammad H

    2013-04-01

    The internet is a phenomena that changes human, specially the younger generation's, life in the 21(st) century. Online communication is a common way of interacting among adolescents who experience feelings of social anxiety. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between social anxiety and online communication in adolescents. Three hundred and thirty students aged 13-16 years were selected from eight middle and high schools in Isfahan by multistage cluster sampling. Each of them completed a survey on the amount of time they spent communicating online, the topics they discussed, the partners they engaged with and their purpose for communicating over the internet. They also completed the social anxiety scale of adolescents. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and multiple regression. Results of the Pearson analysis showed that online communication has a significant positive relationship with apprehension and fear of negative evaluation (AFNE), and a significant negative relationship with tension and inhibition in social contact (TISC) (P communication is AFNE, TISC. It is suggested that students from middle school get assessed in terms of the level of social anxiety. Then, the quality and quantity of their online communication should be moderated through group training and consulting and referral to medical centers, if needed. The results of this study may lead to optimal use of online communications and reduce the personal, social and psychological problems of adolescents.

  4. The Relationship Between Social Anxiety and Online Communication Among Adolescents in the City of Isfahan, Iran

    Science.gov (United States)

    Esfandiari, Narges; Nouri, Abolghasem; Golparvar, Mohsen; Yarmohammadian, Mohammad H

    2013-01-01

    Background: The internet is a phenomena that changes human, specially the younger generation's, life in the 21st century. Online communication is a common way of interacting among adolescents who experience feelings of social anxiety. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between social anxiety and online communication in adolescents. Methods: Three hundred and thirty students aged 13-16 years were selected from eight middle and high schools in Isfahan by multistage cluster sampling. Each of them completed a survey on the amount of time they spent communicating online, the topics they discussed, the partners they engaged with and their purpose for communicating over the internet. They also completed the social anxiety scale of adolescents. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and multiple regression. Results: Results of the Pearson analysis showed that online communication has a significant positive relationship with apprehension and fear of negative evaluation (AFNE), and a significant negative relationship with tension and inhibition in social contact (TISC) (P online communication is AFNE, TISC. Conclusions: It is suggested that students from middle school get assessed in terms of the level of social anxiety. Then, the quality and quantity of their online communication should be moderated through group training and consulting and referral to medical centers, if needed. The results of this study may lead to optimal use of online communications and reduce the personal, social and psychological problems of adolescents. PMID:23671769

  5. The Relationship Between Use of Social Network Sites, Online Social Support, and Well-Being

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-01-01

    Abstract. Existing work on the effects of social network sites (SNS) on well-being has often stressed that SNS can help people gain social support from their online networks, which positively affects their well-being. However, the majority of studies in this area have been cross-sectional in nature and/or relied on student samples. Using data from six waves of a longitudinal study with a representative sample of Dutch Internet users, we first examined whether users and nonusers of SNS differ in online social support and well-being (as indicated by life satisfaction and stress). In a second step, we investigated in more detail how SNS use – more specifically, asking for advice and the number of strong ties on these SNS – are related to online social support, stress, and satisfaction with life. Overall, our results provide no evidence for SNS use and online social support affecting either stress or life satisfaction. SNS users reported more online social support than nonusers did, but also higher levels of stress; the two groups did not differ in overall life satisfaction. With regard to the underlying processes, we found positive cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between asking for advice on SNS and online social support, indicating that SNS can be an effective tool for receiving social support. However, online social support was not related to higher life satisfaction or reduced stress 6 months later; instead, it seems that SNS users with lower life satisfaction and/or higher stress seek more social support online by asking for advice on SNS. PMID:29147141

  6. Modelling Users` Trust in Online Social Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Iacob Cătoiu

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available Previous studies (McKnight, Lankton and Tripp, 2011; Liao, Lui and Chen, 2011 have shown the crucial role of trust when choosing to disclose sensitive information online. This is the case of online social networks users, who must disclose a certain amount of personal data in order to gain access to these online services. Taking into account privacy calculus model and the risk/benefit ratio, we propose a model of users’ trust in online social networks with four variables. We have adapted metrics for the purpose of our study and we have assessed their reliability and validity. We use a Partial Least Squares (PLS based structural equation modelling analysis, which validated all our initial assumptions, indicating that our three predictors (privacy concerns, perceived benefits and perceived risks explain 48% of the variation of users’ trust in online social networks, the resulting variable of our study. We also discuss the implications and further research opportunities of our study.

  7. Social value of online information in the hotel industry

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Moraru Remus Christian

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Studies show that public information can create social value, which reflects on the purpose of this paper in identifying information on the online environment of the hotel industry which can directly or indirectly create social value and ultimately a competitive edge. Privately owned, small and mid-sized hotels in Romania find themselves in competitive online environment and, as such, many of them cannot compete or don’t possess the know-how to compete within the online environment. With identifying the information shared on the hotels online environment and the capability of the information in creating social value, hotels can reevaluate their online strategies. The immediate objective of this paper is to analyze the websites of a sample of 99 small and mid-sized hotels in Romania and to identify critical information that can directly or indirectly create social value. Part of the objective is to draw a conclusion of the main differences on the information shared on the hotels website, which in terms will show where small and mid-sized hotels can improve their online content strategy with socially valuable information. Key findings reflect that Romanian hotels have a clear pattern across the country when it come to their online environment. However, there are serious deficiencies that can influence both economical results and the possibility of creating socially valuable information online. This work increases our understanding of the information shared on the hotels websites in Romania and comes with suggestions that hoteliers can apply in the future to increase the competitiveness and the social value of their online environment.

  8. Unge og online sociale netværk

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Malene Charlotte

    I denne ph.d.-afhandling udforskes 12-18-årige danske børn og unges brug af et af den seneste tids nyere internetfænomener: Online sociale netværk. De såkaldte sociale netværkssider (SNS’er) er internetbaserede mødesteder, hvor brugere via personaliserede profiler kan liste hinanden som venner og...... for danske unges brug af online sociale netværk....

  9. Online social networking issues within academia and pharmacy education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cain, Jeff

    2008-02-15

    Online social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace are extremely popular as indicated by the numbers of members and visits to the sites. They allow students to connect with users with similar interests, build and maintain relationships with friends, and feel more connected with their campus. The foremost criticisms of online social networking are that students may open themselves to public scrutiny of their online personas and risk physical safety by revealing excessive personal information. This review outlines issues of online social networking in higher education by drawing upon articles in both the lay press and academic publications. New points for pharmacy educators to consider include the possible emergence of an "e-professionalism" concept; legal and ethical implications of using online postings in admission, discipline, and student safety decisions; how online personas may blend into professional life; and the responsibility for educating students about the risks of online social networking.

  10. Security and trust in online social networks

    CERN Document Server

    Carminati, Barbara; Viviani, Marco; Viviani, Marco; Carminati, Barbara

    2013-01-01

    The enormous success and diffusion that online social networks (OSNs) are encountering nowadays is vastly apparent. Users' social interactions now occur using online social media as communication channels; personal information and activities are easily exchanged both for recreational and business purposes in order to obtain social or economic advantages. In this scenario, OSNs are considered critical applications with respect to the security of users and their resources, for their characteristics alone: the large amount of personal information they manage, big economic upturn connected to thei

  11. Social Capital and Online Games

    OpenAIRE

    Safferling, Christoph

    2011-01-01

    We use data from an online game economy and econometric matching methods to test whether social capital of players has an impact on game success. Membership in a 'clan', a voluntary organization of players, positively impacts game success. Hence, social capital has a positive effect on outcomes. Yet, top performers do not gain from access to this social capital.

  12. Managing Trust in Online Social Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhuiyan, Touhid; Josang, Audun; Xu, Yue

    In recent years, there is a dramatic growth in number and popularity of online social networks. There are many networks available with more than 100 million registered users such as Facebook, MySpace, QZone, Windows Live Spaces etc. People may connect, discover and share by using these online social networks. The exponential growth of online communities in the area of social networks attracts the attention of the researchers about the importance of managing trust in online environment. Users of the online social networks may share their experiences and opinions within the networks about an item which may be a product or service. The user faces the problem of evaluating trust in a service or service provider before making a choice. Recommendations may be received through a chain of friends network, so the problem for the user is to be able to evaluate various types of trust opinions and recommendations. This opinion or recommendation has a great influence to choose to use or enjoy the item by the other user of the community. Collaborative filtering system is the most popular method in recommender system. The task in collaborative filtering is to predict the utility of items to a particular user based on a database of user rates from a sample or population of other users. Because of the different taste of different people, they rate differently according to their subjective taste. If two people rate a set of items similarly, they share similar tastes. In the recommender system, this information is used to recommend items that one participant likes, to other persons in the same cluster. But the collaborative filtering system performs poor when there is insufficient previous common rating available between users; commonly known as cost start problem. To overcome the cold start problem and with the dramatic growth of online social networks, trust based approach to recommendation has emerged. This approach assumes a trust network among users and makes recommendations

  13. Social Support and Social Anxiety in Use and Perceptions of Online Mental Health Resources: Exploring Social Compensation and Enhancement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruppel, Erin K; McKinley, Christopher J

    2015-08-01

    This study used the frameworks of social compensation and social enhancement to examine how social anxiety and social support were related to college students' (N=443) use and perceptions of online mental health resources (Web sites and online support groups). Potential interactions between social support and social anxiety were also examined. Consistent with the social compensation hypothesis, perceived usefulness of Web sites was positively associated with social support. Perceived usefulness of online support groups was positively associated with social support when participants reported average or high, but not low, social anxiety. In contrast, previous use of Web sites was consistent with the social compensation hypothesis. Participants who reported less social support were more likely to have used a Web site for a mental or emotional problem. These findings suggest that college students' use and perceptions of online mental health resources vary as a function of social support and social anxiety, and that patterns suggestive of social compensation and social enhancement depend on whether perceptions or actual use of resources are examined. Combined with the significant interaction between social support and social anxiety on perceived usefulness of online support groups, these findings highlight the potential complexity of social compensation and enhancement phenomena.

  14. Ostracism Online: A social media ostracism paradigm.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wolf, Wouter; Levordashka, Ana; Ruff, Johanna R; Kraaijeveld, Steven; Lueckmann, Jan-Matthis; Williams, Kipling D

    2015-06-01

    We describe Ostracism Online, a novel, social media-based ostracism paradigm designed to (1) keep social interaction experimentally controlled, (2) provide researchers with the flexibility to manipulate the properties of the social situation to fit their research purposes, (3) be suitable for online data collection, (4) be convenient for studying subsequent within-group behavior, and (5) be ecologically valid. After collecting data online, we compared the Ostracism Online paradigm with the Cyberball paradigm (Williams & Jarvis Behavior Research Methods, 38, 174-180, 2006) on need-threat and mood questionnaire scores (van Beest & Williams Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 91, 918-928, 2006). We also examined whether ostracized targets of either paradigm would be more likely to conform to their group members than if they had been included. Using a Bayesian analysis of variance to examine the individual effects of the different paradigms and to compare these effects across paradigms, we found analogous effects on need-threat and mood. Perhaps because we examined conformity to the ostracizers (rather than neutral sources), neither paradigm showed effects of ostracism on conformity. We conclude that Ostracism Online is a cost-effective, easy to use, and ecologically valid research tool for studying the psychological and behavioral effects of ostracism.

  15. Online Privacy as a Corporate Social Responsibility

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pollach, Irene

    2011-01-01

    Information technology and the Internet have added a new stakeholder concern to the corporate social responsibility agenda: online privacy. While theory suggests that online privacy is a corporate social responsibility, only very few studies in the business ethics literature have connected...... of the companies have comprehensive privacy programs, although more than half of them voice moral or relational motives for addressing online privacy. The privacy measures they have taken are primarily compliance measures, while measures that stimulate a stakeholder dialogue are rare. Overall, a wide variety...

  16. Privacy in Online Social Networks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Beye, Michael; Jeckmans, Arjan; Erkin, Zekeriya; Erkin, Zekeriya; Hartel, Pieter H.; Lagendijk, Reginald; Tang, Qiang; Abraham, A.

    Online Social Networks (OSNs) have become part of daily life for millions of users. Users building explicit networks that represent their social relationships and often share a wealth of personal information to their own benefit. The potential privacy risks of such behavior are often underestimated

  17. Interaction patterns of nurturant support exchanged in online health social networking.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chuang, Katherine Y; Yang, Christopher C

    2012-05-03

    Expressing emotion in online support communities is an important aspect of enabling e-patients to connect with each other and expand their social resources. Indirectly it increases the amount of support for coping with health issues. Exploring the supportive interaction patterns in online health social networking would help us better understand how technology features impacts user behavior in this context. To build on previous research that identified different types of social support in online support communities by delving into patterns of supportive behavior across multiple computer-mediated communication formats. Each format combines different architectural elements, affecting the resulting social spaces. Our research question compared communication across different formats of text-based computer-mediated communication provided on the MedHelp.org health social networking environment. We identified messages with nurturant support (emotional, esteem, and network) across three different computer-mediated communication formats (forums, journals, and notes) of an online support community for alcoholism using content analysis. Our sample consisted of 493 forum messages, 423 journal messages, and 1180 notes. Nurturant support types occurred frequently among messages offering support (forum comments: 276/412 messages, 67.0%; journal posts: 65/88 messages, 74%; journal comments: 275/335 messages, 82.1%; and notes: 1002/1180 messages, 84.92%), but less often among messages requesting support. Of all the nurturing supports, emotional (ie, encouragement) appeared most frequently, with network and esteem support appearing in patterns of varying combinations. Members of the Alcoholism Community appeared to adapt some traditional face-to-face forms of support to their needs in becoming sober, such as provision of encouragement, understanding, and empathy to one another. The computer-mediated communication format may have the greatest influence on the supportive interactions

  18. Towards a deep understanding of malware propagation in online social networks

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yan, Guanhua [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Eidenbenz, Stephan [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Chen, Guanling [U OF MASSACHUSETTS LOWELL; Li, Nan [U OF MASSACHUSETTS LOWELL

    2009-01-01

    Online social networks, which have been expanding at a blistering speed in the recent years, have emerged as a popular communication infrastructure for Internet users. Meanwhile, malware that specifically targets these online social networks are also on the rise. In this work, we aim to investigate the characteristics of malware propagation in online social networks. Our study is based on a dataset collected from a real-world location-based online social network. We analyze the social structure and user activity patterns of this network. We further use extensive trace-driven simulation to study the impact of initial infection, user click probability, social structure, and activity patterns on malware propagation in online social networks. The results from this work has greatly deepened our understanding of the nature of online social network malware and also shed light on how to defend against them effectively.

  19. Online Social Support for Young People: Does It Recapitulate In-person Social Support; Can It Help?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cole, David A; Nick, Elizabeth A; Zelkowitz, Rachel L; Roeder, Kathryn M; Spinelli, Tawny

    2017-03-01

    As social media websites have grown in popularity, public concern about online victimization has grown as well; however, much less attention has focused on the possible beneficial effects of online social networks. If theory and research about in-person social networks pertain, then online social relationships may represent an important modern source of or vehicle for support. In a study of 231 undergraduates, three major findings emerged: (1) for people with weaker in-person social support, social media sites provide a source of social support that is less redundant of the social support they receive in person; (2) in ways that were not redundant of each other, both online and in-person social support were associated with lower levels of depression-related thoughts and feelings, and (3) the beneficial effects of online social support (like in-person social support) offset some of the adverse effects of peer victimization. The study suggests that augmenting social relations via strategic use of social media can enhance young people's social support systems in beneficial ways.

  20. Understanding the process of social network evolution: Online-offline integrated analysis of social tie formation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kwak, Doyeon; Kim, Wonjoon

    2017-01-01

    It is important to consider the interweaving nature of online and offline social networks when we examine social network evolution. However, it is difficult to find any research that examines the process of social tie formation from an integrated perspective. In our study, we quantitatively measure offline interactions and examine the corresponding evolution of online social network in order to understand the significance of interrelationship between online and offline social factors in generating social ties. We analyze the radio signal strength indicator sensor data from a series of social events to understand offline interactions among the participants and measure the structural attributes of their existing online Facebook social networks. By monitoring the changes in their online social networks before and after offline interactions in a series of social events, we verify that the ability to develop an offline interaction into an online friendship is tied to the number of social connections that participants previously had, while the presence of shared mutual friends between a pair of participants disrupts potential new connections within the pre-designed offline social events. Thus, while our integrative approach enables us to confirm the theory of preferential attachment in the process of network formation, the common neighbor theory is not supported. Our dual-dimensional network analysis allows us to observe the actual process of social network evolution rather than to make predictions based on the assumption of self-organizing networks.

  1. Understanding the process of social network evolution: Online-offline integrated analysis of social tie formation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Doyeon Kwak

    Full Text Available It is important to consider the interweaving nature of online and offline social networks when we examine social network evolution. However, it is difficult to find any research that examines the process of social tie formation from an integrated perspective. In our study, we quantitatively measure offline interactions and examine the corresponding evolution of online social network in order to understand the significance of interrelationship between online and offline social factors in generating social ties. We analyze the radio signal strength indicator sensor data from a series of social events to understand offline interactions among the participants and measure the structural attributes of their existing online Facebook social networks. By monitoring the changes in their online social networks before and after offline interactions in a series of social events, we verify that the ability to develop an offline interaction into an online friendship is tied to the number of social connections that participants previously had, while the presence of shared mutual friends between a pair of participants disrupts potential new connections within the pre-designed offline social events. Thus, while our integrative approach enables us to confirm the theory of preferential attachment in the process of network formation, the common neighbor theory is not supported. Our dual-dimensional network analysis allows us to observe the actual process of social network evolution rather than to make predictions based on the assumption of self-organizing networks.

  2. Does Online Social Media Lead to Social Connection or Social Disconnection?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Twenge, Jean M.

    2013-01-01

    Today’s young generation (often called "Millennials," "GenY," or "Generation Me") are the first to grow up with the Internet and social networking websites. Have these experiences led to more and better social connections, or fewer and atrophied ones? Social media use may lead to online political action such as signing an e-mail petition but does…

  3. Online Social Media and Political Awareness in Autoritarian Regimes

    OpenAIRE

    John Reuter; David Szakonyi

    2012-01-01

    Does online social media undermine authoritarianism? We examine the conditions under which online social networks can increase public awareness of electoral fraud in non-democracies. We argue that a given online social network will only increase political awareness if it is first politicized by elites. Using survey data from the 2011 Russian parliamentary elections, we show that usage of Twitter and Facebook, which were politicized by opposition elites, significantly increased respondents' pe...

  4. Offline Social Relationships and Online Cancer Communication: Effects of Social and Family Support on Online Social Network Building.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Namkoong, Kang; Shah, Dhavan V; Gustafson, David H

    2017-11-01

    This study investigates how social support and family relationship perceptions influence breast cancer patients' online communication networks in a computer-mediated social support (CMSS) group. To examine social interactions in the CMSS group, we identified two types of online social networks: open and targeted communication networks. The open communication network reflects group communication behaviors (i.e., one-to-many or "broadcast" communication) in which the intended audience is not specified; in contrast, the targeted communication network reflects interpersonal discourses (i.e., one-to-one or directed communication) in which the audience for the message is specified. The communication networks were constructed by tracking CMSS group usage data of 237 breast cancer patients who participated in one of two National Cancer Institute-funded randomized clinical trials. Eligible subjects were within 2 months of a diagnosis of primary breast cancer or recurrence at the time of recruitment. Findings reveal that breast cancer patients who perceived less availability of offline social support had a larger social network size in the open communication network. In contrast, those who perceived less family cohesion had a larger targeted communication network in the CMSS group, meaning they were inclined to use the CMSS group for developing interpersonal relationships.

  5. COPD360social Online Community: A Social Media Review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stellefson, Michael; Paige, Samantha R; Alber, Julia M; Stewart, Margaret

    2018-06-01

    People living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) commonly report feelings of loneliness and social isolation due to lack of support from family, friends, and health care providers. COPD360social is an interactive and disease-specific online community and social network dedicated to connecting people living with COPD to evidence-based resources. Through free access to collaborative forums, members can explore, engage, and discuss an array of disease-related topics, such as symptom management. This social media review provides an overview of COPD360social, specifically its features that practitioners can leverage to facilitate patient-provider communication, knowledge translation, and community building. The potential of COPD360social for chronic disease self-management is maximized through community recognition programming and interactive friend-finding tools that encourage members to share their own stories through blogs and multimedia (e.g., images, videos). The platform also fosters collaborative knowledge dissemination and helping relationships among patients, family members, friends, and health care providers. Successful implementation of COPD360social has dramatically expanded patient education and self-management support resources for people affected by COPD. Practitioners should refer patients and their families to online social networks such as COPD360social to increase knowledge and awareness of evidence-based chronic disease management practices.

  6. Social Interactions in Online Gaming

    Science.gov (United States)

    Griffiths, Mark; Hussain, Zaheer; Grüsser, Sabine M.; Thalemann, Ralf; Cole, Helena; Davies, Mark N. O.; Chappell, Darren

    2011-01-01

    This paper briefly overviews five studies examining massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs). The first study surveyed 540 gamers and showed that the social aspects of the game were the most important factor for many gamers. The second study explored the social interactions of 912 MMORPG players and showed they created strong…

  7. Discrete Opinion Dynamics on Online Social Networks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hu Yan-Li; Bai Liang; Zhang Wei-Ming

    2013-01-01

    This paper focuses on the dynamics of binary opinions {+1, −1} on online social networks consisting of heterogeneous actors. In our model, actors update their opinions under the interplay of social influence and self- affirmation, which leads to rich dynamical behaviors on online social networks. We find that the opinion leading to the consensus features an advantage of the initially weighted fraction based on actors' strength over the other, instead of the population. For the role of specific actors, the consensus converges towards the opinion that a small fraction of high-strength actors hold, and individual diversity of self-affirmation slows down the ordering process of consensus. These indicate that high-strength actors play an essential role in opinion formation with strong social influence as well as high persistence. Further investigations show that the initial fraction of high-strength actors to dominate the evolution depends on the heterogeneity of the strength distribution, and less high-strength actors are needed in the case of a smaller exponent of power-law distribution of actors' strength. Our study provides deep insights into the role of social influence and self-affirmation on opinion formation on online social networks. (general)

  8. Discrete Opinion Dynamics on Online Social Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Yan-Li; Bai, Liang; Zhang, Wei-Ming

    2013-01-01

    This paper focuses on the dynamics of binary opinions {+1, -1} on online social networks consisting of heterogeneous actors. In our model, actors update their opinions under the interplay of social influence and self- affirmation, which leads to rich dynamical behaviors on online social networks. We find that the opinion leading to the consensus features an advantage of the initially weighted fraction based on actors' strength over the other, instead of the population. For the role of specific actors, the consensus converges towards the opinion that a small fraction of high-strength actors hold, and individual diversity of self-affirmation slows down the ordering process of consensus. These indicate that high-strength actors play an essential role in opinion formation with strong social influence as well as high persistence. Further investigations show that the initial fraction of high-strength actors to dominate the evolution depends on the heterogeneity of the strength distribution, and less high-strength actors are needed in the case of a smaller exponent of power-law distribution of actors' strength. Our study provides deep insights into the role of social influence and self-affirmation on opinion formation on online social networks.

  9. Using Social Media Technologies to Enhance Online Learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hershey H. Friedman

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Models of distance education have evolved over decades, just in time to collide with modern pedagogies in which communication, interaction, student engagement, and active learning are of critical importance. The number of college students taking online classes continues to grow. Today, nearly 30% of college students are taking at least one online class. The social media technologies encompass a wide variety of Web-based technologies such as blogs, wikis, online social networking, and virtual worlds. This paper examines the relevant published literature, looking at online learning activities through the prism of the defining characteristics of today’s new communication technologies.

  10. Leaking privacy and shadow profiles in online social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia, David

    2017-08-01

    Social interaction and data integration in the digital society can affect the control that individuals have on their privacy. Social networking sites can access data from other services, including user contact lists where nonusers are listed too. Although most research on online privacy has focused on inference of personal information of users, this data integration poses the question of whether it is possible to predict personal information of nonusers. This article tests the shadow profile hypothesis, which postulates that the data given by the users of an online service predict personal information of nonusers. Using data from a disappeared social networking site, we perform a historical audit to evaluate whether personal data of nonusers could have been predicted with the personal data and contact lists shared by the users of the site. We analyze personal information of sexual orientation and relationship status, which follow regular mixing patterns in the social network. Going back in time over the growth of the network, we measure predictor performance as a function of network size and tendency of users to disclose their contact lists. This article presents robust evidence supporting the shadow profile hypothesis and reveals a multiplicative effect of network size and disclosure tendencies that accelerates the performance of predictors. These results call for new privacy paradigms that take into account the fact that individual privacy decisions do not happen in isolation and are mediated by the decisions of others.

  11. Social Influence in Online Health Discussions: An Evaluation of Online Graduate Student Support Groups

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maloney, Erin Kay

    2010-01-01

    This paper reports on the results of a field experimental design assessing online support groups testing hypotheses derived from the social identification model of deindividuation effects (SIDE; Lea & Spears, 1992) and social information processing theory (SIP; Walther, 1992). Specifically, it is predicted that individuals in an online support…

  12. Online Social Networking: A Primer for Radiology

    OpenAIRE

    Prasanna, Prasanth M.; Seagull, F. Jacob; Nagy, Paul

    2011-01-01

    Online social networking is an immature, but rapidly evolving industry of web-based technologies that allow individuals to develop online relationships. News stories populate the headlines about various websites which can facilitate patient and doctor interaction. There remain questions about protecting patient confidentiality and defining etiquette in order to preserve the doctor/patient relationship and protect physicians. How much social networking-based communication or other forms of E-c...

  13. Mining Trust Relationships from Online Social Networks

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Yu Zhang; Tong Yu

    2012-01-01

    With the growing popularity of online social network,trust plays a more and more important role in connecting people to each other.We rely on our personal trust to accept recommendations,to make purchase decisions and to select transaction partners in the online community.Therefore,how to obtain trust relationships through mining online social networks becomes an important research topic.There are several shortcomings of existing trust mining methods.First,trust is category-dependent.However,most of the methods overlook the category attribute of trust relationships,which leads to low accuracy in trust calculation.Second,since the data in online social networks cannot be understood and processed by machines directly,traditional mining methods require much human effort and are not easily applied to other applications.To solve the above problems,we propose a semantic-based trust reasoning mechanism to mine trust relationships from online social networks automatically.We emphasize the category attribute of pairwise relationships and utilize Semantic Web technologies to build a domain ontology for data communication and knowledge sharing.We exploit role-based and behavior-based reasoning functions to infer implicit trust relationships and category-specific trust relationships.We make use of path expressions to extend reasoning rules so that the mining process can be done directly without much human effort.We perform experiments on real-life data extracted from Epinions.The experimental results verify the effectiveness and wide application use of our proposed method.

  14. Affording to exchange: social capital and online information sharing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maksl, Adam; Young, Rachel

    2013-08-01

    The potential harm and benefit associated with sharing personal information online is a topic of debate and discussion. Using survey methods (n=872), we explore whether attainment of social capital online relates to greater comfort with sharing personal information. We found that perceptions of bridging and bonding social capital earned from using Facebook are significant predictors of overall comfort levels with sharing personal information. This research raises timely questions about how the perceived benefits of social networking sites influence how personal information is shared online.

  15. Social anxiety in online and real-life interaction and their associated factors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yen, Ju-Yu; Yen, Cheng-Fang; Chen, Cheng-Sheng; Wang, Peng-Wei; Chang, Yi-Hsin; Ko, Chih-Hung

    2012-01-01

    Social anxiety was compared between online and real-life interaction in a sample of 2,348 college students. Severity of social anxiety in both real-life and online interaction was tested for associations with depression, Internet addiction, Internet activity type (gaming versus chatting), and scores on Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS)/Behavioral Activation System (BAS) scales. The results showed that social anxiety was lower when interacting online than when interacting offline. Depression, Internet addiction, and high BIS and BAS scores were associated with high social anxiety. The social anxiety decreased more in online interaction among subjects with high social anxiety, depression, BIS, and BAS. This result suggests that the Internet has good potential as an alternative medium for delivering interventions for social anxiety. Further, the effect of BIS on social anxiety is decreased in online interaction. More attention should be paid for BIS when the treatment for social anxiety is delivered online.

  16. A framework for online social networking features

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohsen Shafiei Nikabadi

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Social networks form a basis for maintaining social contacts, finding users with common interests, creating local content and sharing information. Recently networks have created a fundamental framework for analyzing and modeling the complex systems. Users' behavior studies and evaluates the system performance and leads to better planning and implementation of advertising policies on the web sites. Therefore, this study offers a framework for online social networks' characteristics. In terms of objective, this survey is practical descriptive. Sampling has been done among 384 of graduate students who have good experiences of membership in online social network. Confirmatory factor analysis is used to evaluate the validity of variables in research model. Characteristics of online social networks are defined based on six components and framework's indexes are analyzed through factor analysis. The reliability is calculated separately for each dimension and since they are all above 0.7, the reliability of the study can be confirmed. According to our research results, in terms of size, the number of people who apply for membership in various online social networking is an important index. In terms of individual preference to connect with, people who are relative play essential role in social network development. In terms of homogeneity variable, the number of people who visit their friends’ pages is important for measuring frequency variable. In terms of frequency, the use of entertainment and recreation services is more important index. In terms of proximity, being in the same city is a more important index and index of creating a sense of belonging and confidence is more important for measuring reciprocity variable.

  17. The socializing role of expatriate online platforms

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Emontspool, Julie

    2015-01-01

    between market orientation and socialization practices online. It shows how processes of market simplification, market guidance and market manipulation co-exist both in expatriates’ orientation and socialization in the new consumption context. The findings of this study firstly provide insights...... into the consequences of those online interactions for nationalism, where digital tools may in fact reduce expatriates’ cosmopolitanism. Secondly, the study shows collaborative knowledge construction on those platforms creates new forms of market adaptation....

  18. Social constructivist learning environment in an online professional practice course.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sthapornnanon, Nunthaluxna; Sakulbumrungsil, Rungpetch; Theeraroungchaisri, Anuchai; Watcharadamrongkun, Suntaree

    2009-02-19

    To assess the online social constructivist learning environment (SCLE) and student perceptions of the outcomes of the online introductory module of pharmacy professional practice that was designed based on social constructivism theory. The online introductory module of pharmacy professional practice in pharmaceutical marketing and business was carefully designed by organizing various activities, which were intended to encourage social interaction among students. The Constructivist Online Learning Environment Survey (COLLES) was applied to assess the SCLE. Course evaluation questionnaires were administered to assess student perceptions of this online module. The result from the COLLES illustrated the development of SCLE in the course. The students reported positive perceptions of the course. An online introductory module of pharmacy professional practice in pharmaceutical marketing and business was effective in promoting SCLE.

  19. Teaching Multiple Online Sections/Courses: Tactics and Techniques

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bates, Rodger; LaBrecque, Bryan; Fortner, Emily

    2016-01-01

    The challenge of teaching online increases as the number of sections or courses increase in a semester. The tactics and techniques which enrich online instruction in the tradition of quality matters can be modified and adapted to the demands of multiple instructional needs during a semester. This paper addresses time management and instructional…

  20. The impact of an online Facebook support group for people with multiple sclerosis on non-active users.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steadman, Jacqui; Pretorius, Chrisma

    2014-01-01

    Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a debilitating disease and there is little research on support networks for people with MS (PwMS). More specifically, most studies on online support groups focus on those who actively participate in the group, whereas the majority of those who utilise online support groups do so in a passive way. This study therefore aimed to explore the experiences of non-active users of an online Facebook support group for PwMS. Emphasis was placed on the facilitators and the barriers that were associated with membership to this group. An exploratory qualitative research design was implemented, whereby thematic analysis was utilised to examine the ten semi-structured interviews that were conducted. Several facilitators were acquired through the online support group; namely emotional support (constant source of support, exposure to negative aspects of the disease), informational support (group as a source of knowledge, quality of information) and social companionship (place of belonging). Some barriers were also identified; namely emotional support (emotions lost online, response to messages, exposure to negative aspects of the disease), informational support (information posted on the group, misuse of group) and social companionship (non-active status). These findings demonstrate that the non-active members of the online support group for PwMS have valid reasons for their non-active membership status. More important, the findings suggest that the online Facebook support group provided the group members with an important support network in the form of emotional support, informational support and social companionship, despite their non-active membership status or the barriers that have been identified.

  1. An Online Social Constructivist Course: Toward a Framework for Usability Evaluations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Phillips, Alana S.; Sheffield, Anneliese; Moore, Michelle; Robinson, Heather A.

    2016-01-01

    There is a need for a holistic usability evaluation framework that accommodates social constructivist online courses. Social knowledge construction may not be adequately evaluated using current frameworks. This qualitative research study examined the usability needs of a social constructivist online course. Data from an online course were analyzed…

  2. Collective iteration behavior for online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Jian-Guo; Li, Ren-De; Guo, Qiang; Zhang, Yi-Cheng

    2018-06-01

    Understanding the patterns of collective behavior in online social network (OSNs) is critical to expanding the knowledge of human behavior and tie relationship. In this paper, we investigate a specific pattern called social signature in Facebook and Wiki users' online communication behaviors, capturing the distribution of frequency of interactions between different alters over time in the ego network. The empirical results show that there are robust social signatures of interactions no matter how friends change over time, which indicates that a stable commutation pattern exists in online communication. By comparing a random null model, we find the that commutation pattern is heterogeneous between ego and alters. Furthermore, in order to regenerate the pattern of the social signature, we present a preferential interaction model, which assumes that new users intend to look for the old users with strong ties while old users have tendency to interact with new friends. The experimental results show that the presented model can reproduce the heterogeneity of social signature by adjusting 2 parameters, the number of communicating targets m and the max number of interactions n, for Facebook users, m = n = 5, for Wiki users, m = 2 and n = 8. This work helps in deeply understanding the regularity of social signature.

  3. Social Anxiety in Online and Real-Life Interaction and Their Associated Factors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yen, Ju-Yu; Yen, Cheng-Fang; Chen, Cheng-Sheng; Wang, Peng-Wei; Chang, Yi-Hsin

    2012-01-01

    Abstract Social anxiety was compared between online and real-life interaction in a sample of 2,348 college students. Severity of social anxiety in both real-life and online interaction was tested for associations with depression, Internet addiction, Internet activity type (gaming versus chatting), and scores on Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS)/Behavioral Activation System (BAS) scales. The results showed that social anxiety was lower when interacting online than when interacting offline. Depression, Internet addiction, and high BIS and BAS scores were associated with high social anxiety. The social anxiety decreased more in online interaction among subjects with high social anxiety, depression, BIS, and BAS. This result suggests that the Internet has good potential as an alternative medium for delivering interventions for social anxiety. Further, the effect of BIS on social anxiety is decreased in online interaction. More attention should be paid for BIS when the treatment for social anxiety is delivered online. PMID:22175853

  4. The Space for Social Media in Structured Online Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salmon, Gilly; Ross, Bella; Pechenkina, Ekaterina; Chase, Anne-Marie

    2015-01-01

    In this paper, we explore the benefits of using social media in an online educational setting, with a particular focus on the use of Facebook and Twitter by participants in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) developed to enable educators to learn about the Carpe Diem learning design process. We define social media as digital social tools and…

  5. The Public Sphere and Online Social Media: Exploring the Use of Online Social Media as Discursive Spaces in an Irish Context

    Science.gov (United States)

    English, Claire

    2013-01-01

    Online social media have become integral to individuals' media and communication repertoires globally. They provide spaces to meet with friends, reconnect with old acquaintances and gather around shared topics of interest. This chapter presents findings from a qualitative study into the role of online social media in the lives of 25 to 30 year…

  6. Social Anxiety and Loneliness in Adults Who Solicit Minors Online.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schulz, Anja; Bergen, Emilia; Schuhmann, Petya; Hoyer, Jürgen

    2017-09-01

    This study examined the association of social anxiety, loneliness, and problematic Internet use (PIU) with the online solicitation of minors. Within a convenience sample of adult Internet users from Germany, Finland, and Sweden ( N = 2,828), we compared the responses of participants who had not interacted sexually with strangers online ( n = 2,049) with participants who sexually interacted with unknown adults online ( n = 642), and both groups with adults who sexually solicited unknown minors online ( n = 137). Online sexual interaction with adults was associated with higher levels of social anxiety, loneliness, and PIU compared with not sexually interacting with strangers online. Sexually soliciting minors online was associated with higher levels of social anxiety, loneliness, and PIU compared with sexually interacting with adults and not sexually interacting with strangers at all. Interestingly, compared with those with adult contacts, loneliness was specifically pronounced for participants who solicited children, whereas social anxiety and PIU were pronounced for participants soliciting adolescents. These findings suggest that social anxiety, loneliness, and PIU may be among the motivators for using the Internet to solicit individuals of different age groups for sexual purposes. These factors emerged as specifically relevant for adults who sexually solicited minors and who reported greater impairments compared with adults who sexually interacted with adults. These characteristics may thus be important to consider for assessment and treatment procedures for individuals soliciting minors online.

  7. Optimizing online social networks for information propagation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Duan-Bing Chen

    Full Text Available Online users nowadays are facing serious information overload problem. In recent years, recommender systems have been widely studied to help people find relevant information. Adaptive social recommendation is one of these systems in which the connections in the online social networks are optimized for the information propagation so that users can receive interesting news or stories from their leaders. Validation of such adaptive social recommendation methods in the literature assumes uniform distribution of users' activity frequency. In this paper, our empirical analysis shows that the distribution of online users' activity is actually heterogenous. Accordingly, we propose a more realistic multi-agent model in which users' activity frequency are drawn from a power-law distribution. We find that previous social recommendation methods lead to serious delay of information propagation since many users are connected to inactive leaders. To solve this problem, we design a new similarity measure which takes into account users' activity frequencies. With this similarity measure, the average delay is significantly shortened and the recommendation accuracy is largely improved.

  8. Optimizing online social networks for information propagation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Duan-Bing; Wang, Guan-Nan; Zeng, An; Fu, Yan; Zhang, Yi-Cheng

    2014-01-01

    Online users nowadays are facing serious information overload problem. In recent years, recommender systems have been widely studied to help people find relevant information. Adaptive social recommendation is one of these systems in which the connections in the online social networks are optimized for the information propagation so that users can receive interesting news or stories from their leaders. Validation of such adaptive social recommendation methods in the literature assumes uniform distribution of users' activity frequency. In this paper, our empirical analysis shows that the distribution of online users' activity is actually heterogenous. Accordingly, we propose a more realistic multi-agent model in which users' activity frequency are drawn from a power-law distribution. We find that previous social recommendation methods lead to serious delay of information propagation since many users are connected to inactive leaders. To solve this problem, we design a new similarity measure which takes into account users' activity frequencies. With this similarity measure, the average delay is significantly shortened and the recommendation accuracy is largely improved.

  9. Social Constructivist Learning Environment in an Online Professional Practice Course

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sakulbumrungsil, Rungpetch; Theeraroungchaisri, Anuchai; Watcharadamrongkun, Suntaree

    2009-01-01

    Objective To assess the online social constructivist learning environment (SCLE) and student perceptions of the outcomes of the online introductory module of pharmacy professional practice that was designed based on social constructivism theory. Design The online introductory module of pharmacy professional practice in pharmaceutical marketing and business was carefully designed by organizing various activities, which were intended to encourage social interaction among students. The Constructivist Online Learning Environment Survey (COLLES) was applied to assess the SCLE. Course evaluation questionnaires were administered to assess student perceptions of this online module. Assessment The result from the COLLES illustrated the development of SCLE in the course. The students reported positive perceptions of the course. Conclusion An online introductory module of pharmacy professional practice in pharmaceutical marketing and business was effective in promoting SCLE. PMID:19513147

  10. Foraging Online Social Networks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Koot, G.; Huis in ’t Veld, M.A.A.; Hendricksen, J.; Vries, A. de; Broek, E.L. van den

    2014-01-01

    A concise and practical introduction is given on Online Social Networks (OSN) and their application in law enforcement, including a brief survey of related work. Subsequently, a tool is introduced that can be used to search OSN in order to generate user profiles. Both its architecture and processing

  11. Online networks, social interaction and segregation: An evolutionary approach

    OpenAIRE

    Antoci, Angelo; Sabatini, Fabio

    2018-01-01

    There is growing evidence that face-to-face interaction is declining in many countries, exacerbating the phenomenon of social isolation. On the other hand, social interaction through online networking sites is steeply rising. To analyze these societal dynamics, we have built an evolutionary game model in which agents can choose between three strategies of social participation: 1) interaction via both online social networks and face-to-face encounters; 2) interaction by exclusive means of face...

  12. Online social activity reflects economic status

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Jin-Hu; Wang, Jun; Shao, Junming; Zhou, Tao

    2016-09-01

    To characterize economic development and diagnose the economic health condition, several popular indices such as gross domestic product (GDP), industrial structure and income growth are widely applied. However, computing these indices based on traditional economic census is usually costly and resources consuming, and more importantly, following a long time delay. In this paper, we analyzed nearly 200 million users' activities for four consecutive years in the largest social network (Sina Microblog) in China, aiming at exploring latent relationships between the online social activities and local economic status. Results indicate that online social activity has a strong correlation with local economic development and industrial structure, and more interestingly, allows revealing the macro-economic structure instantaneously with nearly no cost. Beyond, this work also provides a new venue to identify risky signal in local economic structure.

  13. EXPLORING THE RELATIONSHIPS AMONG SOCIAL BENEFITS, ONLINE SOCIAL NETWORK DEPENDENCY, SATISFACTION, AND YOUTH’S HABIT FORMATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tran Van Dat

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Online social network is one of the biggest Internet phenomenon, which has attracted the interest of many marketers and psychologists who wanted to understand social network users’ behavior. Recognizing the lack of theoretical and empirical attention that has been given to this field, especially in Vietnam market, this study was conducted to examine the relationships among social benefits, online social network dependency, satisfaction, and youth’s habit formation in the context of Facebook. The findings of the study of 200 Facebook users indicated that the interrelationship among four factors of social benefits, online social network dependency, satisfaction, and habit formation affect each other. Indeed, dependency on online social network among the youth whose age ranged from 16 to 24 years old is significantly affected by social benefits factor and leads to the formation of habit. In addition, satisfaction plays a role in determining habitual Facebook use. This paper discusses theoretical and practical implication in marketing and psychology field.

  14. Why do young adults gamble online? A qualitative study of motivations to transition from social casino games to online gambling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Hyoun S; Wohl, Michael J A; Gupta, Rina; Derevensky, Jeffrey L

    2017-01-01

    The present research examined the mechanisms of initiating online gambling among young adults. Of particular interest was whether social casino gaming was noted as part of young adults' experience with online gambling. This is because there is growing concern that social casino gaming may be a 'gateway' to online gambling. Three focus groups ( N  = 21) were conducted with young adult online gamblers from two large Canadian Universities. Participants noted the role of peer influence as well as incentives (e.g., sign up bonuses) as important factors that motivated them to start engaging in online gambling. Participants also noted a link between social casino games and online gambling. Specifically, several young adults reported migrating to online gambling within a relatively short period after engaging with social casino games. Potential mechanisms that may lead to the migration from social casino games to online gambling included the role of advertisements and the inflated pay out rates on these free to play gambling like games. The results suggest initiatives to prevent the development of disordered gambling should understand the potential of social casino gaming to act as a gateway to online gambling, especially amongst this vulnerable population.

  15. Why do young adults gamble online? A qualitative study of motivations to transition from social casino games to online gambling

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hyoun S. Kim

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract The present research examined the mechanisms of initiating online gambling among young adults. Of particular interest was whether social casino gaming was noted as part of young adults’ experience with online gambling. This is because there is growing concern that social casino gaming may be a ‘gateway’ to online gambling. Three focus groups (N = 21 were conducted with young adult online gamblers from two large Canadian Universities. Participants noted the role of peer influence as well as incentives (e.g., sign up bonuses as important factors that motivated them to start engaging in online gambling. Participants also noted a link between social casino games and online gambling. Specifically, several young adults reported migrating to online gambling within a relatively short period after engaging with social casino games. Potential mechanisms that may lead to the migration from social casino games to online gambling included the role of advertisements and the inflated pay out rates on these free to play gambling like games. The results suggest initiatives to prevent the development of disordered gambling should understand the potential of social casino gaming to act as a gateway to online gambling, especially amongst this vulnerable population.

  16. The effects of online social networks on tacit knowledge transmission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Hong-Miao; Zhang, Sheng-Tai; Jin, Zhen

    2016-01-01

    Due to the popular use of online social networks in today's world, how to propagate employees' tacit knowledge via online social networks has attracted managers' attention, which is critical to enhance the competitiveness of firms. In this paper, we propose a tacit knowledge transmission model on networks with even mixing based on the propagation property of tacit knowledge and the application of online social networks. We consider two routes of transmission, which are contact through online social networks and face-to-face physical contact, and derive the threshold that governs whether or not a kind of tacit knowledge can be shared in an organization with few initial employees who have acquired it. The impact of the degree distribution of the users' contact network on the transmission is investigated analytically. Some numerical simulations are presented to support the theoretical results. We perform the sensitivity analysis of the threshold in terms of the propagation parameters and confirm that online social networks contribute significantly to enhancing the transmission of tacit knowledge among employees.

  17. Spreading in online social networks: the role of social reinforcement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Muhua; Lü, Linyuan; Zhao, Ming

    2013-07-01

    Some epidemic spreading models are usually applied to analyze the propagation of opinions or news. However, the dynamics of epidemic spreading and information or behavior spreading are essentially different in many aspects. Centola's experiments [Science 329, 1194 (2010)] on behavior spreading in online social networks showed that the spreading is faster and broader in regular networks than in random networks. This result contradicts with the former understanding that random networks are preferable for spreading than regular networks. To describe the spreading in online social networks, a unknown-known-approved-exhausted four-status model was proposed, which emphasizes the effect of social reinforcement and assumes that the redundant signals can improve the probability of approval (i.e., the spreading rate). Performing the model on regular and random networks, it is found that our model can well explain the results of Centola's experiments on behavior spreading and some former studies on information spreading in different parameter space. The effects of average degree and network size on behavior spreading process are further analyzed. The results again show the importance of social reinforcement and are accordant with Centola's anticipation that increasing the network size or decreasing the average degree will enlarge the difference of the density of final approved nodes between regular and random networks. Our work complements the former studies on spreading dynamics, especially the spreading in online social networks where the information usually requires individuals' confirmations before being transmitted to others.

  18. The space for social media in structured online learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gilly Salmon

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we explore the benefits of using social media in an online educational setting, with a particular focus on the use of Facebook and Twitter by participants in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC developed to enable educators to learn about the Carpe Diem learning design process. We define social media as digital social tools and environments located outside of the provision of a formal university-provided Learning Management System. We use data collected via interviews and surveys with the MOOC participants as well as social media postings made by the participants throughout the MOOC to offer insights into how participants’ usage and perception of social media in their online learning experiences differed and why. We identified that, although some participants benefitted from social media by crediting it, for example, with networking and knowledge-sharing opportunities, others objected or refused to engage with social media, perceiving it as a waste of their time. We make recommendations for the usage of social media for educational purposes within MOOCs and formal digital learning environments.

  19. The impact of online brand community type on consumer's community engagement behaviors: consumer-created vs. marketer-created online brand community in online social-networking web sites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Doohwang; Kim, Hyuk Soo; Kim, Jung Kyu

    2011-01-01

    The current study proposed and tested a theoretical model of consumers' online brand community engagement behaviors, with particular attention given to online brand community type (consumer vs. marketer-created). By integrating attribution and social identity theories, this study investigated the causal linkages between intrinsic motives of altruism, social identification motivations, and online brand community engagement behaviors. The results showed that consumers' online brand community engagement intentions were indirectly influenced by the different types of communities through different levels of consumers' attributions to intrinsic motives of altruism. This study also found that, in the attribution processes, consumers' intrinsic motives of altruism motivated them to identify themselves socially with the online communities they join. Finally, this study demonstrated that the intrinsic motives of altruism and social identification motivations provided strong social incentives to motivate consumers to engage in subsequent online brand community behaviors.

  20. Socializing by Gaming : Revealing Social Relationships in Multiplayer Online Games

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Jia, L.; Shen, S.; van de Bovenkamp, R.; Iosup, A.; Kuipers, F.A.; Epema, D.H.J.

    2015-01-01

    Multiplayer Online Games (MOGs) like Defense of the Ancients and StarCraft II have attracted hundreds of millions of users who communicate, interact, and socialize with each other through gaming. In MOGs, rich social relationships emerge and can be used to improve gaming services such as match

  1. Online social media analysis and visualization

    CERN Document Server

    Kawash, Jalal

    2015-01-01

    This edited volume addresses the vast challenges of adapting Online Social Media (OSM) to developing research methods and applications. The topics cover generating realistic social network topologies, awareness of user activities, topic and trend generation, estimation of user attributes from their social content, behavior detection, mining social content for common trends, identifying and ranking social content sources, building friend-comprehension tools, and many others. Each of the ten chapters tackle one or more of these issues by proposing new analysis methods or new visualization techn

  2. Benford's Law Applies to Online Social Networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Golbeck, Jennifer

    2015-01-01

    Benford's Law states that, in naturally occurring systems, the frequency of numbers' first digits is not evenly distributed. Numbers beginning with a 1 occur roughly 30% of the time, and are six times more common than numbers beginning with a 9. We show that Benford's Law applies to social and behavioral features of users in online social networks. Using social data from five major social networks (Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, Pinterest, and LiveJournal), we show that the distribution of first significant digits of friend and follower counts for users in these systems follow Benford's Law. The same is true for the number of posts users make. We extend this to egocentric networks, showing that friend counts among the people in an individual's social network also follows the expected distribution. We discuss how this can be used to detect suspicious or fraudulent activity online and to validate datasets.

  3. Benford's Law Applies to Online Social Networks.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jennifer Golbeck

    Full Text Available Benford's Law states that, in naturally occurring systems, the frequency of numbers' first digits is not evenly distributed. Numbers beginning with a 1 occur roughly 30% of the time, and are six times more common than numbers beginning with a 9. We show that Benford's Law applies to social and behavioral features of users in online social networks. Using social data from five major social networks (Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, Pinterest, and LiveJournal, we show that the distribution of first significant digits of friend and follower counts for users in these systems follow Benford's Law. The same is true for the number of posts users make. We extend this to egocentric networks, showing that friend counts among the people in an individual's social network also follows the expected distribution. We discuss how this can be used to detect suspicious or fraudulent activity online and to validate datasets.

  4. MARKETING COMMUNICATION IN ONLINE SOCIAL PROGRAMS: OHANIAN MODEL OF SOURCE CREDIBILITY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Serban Corina

    2010-07-01

    Full Text Available The development of the Internet as a medium for interaction with customers has resulted in many changes regarding the promotion of organizations. Online marketing is nowadays used not only to sell a product on the market, but also requires ideas and behavioral change. Non-profit organizations active in online communication are based on the quality of their provided information. Crediblity, attractiveness and usefullness are the key elements that provide effective online social programs. This paper aims to extend the scope of research in the field of social marketing by studying the Ohanian model in the online environment. The goal is to highlight the important theories and social models intrinsic to the online non-profit organizations’ communication. The results show that the efficiency of social programs depends on the level of incorporated elements of social theories in the design, content and structure of the website.

  5. Do Multiple Forms of Social Capital Mediate the Relationship Between Parental Violence and Children's Maladaptive Behaviors?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Sangwon; Lee, Yanghee

    2018-03-01

    Many things can harm children's well-being. Among them, exposure to parental violence makes children vulnerable and often leads to aggression and/or depression. However, not all children who have suffered parental violence show aggressive behavior or depressive mood. Social capital, defined as resources accruing from interpersonal relationships, was proposed to significantly mediate the relationships among adverse experiences and their negative impacts. In previous studies, social capital accrued from parents played a positive role for children in violent situations, but children exposed to parental violence need alternative sources of social capital. This study targeted fourth-grade Korean children and aimed to identify and test the role of various forms of social capital to help children overcome negative consequences from parental violence. Siblings, friends, teachers, neighbors, and online acquaintances were sources of social capital, and the results showed that social capital from siblings, teachers, neighbors, or online acquaintances mediated in the relationships between parental violence and aggressive behavior. In addition, social capital from siblings and online acquaintances mediated in the relationships between parental violence and depressive mood. The findings have implications in terms of intervention. It is suggested that multiple forms of social capital from children's immediate environments are helpful in their adaptation from exposure to parental violence, and thus, relationship-based interventions are recommended.

  6. Online Social Networks and the New Organizational Spaces

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cintia Rodrigues de Oliveira Medeiros

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available We analyzed the ‘virtuality’ of the social space and the boundaries of organizations from the emergence and dissemination of online social networking. The purpose is to identify how the use of social networks by 10 Brazilian companies enables the redefinition and expansion of organizational space. For the analysis of the data, we used the theory of social space of Lefebvre (2004, which defines three moments of space social production: the imagined space, the lived space and the perceived space. The methodological qualitative approach is done by document analysis from the websites of the companies. We show that the organizational space has new contours with the adoption of online social networks and we analyzed four spatial metaphors: the square, the museum, the temple and the market.

  7. The association between online gaming, social phobia, and depression: an internet survey

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wei Han-Ting

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Online gaming technology has developed rapidly within the past decade, and its related problems have received increasing attention. However, there are few studies on the psychiatric symptoms associated with excessive use of online games. The aim of this study is to investigate the characteristics of online gamers, and the association between online gaming hours, social phobia, and depression using an internet survey. Methods An online questionnaire was designed and posted on a popular online game websites, inviting the online gamers to participate the survey. The content of the questionnaire included demographic data, profiles of internet usage and online gaming, and self-rating scales of Depression and Somatic Symptoms Scale (DSSS, Social Phobia Inventory (SPIN, and Chen Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS. Results A total of 722 online gamers with a mean age of 21.8 ± 4.9 years completed the online survey within one month. 601 (83.2% participants were male, and 121 (16.8% were female. The mean weekly online gaming time was 28.2 ± 19.7 hours, which positively associated with history of online gaming (r = 0.245, p  Conclusion The online gamers with longer weekly gaming hours tended to have a longer history of online gaming, and more severe depressive, social phobic, and internet addiction symptoms. Female online gamers had fewer weekly online gaming hours and a shorter previous online gaming history, but tended to have more severe somatic, pain, and social phobic symptoms. The predictors for depression were higher social phobic symptom, higher internet addiction symptoms, longer online gaming hours, and female gender.

  8. Re-visiting internet addiction among Taiwanese students: a cross-sectional comparison of students' expectations, online gaming, and online social interaction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Yuan-Hsuan; Ko, Chih-Hung; Chou, Chien

    2015-04-01

    Using expectancy theory, this study aimed at identifying the attitudinal/behavioral factors that explain the relationship between Internet expectancies and Internet addiction among Taiwanese adolescents. A total of 25,573 students (49.8% boys and 50.2% girls) across junior and senior high schools participated in the study. The students reported on their background characteristics, general expectations from the Internet, attitudes toward online social interaction and online gaming, preferences in online social interaction, and dys-controlled online gaming behavior. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the indirect effects of Internet expectancies on Internet addiction through these attitudinal/behavioral factors. The results showed that Internet expectancies positively predicted students' attitudes toward online games and online social interaction, which in turn predicted their respective preferences or dys-controlled behavior and Internet addiction. The indirect effect of Internet expectancies was higher on Internet addiction via attitudes toward online gaming and dys-controlled online gaming than via attitudes toward and preferences of online social interaction. The indirect effects exhibited a larger impact on boys than on girls. The authors recommend that the expectancies of online gaming and social interaction be addressed in efforts to prevent and attenuate the severity of adolescent Internet addiction.

  9. Analysis of Online Social Networks to Understand Information Sharing Behaviors Through Social Cognitive Theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yoon, Hong-Jun; Tourassi, Georgia

    2014-05-01

    Analyzing the contents of online social networks is an effective process for monitoring and understanding peoples' behaviors. Since the nature of conversation and information propagation is similar to traditional conversation and learning, one of the popular socio-cognitive methods, social cognitive theory was applied to online social networks to. Two major news topics about colon cancer were chosen to monitor traffic of Twitter messages. The activity of "leaders" on the issue (i.e., news companies or people will prior Twitter activity on topics related to colon cancer) was monitored. In addition, the activity of "followers", people who never discussed the topics before, but replied to the discussions was also monitored. Topics that produce tangible benefits such as positive outcomes from appropriate preventive actions received dramatically more attention and online social media traffic. Such characteristics can be explained with social cognitive theory and thus present opportunities for effective health campaigns.

  10. Social Presence and Interactivity in Online Courses: Enhancing the Online Learning Environment through Discussion and Writing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harrigan, Anne M.

    2010-01-01

    This study explored social presence and interactivity in an online undergraduate program designed for adult students. Although social presence and interactivity have been shown to be important contributors to student satisfaction, and therefore essential to student recruitment and retention in online programs, the ultimate goal for the examination…

  11. Making multiple 'online counsellings' through policy and practice: an evidence-making intervention approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Savic, Michael; Dilkes-Frayne, Ella; Carter, Adrian; Kokanovic, Renata; Manning, Victoria; Rodda, Simone N; Lubman, Dan I

    2018-03-01

    Online counselling services for a range of health conditions have proliferated in recent years. However, there is ambiguity and tension around their role and function. It is often unclear whether online counselling services are intended to provide only a brief intervention, the provision of information or referral, or constitute an alternative to face-to-face treatment. In line with recent analyses of alcohol and other drug (AOD) policy and interventions that draw on a critical social science perspective, we take an evidence-making intervention approach to examine how online counselling in the AOD field is made in policy and through processes of local implementation. In this article, we analyse how online AOD counselling interventions and knowledges are enacted in Australia's AOD policy, and compare these enactments with an analysis of information about Australia's national online AOD counselling service, Counselling Online, and transcripts of counselling sessions with clients of Counselling Online. We suggest that while the policy enacts online counselling as a brief intervention targeting AOD use, and as an avenue to facilitate referral to face-to-face treatment services, in its implementation in practice online counselling is enacted in more varied ways. These include online counselling as attempting to attend to AOD use and interconnected psychosocial concerns, as a potential form of treatment in its own right, and as supplementing face-to-face AOD treatment services. Rather than viewing online counselling as a singular and stable intervention object, we suggest that multiple 'online counsellings' emerge in practice through local implementation practices and knowledges. We argue that the frictions that arise between policy and practice enactments need to be considered by policy makers, funders, clinicians and researchers as they affect how the concerns of those targeted by the intervention are attended to. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Pharmacists on Facebook: online social networking and the profession.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mattingly, T Joseph; Cain, Jeff; Fink, Joseph L

    2010-01-01

    To provide a brief history of Facebook and online social networking and discuss how it has contributed and can contribute in the future to a paradigm change in social communications. When student pharmacists complete school and enter practice, they encounter enhanced expectations to act appropriately and professionally. Facebook expands the dilemma of separating private and public life--a challenge for individuals in all professions. From the standpoint of a professional association, Facebook provides a tremendous opportunity to reach out to members in an unprecedented way. Pharmacy organizations are beginning to use these new tools to increase communication and dissemination of information. The popularity of Facebook has brought the issue of online social networking to the forefront of professional and organizational discussions. The issues of privacy, identity protection, and e-professionalism are likely to reappear as pharmacists and student pharmacists continue to communicate via online networks. The potential exists for organizations to harness this organizational and communication power for their own interests. Further study is needed regarding the interaction between online social networking applications and the profession of pharmacy.

  13. MAXIMIZING SOCIAL VALUE IN THE HOTEL ONLINE ENVIRONMENT USING AN ANALYTIC HIERARCHY PROCESS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carmen Păunescu

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available The paper analyses the possibilities that hoteliers have to create and maximize the social value of their online platforms, in terms of their functionality and usage, in order to improve sales and increase hotels’ performance. It also discusses the opportunities that hotel managers can take to improve the hotel online decision-making strategy to convert more effectively visitors into actual customers. Although social value creation of online platforms has been well researched in the specialized literature, recent research has not examined the ways the online social value can be maximized and put into effective commercial use. The paper reviews the dimensions and characteristics of the hotel online environment by integrating literature analysis and field research practices. It employs the analytic hierarchy process method to analyse key elements of the hotel online environment that can serve as a focal point for value creation. The literature review and field research conducted pinpoint three possibilities of creating online social value: (a building online trust, (b ensuring high quality of the online service, and (c providing effective online communication experience. The paper results have given deeper understanding regarding potential areas of the hotel online environment where social value can be obtained. They prove applicability of the analytic hierarchy process method for evaluation and selection of strategies for online social value creation. At the same time, the paper provides new valuable insights to hoteliers, which might support their decisions to improve the business by proactively incorporating strategies for online social value maximization.

  14. Analysis of Social Media Influencers and Trends on Online and Mobile Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shen, Chien-wen; Kuo, Chin-Jin; Ly, Pham Thi Minh

    2017-01-01

    Although educational practitioners have adopted social media to their online or mobile communities, little attention has been paid to investigate the social media messages related to online or mobile learning. The purpose of this research is to identify social media influencers and trends by mining Twitter posts related to online learning and…

  15. Online social networks for patient involvement and recruitment in clinical research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ryan, Gemma Sinead

    2013-01-01

    To review current literature and discuss the potential of online social networking to engage patients and the public and recruit and retain participants in clinical research. Online social networking is becoming a large influence on people's daily lives. Clinical research faces several challenges, with an increasing need to engage with patients and the public and for studies to recruit and retain increasing numbers of participants, particularly in under-served, under-represented and hard to reach groups and communities. Searches were conducted using EMBASE, BNI, ERIC, CINAHL, PSYCHinfo online databases and Google Scholar to identify any grey or unpublished literature that may be available. Review methods This is a methodology paper. Online social networking is a successful, cost-effective and efficient method by which to target and recruit a wide range of communities, adolescents, young people and underserved populations into quantitative and qualitative research. Retention of participants in longitudinal studies could be improved using social networks such as Facebook. Evidence indicates that a mixed approach to recruitment using social networking and traditional methods is most effective. Further research is required to strengthen the evidence available, especially in dissemination of research through online social networks. Researchers should consider using online social networking as a method of engaging the public, and also for the recruitment and follow up of participants.

  16. A last updating evolution model for online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bu, Zhan; Xia, Zhengyou; Wang, Jiandong; Zhang, Chengcui

    2013-05-01

    As information technology has advanced, people are turning to electronic media more frequently for communication, and social relationships are increasingly found on online channels. However, there is very limited knowledge about the actual evolution of the online social networks. In this paper, we propose and study a novel evolution network model with the new concept of “last updating time”, which exists in many real-life online social networks. The last updating evolution network model can maintain the robustness of scale-free networks and can improve the network reliance against intentional attacks. What is more, we also found that it has the “small-world effect”, which is the inherent property of most social networks. Simulation experiment based on this model show that the results and the real-life data are consistent, which means that our model is valid.

  17. Online dating in Japan: a test of social information processing theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farrer, James; Gavin, Jeff

    2009-08-01

    This study examines the experiences of past and present members of a popular Japanese online dating site in order to explore the extent to which Western-based theories of computer-mediated communication (CMC) and the development of online relationships are relevant to the Japanese online dating experience. Specifically, it examines whether social information processing theory (SIPT) is applicable to Japanese online dating interactions, and how and to what extent Japanese daters overcome the limitations of CMC through the use of contextual and other cues. Thirty-six current members and 27 former members of Match.com Japan completed an online survey. Using issue-based procedures for grounded theory analysis, we found strong support for SIPT. Japanese online daters adapt their efforts to present and acquire social information using the cues that the online dating platform provides, although many of these cues are specific to Japanese social context.

  18. Self-control in Online Discussions: Disinhibited Online Behavior as a Failure to Recognize Social Cues.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Voggeser, Birgit J; Singh, Ranjit K; Göritz, Anja S

    2017-01-01

    In an online experiment we examined the role of self-control in recognizing social cues in the context of disinhibited online behavior (e.g., flaming and trolling). We temporarily lowered participants' self-control capacity with an ego depletion paradigm (i.e., color Stroop task). Next, we measured participants' sensitivity to social cues with an emotional Stroop task containing neutral, negative, and taboo words. Sensitivity to social cues is represented by the increase in reaction time to negative and especially taboo words compared to neutral words. As expected, undepleted participants were slower to process the color of negative and taboo words. By contrast, depleted participants (i.e., those with lowered self-control capacity) did not react differently to taboo or negative words than they did to neutral words. The experiment illustrates that self-control failure may manifest itself in a failure to recognize social cues. The finding underlines the importance of self-control in understanding disinhibited online behavior: Many instances of disinhibited online behavior may occur not because people are unable to control themselves, but because they do not realize that a situation calls for self-control in the first place.

  19. Self-control in Online Discussions: Disinhibited Online Behavior as a Failure to Recognize Social Cues

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Birgit J. Voggeser

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available In an online experiment we examined the role of self-control in recognizing social cues in the context of disinhibited online behavior (e.g., flaming and trolling. We temporarily lowered participants' self-control capacity with an ego depletion paradigm (i.e., color Stroop task. Next, we measured participants' sensitivity to social cues with an emotional Stroop task containing neutral, negative, and taboo words. Sensitivity to social cues is represented by the increase in reaction time to negative and especially taboo words compared to neutral words. As expected, undepleted participants were slower to process the color of negative and taboo words. By contrast, depleted participants (i.e., those with lowered self-control capacity did not react differently to taboo or negative words than they did to neutral words. The experiment illustrates that self-control failure may manifest itself in a failure to recognize social cues. The finding underlines the importance of self-control in understanding disinhibited online behavior: Many instances of disinhibited online behavior may occur not because people are unable to control themselves, but because they do not realize that a situation calls for self-control in the first place.

  20. Studies on the population dynamics of a rumor-spreading model in online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, Suyalatu; Fan, Feng-Hua; Huang, Yong-Chang

    2018-02-01

    This paper sets up a rumor spreading model in online social networks based on the European fox rabies SIR model. The model considers the impact of changing number of online social network users, combines the transmission dynamics to set up a population dynamics of rumor spreading model in online social networks. Simulation is carried out on online social network, and results show that the new rumor spreading model is in accordance with the real propagation characteristics in online social networks.

  1. The Social Ties That Bind. Online Treasures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balas, Janet L.

    2006-01-01

    This article discusses how, in the new world of the information age, libraries must seek to bring relevant services to their technically savvy patrons. This includes designing a library that can serve not only the geographic community, but also the virtual online community. Software used to create online communities is known as social software and…

  2. How Social Communications Influence Advertising Perception and Response in Online Communities?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zeng, Fue; Tao, Ran; Yang, Yanwu; Xie, Tingting

    2017-01-01

    This research aims to explore how social communications of online communities affect users' perception and responses toward social media advertising. We developed a conceptual model based on the SBT, encapsulating 9 constructs and 10 hypothesis extracted from the extant social media advertising literature. Our research outcome proves that social communications can effectively boost users' behaviors to be in accordance with an online social community, thus facilitate their acceptance and responses toward social media advertising, with users' group intention as an intervening factor. From an operational standpoint, it's an effective way to build and maintain social bonds between users and the community by boosting social communications, supporting fluent interpersonal communications. In addition, managers of an online community should elaborate on users' group intentions to increase users' advertising acceptance and response.

  3. How Social Communications Influence Advertising Perception and Response in Online Communities?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fue Zeng

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available This research aims to explore how social communications of online communities affect users’ perception and responses toward social media advertising. We developed a conceptual model based on the SBT, encapsulating 9 constructs and 10 hypothesis extracted from the extant social media advertising literature. Our research outcome proves that social communications can effectively boost users’ behaviors to be in accordance with an online social community, thus facilitate their acceptance and responses toward social media advertising, with users’ group intention as an intervening factor. From an operational standpoint, it’s an effective way to build and maintain social bonds between users and the community by boosting social communications, supporting fluent interpersonal communications. In addition, managers of an online community should elaborate on users’ group intentions to increase users’ advertising acceptance and response.

  4. How Social Communications Influence Advertising Perception and Response in Online Communities?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zeng, Fue; Tao, Ran; Yang, Yanwu; Xie, Tingting

    2017-01-01

    This research aims to explore how social communications of online communities affect users’ perception and responses toward social media advertising. We developed a conceptual model based on the SBT, encapsulating 9 constructs and 10 hypothesis extracted from the extant social media advertising literature. Our research outcome proves that social communications can effectively boost users’ behaviors to be in accordance with an online social community, thus facilitate their acceptance and responses toward social media advertising, with users’ group intention as an intervening factor. From an operational standpoint, it’s an effective way to build and maintain social bonds between users and the community by boosting social communications, supporting fluent interpersonal communications. In addition, managers of an online community should elaborate on users’ group intentions to increase users’ advertising acceptance and response. PMID:28855879

  5. Multiple Attempts for Online Assessments in an Operations Management Course: An Exploration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Orchard, Ryan K.

    2016-01-01

    In learning management systems, tools for online homework assessments include a number of alternatives for the assessment settings, including the ability to permit students to attempt an assessment multiple times, with options for how the multiple attempts are administered. A specific implementation of online assessments in an introductory…

  6. Singaporean Adolescents' Perceptions of Online Social Communication: An Exploratory Factor Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Robert Z.; Cheok, Angeline; Khoo, Eng

    2011-01-01

    The current study investigated adolescents' perceptions in online social communication. Three factors were perceived by adolescents as critical to online social communication. These included self-identity, self-confidence, and self-social factors. Results showed significant differences between the factors derived from the current study and those…

  7. Civility vs. Incivility in Online Social Interactions: An Evolutionary Approach.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Angelo Antoci

    Full Text Available Evidence is growing that forms of incivility-e.g. aggressive and disrespectful behaviors, harassment, hate speech and outrageous claims-are spreading in the population of social networking sites' (SNS users. Online social networks such as Facebook allow users to regularly interact with known and unknown others, who can behave either politely or rudely. This leads individuals not only to learn and adopt successful strategies for using the site, but also to condition their own behavior on that of others. Using a mean field approach, we define anevolutionary game framework to analyse the dynamics of civil and uncivil ways of interaction in online social networks and their consequences for collective welfare. Agents can choose to interact with others-politely or rudely-in SNS, or to opt out from online social networks to protect themselves from incivility. We find that, when the initial share of the population of polite users reaches a critical level, civility becomes generalized if its payoff increases more than that of incivility with the spreading of politeness in online interactions. Otherwise, the spreading of self-protective behaviors to cope with online incivility can lead the economyto non-socially optimal stationary states. JEL Codes: C61, C73, D85, O33, Z13. PsycINFO Codes: 2240, 2750.

  8. Civility vs. Incivility in Online Social Interactions: An Evolutionary Approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Antoci, Angelo; Delfino, Alexia; Paglieri, Fabio; Panebianco, Fabrizio; Sabatini, Fabio

    2016-01-01

    Evidence is growing that forms of incivility-e.g. aggressive and disrespectful behaviors, harassment, hate speech and outrageous claims-are spreading in the population of social networking sites' (SNS) users. Online social networks such as Facebook allow users to regularly interact with known and unknown others, who can behave either politely or rudely. This leads individuals not only to learn and adopt successful strategies for using the site, but also to condition their own behavior on that of others. Using a mean field approach, we define anevolutionary game framework to analyse the dynamics of civil and uncivil ways of interaction in online social networks and their consequences for collective welfare. Agents can choose to interact with others-politely or rudely-in SNS, or to opt out from online social networks to protect themselves from incivility. We find that, when the initial share of the population of polite users reaches a critical level, civility becomes generalized if its payoff increases more than that of incivility with the spreading of politeness in online interactions. Otherwise, the spreading of self-protective behaviors to cope with online incivility can lead the economyto non-socially optimal stationary states. JEL Codes: C61, C73, D85, O33, Z13. PsycINFO Codes: 2240, 2750.

  9. Designing for Learning: Online Social Networks as a Classroom Environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gail Casey

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available This paper deploys notions of emergence, connections, and designs for learning to conceptualize high school students’ interactions when using online social media as a learning environment. It makes links to chaos and complexity theories and to fractal patterns as it reports on a part of the first author’s action research study, conducted while she was a teacher working in an Australian public high school and completing her PhD. The study investigates the use of a Ning online social network as a learning environment shared by seven classes, and it examines students’ reactions and online activity while using a range of social media and Web 2.0 tools.The authors use Graham Nuthall’s (2007 “lens on learning” to explore the social processes and culture of this shared online classroom. The paper uses his extensive body of research and analyses of classroom learning processes to conceptualize and analyze data throughout the action research cycle. It discusses the pedagogical implications that arise from the use of social media and, in so doing, challenges traditional models of teaching and learning.

  10. EFFECT OF SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING ON BRAND EQUITY OF ONLINE COMPANIES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Satheeka Kavisekera

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Social Media is a prominent marketing tool profoundly used by E-Businesses to draw the attention of the online target audience that could be converted to direct traffic. However, the non-exclusivity of social media has created a unique issue for virtual enterprises that are entirely depending on digital media. The main emphasis of this study is to appreciate the significance of Social Media Marketing in promoting the Brand Equity of E-Commerce enterprises. The empirical study is based on Kapruka.Com; Sri Lanka’s largest online gift shop with the aim of identifying the casual relationship between social media marketing and brand equity. An online questionnaire has been employed to collect the data during the survey. Evident by findings, there is a significant relationship between social media marketing and brand equity of online companies. The study contributes to the marketing practitioners in terms of enhancing the brand value by identifying and exploiting the main attributes of social media marketing.

  11. Online professionalism and the mirror of social media.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greysen, S Ryan; Kind, Terry; Chretien, Katherine C

    2010-11-01

    The rise of social media--content created by Internet users and hosted by popular sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Wikipedia, and blogs--has brought several new hazards for medical professionalism. First, many physicians may find applying principles for medical professionalism to the online environment challenging in certain contexts. Second, physicians may not consider the potential impact of their online content on their patients and the public. Third, a momentary lapse in judgment by an individual physician to create unprofessional content online can reflect poorly on the entire profession. To overcome these challenges, we encourage individual physicians to realize that as they "tread" through the World Wide Web, they leave behind a "footprint" that may have unintended negative consequences for them and for the profession at large. We also recommend that institutions take a proactive approach to engage users of social media in setting consensus-based standards for "online professionalism." Finally, given that professionalism encompasses more than the avoidance of negative behaviors, we conclude with examples of more positive applications for this technology. Much like a mirror, social media can reflect the best and worst aspects of the content placed before it for all to see.

  12. 'The More We Stand For - The More We Fight For': Compatibility and Legitimacy in the Effects of Multiple Social Identities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chayinska, Maria; Minescu, Anca; McGarty, Craig

    2017-01-01

    This paper explores the expression of multiple social identities through coordinated collective action. We propose that perceived compatibility between potentially contrasting identities and perceived legitimacy of protest serve as catalysts for collective action. The present paper maps the context of the "Euromaidan" anti-regime protests in Ukraine and reports data ( N = 996) collected through an online survey following legislation to ban protests (March-May, 2014). We measured participants' identification with three different groups (the Ukrainian nation, the online protest community, and the street movement), perception of compatibility between online protest and the street movement, perception of the legitimacy of protest, and intentions to take persuasive and confrontational collective action. We found evidence that the more social groups people "stood for," the more they "fought" for their cause and that identifications predicted both forms of collective action to the degree that people saw the protest and the online movement as compatible with each other and believed protest to be legitimate. Collective action can be interpreted as the congruent expression of multiple identities that are rendered ideologically compatible both in online settings and on the street.

  13. Do Students Experience "Social Intelligence," Laughter, and Other Emotions Online?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meyer, Katrina A.; Jones, Stephanie J.

    2012-01-01

    Are online activities devoid of emotion and social intelligence? Graduate students in online and blended programs at Texas Tech University and the University of Memphis were surveyed about how often they laughed, felt other emotions, and expressed social intelligence. Laughter, chuckling, and smiling occurred "sometimes" as did other…

  14. Developing Online Marketing in Social Media for DORTMUNDtourismus e.V.

    OpenAIRE

    Steinrücken, Thomas

    2010-01-01

    The thesis discussed the topic of online marketing in social media. The focus was set on the social media platforms Facebook, YouTube and Flickr. Commissioner of the thesis was DORTMUNDtourismus e.V., the destination management organization for Dortmund, Germany. The research problem was to identify ways to develop online marketing in social media in a cost-efficient and innovative way in order to raise the awareness of DORTMUNDtourismus e.V. and Dortmund in social media and as a destination....

  15. Blessed Oblivion? Knowledge and Metacognitive Accuracy in Online Social Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moll, Ricarda; Pieschl, Stephanie; Bromme, Rainer

    2015-01-01

    In order to reap the social gratifications of Online Social Networks (OSNs), users often disclose self-related information, making them potentially vulnerable to their online audiences. We give a brief overview of our theoretical ideas and empirical research about additional cognitive and metacognitive factors relevant for the perception of risk…

  16. Social and place-focused communities in location-based online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Chloë; Nicosia, Vincenzo; Scellato, Salvatore; Noulas, Anastasios; Mascolo, Cecilia

    2013-06-01

    Thanks to widely available, cheap Internet access and the ubiquity of smartphones, millions of people around the world now use online location-based social networking services. Understanding the structural properties of these systems and their dependence upon users' habits and mobility has many potential applications, including resource recommendation and link prediction. Here, we construct and characterise social and place-focused graphs by using longitudinal information about declared social relationships and about users' visits to physical places collected from a popular online location-based social service. We show that although the social and place-focused graphs are constructed from the same data set, they have quite different structural properties. We find that the social and location-focused graphs have different global and meso-scale structure, and in particular that social and place-focused communities have negligible overlap. Consequently, group inference based on community detection performed on the social graph alone fails to isolate place-focused groups, even though these do exist in the network. By studying the evolution of tie structure within communities, we show that the time period over which location data are aggregated has a substantial impact on the stability of place-focused communities, and that information about place-based groups may be more useful for user-centric applications than that obtained from the analysis of social communities alone.

  17. Scaling-Up Youth-Led Social Justice Efforts through an Online School-Based Social Network.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kornbluh, Mariah; Neal, Jennifer Watling; Ozer, Emily J

    2016-06-01

    The exploration of social networking sites (SNS) in promoting social change efforts offers great potential within the field of community psychology. Online communities on SNS provide opportunities for bridging across groups, thus fostering the exchange of novel ideas and practices. Currently, there have only been limited efforts to examine SNS within the context of youth-led efforts. To explore the potential of SNS to facilitate the diffusion of social justice efforts between distinct youth groups, we linked three school-based youth-led participatory action research projects involving 54 high school students through a SNS. This study offers an innovative methodological approach and framework, utilizing social network analysis and strategic sampling of key student informants to investigate what individual behaviors and online network features predict student adoption of social change efforts. Findings highlight prospective facilitators and barriers to diffusion processes within a youth-led online network, as well as key constructs that may inform future research. We conclude by providing suggestions for scholars and practitioners interested in examining how SNS can be used to enhance the diffusion of social justice strategies, youth-led engagement efforts, and large-scale civic organizing. © Society for Community Research and Action 2016.

  18. Cognitive Benefits of Online Social Networking for Healthy Older Adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Myhre, Janelle W; Mehl, Matthias R; Glisky, Elizabeth L

    2017-09-01

    Research suggests that older adults who remain socially active and cognitively engaged have better cognitive function than those who are isolated and disengaged. This study examined the efficacy of learning and using an online social networking website, Facebook.com, as an intervention to maintain or enhance cognitive function in older adults. Forty-one older adults were assigned to learn and use Facebook (n = 14) or an online diary website (active control, n = 13) for 8 weeks or placed on a waitlist (n = 14). Outcome measures included neuropsychological tests of executive functions, memory, and processing speed and self-report questionnaires about social engagement. The Facebook group showed a significant increase in a composite measure of updating, an executive function factor associated with complex working memory tasks, compared to no significant change in the control groups. Other measures of cognitive function and social support showed no differential improvement in the Facebook group. Learning and using an online social networking site may provide specific benefits for complex working memory in a group of healthy older adults. This may reflect the particular cognitive demands associated with online social networking and/or the benefits of social engagement more generally. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  19. Online Social Media Applications for Constructivism and Observational Learning

    OpenAIRE

    Lydia Mbati

    2013-01-01

    Web 2.0 technologies have a range of possibilities for fostering constructivist learning and observational learning. This is due to the available applications which allow for synchronous and asynchronous interaction and the sharing of knowledge between users. Web 2.0 tools include online social media applications which have potential pedagogical benefits. Despite these potential benefits, there is inadequate utilization of online social media applications in learning management systems for pe...

  20. Social Anxiety in Online and Real-Life Interaction and Their Associated Factors

    OpenAIRE

    Yen, Ju-Yu; Yen, Cheng-Fang; Chen, Cheng-Sheng; Wang, Peng-Wei; Chang, Yi-Hsin; Ko, Chih-Hung

    2012-01-01

    Social anxiety was compared between online and real-life interaction in a sample of 2,348 college students. Severity of social anxiety in both real-life and online interaction was tested for associations with depression, Internet addiction, Internet activity type (gaming versus chatting), and scores on Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS)/Behavioral Activation System (BAS) scales. The results showed that social anxiety was lower when interacting online than when interacting offline. Depression,...

  1. A Comparison of Online Social Networks and Real-Life Social Networks: A Study of Sina Microblogging

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dayong Zhang

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Online social networks appear to enrich our social life, which raises the question whether they remove cognitive constraints on human communication and improve human social capabilities. In this paper, we analyze the users' following and followed relationships based on the data of Sina Microblogging and reveal several structural properties of Sina Microblogging. Compared with real-life social networks, our results confirm some similar features. However, Sina Microblogging also shows its own specialties, such as hierarchical structure and degree disassortativity, which all mark a deviation from real-life social networks. The low cost of the online network forms a broader perspective, and the one-way link relationships make it easy to spread information, but the online social network does not make too much difference in the creation of strong interpersonal relationships. Finally, we describe the mechanisms for the formation of these characteristics and discuss the implications of these structural properties for the real-life social networks.

  2. Online social networking and the experience of cyber-bullying.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Dea, Bridianne; Campbell, Andrew

    2012-01-01

    Online social networking sites (SNS) are popular social tools used amongst adolescents and account for much of their daily internet activity. Recently, these sites have presented opportunities for youth to experience cyber-bullying. Often resulting in psychological distress, cyber-bullying is a common experience for many young people. Continual use of SNS signifies the importance of examining its links to cyber-bullying. This study examined the relationship between online social networking and the experience of cyber-bullying. A total of 400 participants (Mage=14.31 years) completed an online survey which examined the perceived definitions and frequency of cyber-bullying. Users of SNS reported significantly higher frequencies of stranger contact compared to non-users. Spearman's rho correlations determined no significant relationship between daily time on SNS and the frequency of stranger contact. This suggests that ownership of a SNS profile may be a stronger predictor of some cyber-bullying experiences compared to time spent on these sites. Findings encourage continued research on the nature of internet activities used by young adolescents and the possible exposure to online victimization.

  3. Online Memorials 2.0: When Mourning Turns Social

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gotved, Stine

    This paper investigates the turn from individual to social online mourning rituals and introduces a research project that follows a new memorial platform where the best from both sides are sought combined. The Danish online memorial site from 2000, mindet.dk, is about to launch in a version 2...

  4. Competitive diffusion in online social networks with heterogeneous users

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Pei; He, Su; Wang, Hui; Zhang, Xin

    2014-06-01

    Online social networks have attracted increasing attention since they provide various approaches for hundreds of millions of people to stay connected with their friends. However, most research on diffusion dynamics in epidemiology cannot be applied directly to characterize online social networks, where users are heterogeneous and may act differently according to their standpoints. In this paper, we propose models to characterize the competitive diffusion in online social networks with heterogeneous users. We classify messages into two types (i.e., positive and negative) and users into three types (i.e., positive, negative and neutral). We estimate the positive (negative) influence for a user generating a given type message, which is the number of times that positive (negative) messages are processed (i.e., read) incurred by this action. We then consider the diffusion threshold, above which the corresponding influence will approach infinity, and the effect threshold, above which the unexpected influence of generating a message will exceed the expected one. We verify all these results by simulations, which show the analysis results are perfectly consistent with the simulation results. These results are of importance in understanding the diffusion dynamics in online social networks, and also critical for advertisers in viral marketing where there are fans, haters and neutrals.

  5. Effective seeding strategy in evolutionary prisoner's dilemma games on online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Bo; Shi, Huibin; Wang, Jianwei; Huang, Yun

    2015-04-01

    This paper explores effective seeding strategies in prisoner's dilemma game (PDG) on online social networks, i.e. the optimal strategy to obtain global cooperation with minimum cost. Three distinct seeding strategies are compared by performing computer simulations on real online social network datasets. Our finding suggests that degree centrality seeding outperforms other strategies regardless of the initial payoff setting or network size. Celebrities of online social networks play key roles in preserving cooperation.

  6. Psychodynamic Factors Behind Online Social Networking and its Excessive Use.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Thomas Cheuk Wing

    2016-03-01

    This article discusses the psychodynamic factors behind the popularity of one form of Internet activity, online social networking (SN). It views online SN as an extension of the social self, organized in a way that is more controllable than real life relating. The SN platforms reward its users with reassuring surfaces and novel self-object experiences while at the same time induces much anxiety. The addictive quality of online SN is understood in the context of collapse of dialectical space and the defensive use of this technology.

  7. MULTIPLE ACCESS POINTS WITHIN THE ONLINE CLASSROOM: WHERE STUDENTS LOOK FOR INFORMATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    John STEELE

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of information placement within the confines of the online classroom architecture. Also reviewed was the impact of other variables such as course design, teaching presence and student patterns in looking for information. The sample population included students from a major online university in their first year course sequence. Students were tasked with completing a survey at the end of the course, indicating their preference for accessing information within the online classroom. The qualitative data indicated that student preference is to receive information from multiple access points and sources within the online classroom architecture. Students also expressed a desire to have information delivered through the usage of technology such as email and text messaging. In addition to receiving information from multiple sources, the qualitative data indicated students were satisfied overall, with the current ways in which they received and accessed information within the online classroom setting. Major findings suggest that instructors teaching within the online classroom should have multiple data access points within the classroom architecture. Furthermore, instructors should use a variety of communication venues to enhance the ability for students to access and receive information pertinent to the course.

  8. Online and Offline Gaming Social Preferences of Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shaffer, Jeannette R.

    2012-01-01

    The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between the self-reported demographic characteristics of high school students that play games online and their social preferences when playing offline and online. Adolescents are using communication tools while playing games to meet new people, learn new strategies, and maintain…

  9. Data Quality in Online Health Social Networks for Chronic Diseases

    Science.gov (United States)

    Venkatesan, Srikanth

    2017-01-01

    Can medical advice from other participants in online health social networks impact patient safety? What can we do alleviate this problem? How does the accuracy of information on such networks affect the patients?. There has been a significant increase , in recent years, in the use of online health social network sites as more patients seek to…

  10. A manifesto for conscientious design of hybrid online social systems

    OpenAIRE

    Noriega, Pablo; Verhagen, Harko; d’Inverno, Mark; Padget, Julian A.

    2016-01-01

    Online Social Systems such as community forums, social media, e-commerce and gaming are having an increasingly significant impact on our lives. They affect the way we accomplish all sorts of collective activities, the way we relate to others, and the way we construct are own self-image. These systems often have both human and artificial agency creating what we call online hybrid social systems. However, when systems are designed and constructed, the psychological and sociological impact of su...

  11. Social Studies Online Resources. Media Corner.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, Jeri, Ed.

    1995-01-01

    Maintains that three types of social studies activities are found on the information highway: (1) electronic mail; (2) information; and (3) conferencing. Describes examples of each. Discusses commercial services and resource materials and provides references to online services. (CFR)

  12. The association between online gaming, social phobia, and depression: an internet survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wei, Han-Ting; Chen, Mu-Hong; Huang, Po-Cheng; Bai, Ya-Mei

    2012-07-28

    Online gaming technology has developed rapidly within the past decade, and its related problems have received increasing attention. However, there are few studies on the psychiatric symptoms associated with excessive use of online games. The aim of this study is to investigate the characteristics of online gamers, and the association between online gaming hours, social phobia, and depression using an internet survey. An online questionnaire was designed and posted on a popular online game websites, inviting the online gamers to participate the survey. The content of the questionnaire included demographic data, profiles of internet usage and online gaming, and self-rating scales of Depression and Somatic Symptoms Scale (DSSS), Social Phobia Inventory (SPIN), and Chen Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS). A total of 722 online gamers with a mean age of 21.8 ± 4.9 years completed the online survey within one month. 601 (83.2%) participants were male, and 121 (16.8%) were female. The mean weekly online gaming time was 28.2 ± 19.7 hours, which positively associated with history of online gaming (r = 0.245, p online gaming (6.0 ± 3.1 vs. 7.2 ± 3.6 years, p = 0.001) and shorter weekly online gaming hours (23.2 ± 17.0 vs. 29.2 ± 20.2 hours, p = 0.002), but had higher DSSS (13.0 ± 9.3 vs. 10.9 ± 9.7, p = 0.032) and SPIN (22.8 ± 14.3 vs. 19.6 ± 13.5, p = 0.019) scores than the male players. The linear regression model showed that higher DSSS scores were associated with female gender, higher SPIN scores, higher CIAS scores, and longer weekly online gaming hours, with controlling for age and years of education. The online gamers with longer weekly gaming hours tended to have a longer history of online gaming, and more severe depressive, social phobic, and internet addiction symptoms. Female online gamers had fewer weekly online gaming hours and a shorter previous online gaming history, but tended to have

  13. Measurement of Online Social Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gjoka, Mina

    2010-01-01

    In recent years, the popularity of online social networks (OSN) has risen to unprecedented levels, with the most popular ones having hundreds of millions of users. This success has generated interest within the networking community and has given rise to a number of measurement and characterization studies, which provide a first step towards their…

  14. Social image of students who shop and don't shop online.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lammers, H Bruce; Curren, Mary T; Cours, Deborah; Lammers, Marilyn L

    2003-06-01

    A descriptive survey of a stratified random sample of 326 undergraduates from a large, diverse university in Los Angeles was conducted to assess whether resistance to online shopping might be, in part, related to negative social perceptions of those who shop online. Indirect questioning showed that students perceived online student shoppers as more lazy and less likely to fear for the safety and security of others but also as more trustworthy, attractive, successful, and smart. Differences in social perceptions were not related to these students' own online spending.

  15. Social comparison 2.0: examining the effects of online profiles on social-networking sites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haferkamp, Nina; Krämer, Nicole C

    2011-05-01

    Through their features--such as profile photographs or the personal vita--online profiles on social-networking sites offer a perfect basis for social comparison processes. By looking at the profile photograph, the user gains an impression of a person's physical attractiveness, and the user's vita shows which career path the person is pursuing. Against the background of Festinger's Social Comparison Theory, the focus of this research is on the effects of online profiles on their recipients. Therefore, qualitative interviews (N = 12) and two online experiments were conducted in which virtual online profiles of either physically attractive or unattractive persons (N = 93) and profiles of users with either high or low occupational attainment (N = 103) were presented to the participants. Although qualitative interviews did not initially give reason to expect online profiles to constitute a basis for comparison processes, results of the experiments proved otherwise. The first study indicates that recipients have a more negative body image after looking at beautiful users than persons who were shown the less attractive profile pictures. Male participants of the second study, who were confronted with profiles of successful males, showed a higher perceived discrepancy between their current career status and an ideal vita than male participants who looked at profiles of less successful persons.

  16. Content Propagation in Online Social Networks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Blenn, N.

    2014-01-01

    This thesis presents methods and techniques to analyze content propagation within online social networks (OSNs) using a graph theoretical approach. Important factors and different techniques to analyze and describe content propagation, starting from the smallest entity in a network, representing a

  17. On-line Social Interactions and Executive Functions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oscar eYbarra

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available A successful social interaction requires fast, on-line, and active construction of an ever-changing mental-model of another’s person beliefs, expectations, emotions, and desires. It also requires the ability to inhibit inappropriate behaviors, problem-solve, take-turns, and pursue goals in a distraction-rich environment. All these tasks rely on executive functions (EF—working memory, attention/cognitive control, and inhibition. Executive functioning has long been viewed as relatively static. However, starting with recent reports of successful cognitive interventions, this view is changing and now EFs are seen as much more open to both short and long term training, warm-up, and exhaustion effects. Some of the most intriguing evidence comes from research showing how social interaction enhances performance on standard EF tests. Interestingly, the latest research indicates these EF benefits are selectively conferred by certain on-line, dynamic social interactions, which require participants to engage with another person and actively construct the model of their mind. We review this literature and highlight its connection with evolutionary and cultural theories emphasizing links between intelligence and social life.

  18. The dual impact of online communication on older adults’ social connectivity

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hage, Maria; Wortmann, Johan; van Offenbeek, Marjolein; Boonstra, Albert

    2016-01-01

    Purpose – In today’s aging world online communication is often viewed as a means to enhance social connectivity, and therefore well-being, of older adults. However, previous research on the influence of online communication on social connectivity largely disregards older adults, yields conflicting

  19. Multiplicative Effects of Social and Psychological Risk Factors on College Students’ Suicidal Behaviors

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shervin Assari

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Less is known about the multiplicative effects of social and psychological risk and protective factors of suicidality on college campuses. The current study aimed to investigate the multiplicative effects of social (identifying oneself as gay/lesbian, financial difficulty, violence victimization, and religiosity and psychological (anxiety, depression, problem alcohol use, drug use and risk/protective factors on suicidal behaviors among college students in the United States. Using a cross-sectional design, the Healthy Mind Study (HMS; 2016–2017, is a national online survey of college students in the United States. Social (identifying oneself as gay/lesbian, violence victimization, financial difficulty, and religiosity and psychological (anxiety, depression, problem alcohol use, and drug use risk/protective factors were assessed among 27,961 individuals. Three aspects of suicidality, including ideation, plan, and attempt, were also assessed. Logistic regression models were used for data analysis. Financial difficulty, violence victimization, identifying oneself as gay/lesbian, anxiety, depression, and drug use increased, while religiosity reduced the odds of suicidal behaviors. Multiplicative effects were found between the following social and psychological risk factors: (1 financial difficulty and anxiety; (2 financial difficulty and depression; (3 depression and drug use; (4 problem alcohol use and drug use; and (5 depression and problem alcohol use. There is a considerable overlap in the social and psychological processes, such as financial stress, mood disorders, and substance use problems, on risk of suicide in college students. As social and psychological risk factors do not operate independently, comprehensive suicidal risk evaluations that simultaneously address multiple social and psychological risk factors may be superior to programs that only address a single risk factor.

  20. An information spreading model based on online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Tao; He, Juanjuan; Wang, Xiaoxia

    2018-01-01

    Online social platforms are very popular in recent years. In addition to spreading information, users could review or collect information on online social platforms. According to the information spreading rules of online social network, a new information spreading model, namely IRCSS model, is proposed in this paper. It includes sharing mechanism, reviewing mechanism, collecting mechanism and stifling mechanism. Mean-field equations are derived to describe the dynamics of the IRCSS model. Moreover, the steady states of reviewers, collectors and stiflers and the effects of parameters on the peak values of reviewers, collectors and sharers are analyzed. Finally, numerical simulations are performed on different networks. Results show that collecting mechanism and reviewing mechanism, as well as the connectivity of the network, make information travel wider and faster, and compared to WS network and ER network, the speed of reviewing, sharing and collecting information is fastest on BA network.

  1. Modeling online social networks based on preferential linking

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hu Hai-Bo; Chen Jun; Guo Jin-Li

    2012-01-01

    We study the phenomena of preferential linking in a large-scale evolving online social network and find that the linear preference holds for preferential creation, preferential acceptance, and preferential attachment. Based on the linear preference, we propose an analyzable model, which illustrates the mechanism of network growth and reproduces the process of network evolution. Our simulations demonstrate that the degree distribution of the network produced by the model is in good agreement with that of the real network. This work provides a possible bridge between the micro-mechanisms of network growth and the macrostructures of online social networks

  2. Online social network data as sociometric markers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Binder, Jens F; Buglass, Sarah L; Betts, Lucy R; Underwood, Jean D M

    2017-10-01

    Data from online social networks carry enormous potential for psychological research, yet their use and the ethical implications thereof are currently hotly debated. The present work aims to outline in detail the unique information richness of this data type and, in doing so, to support researchers when deciding on ethically appropriate ways of collecting, storing, publishing, and sharing data from online sources. Focusing on the very nature of social networks, their structural characteristics, and depth of information, we provide a detailed and accessible account of the challenges associated with data management and data storage. In particular, the general nonanonymity of network data sets is discussed, and an approach is developed to quantify the level of uniqueness that a particular online network bestows upon the individual maintaining it. Using graph enumeration techniques, we show that comparatively sparse information on a network is suitable as a sociometric marker that allows for the identification of an individual from the global population of online users. The impossibility of anonymizing specific types of network data carries implications for ethical guidelines and research practice. At the same time, network uniqueness opens up opportunities for novel research in psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  3. Social Interaction Design for Online Video and Television

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    P.S. Cesar Garcia (Pablo Santiago); D. Geerts (David)

    2016-01-01

    textabstractIn recent years social networking and social interactions have challenged old conceptions in the media landscape. Web applications that offer video content, connected television sets and set-top boxes, tablets and smartphones as second screens, and online TV widgets have radically

  4. ‘The More We Stand For – The More We Fight For’: Compatibility and Legitimacy in the Effects of Multiple Social Identities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chayinska, Maria; Minescu, Anca; McGarty, Craig

    2017-01-01

    This paper explores the expression of multiple social identities through coordinated collective action. We propose that perceived compatibility between potentially contrasting identities and perceived legitimacy of protest serve as catalysts for collective action. The present paper maps the context of the “Euromaidan” anti-regime protests in Ukraine and reports data (N = 996) collected through an online survey following legislation to ban protests (March–May, 2014). We measured participants’ identification with three different groups (the Ukrainian nation, the online protest community, and the street movement), perception of compatibility between online protest and the street movement, perception of the legitimacy of protest, and intentions to take persuasive and confrontational collective action. We found evidence that the more social groups people “stood for,” the more they “fought” for their cause and that identifications predicted both forms of collective action to the degree that people saw the protest and the online movement as compatible with each other and believed protest to be legitimate. Collective action can be interpreted as the congruent expression of multiple identities that are rendered ideologically compatible both in online settings and on the street. PMID:28491046

  5. ‘The More We Stand For – The More We Fight For’: Compatibility and Legitimacy in the Effects of Multiple Social Identities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Chayinska

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available This paper explores the expression of multiple social identities through coordinated collective action. We propose that perceived compatibility between potentially contrasting identities and perceived legitimacy of protest serve as catalysts for collective action. The present paper maps the context of the “Euromaidan” anti-regime protests in Ukraine and reports data (N = 996 collected through an online survey following legislation to ban protests (March–May, 2014. We measured participants’ identification with three different groups (the Ukrainian nation, the online protest community, and the street movement, perception of compatibility between online protest and the street movement, perception of the legitimacy of protest, and intentions to take persuasive and confrontational collective action. We found evidence that the more social groups people “stood for,” the more they “fought” for their cause and that identifications predicted both forms of collective action to the degree that people saw the protest and the online movement as compatible with each other and believed protest to be legitimate. Collective action can be interpreted as the congruent expression of multiple identities that are rendered ideologically compatible both in online settings and on the street.

  6. The Relationship Between Use of Social Network Sites, Online Social Support, and Well-Being: Results From a Six-Wave Longitudinal Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Utz, Sonja; Breuer, Johannes

    2017-01-01

    Existing work on the effects of social network sites (SNS) on well-being has often stressed that SNS can help people gain social support from their online networks, which positively affects their well-being. However, the majority of studies in this area have been cross-sectional in nature and/or relied on student samples. Using data from six waves of a longitudinal study with a representative sample of Dutch Internet users, we first examined whether users and nonusers of SNS differ in online social support and well-being (as indicated by life satisfaction and stress). In a second step, we investigated in more detail how SNS use - more specifically, asking for advice and the number of strong ties on these SNS - are related to online social support, stress, and satisfaction with life. Overall, our results provide no evidence for SNS use and online social support affecting either stress or life satisfaction. SNS users reported more online social support than nonusers did, but also higher levels of stress; the two groups did not differ in overall life satisfaction. With regard to the underlying processes, we found positive cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between asking for advice on SNS and online social support, indicating that SNS can be an effective tool for receiving social support. However, online social support was not related to higher life satisfaction or reduced stress 6 months later; instead, it seems that SNS users with lower life satisfaction and/or higher stress seek more social support online by asking for advice on SNS.

  7. Analyzing the Dynamics of Communication in Online Social Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Choudhury, Munmun; Sundaram, Hari; John, Ajita; Seligmann, Doree Duncan

    This chapter deals with the analysis of interpersonal communication dynamics in online social networks and social media. Communication is central to the evolution of social systems. Today, the different online social sites feature variegated interactional affordances, ranging from blogging, micro-blogging, sharing media elements (i.e., image, video) as well as a rich set of social actions such as tagging, voting, commenting and so on. Consequently, these communication tools have begun to redefine the ways in which we exchange information or concepts, and how the media channels impact our online interactional behavior. Our central hypothesis is that such communication dynamics between individuals manifest themselves via two key aspects: the information or concept that is the content of communication, and the channel i.e., the media via which communication takes place. We present computational models and discuss large-scale quantitative observational studies for both these organizing ideas. First, we develop a computational framework to determine the "interestingness" property of conversations cented around rich media. Second, we present user models of diffusion of social actions and study the impact of homophily on the diffusion process. The outcome of this research is twofold. First, extensive empirical studies on datasets from YouTube have indicated that on rich media sites, the conversations that are deemed "interesting" appear to have consequential impact on the properties of the social network they are associated with: in terms of degree of participation of the individuals in future conversations, thematic diffusion as well as emergent cohesiveness in activity among the concerned participants in the network. Second, observational and computational studies on large social media datasets such as Twitter have indicated that diffusion of social actions in a network can be indicative of future information cascades. Besides, given a topic, these cascades are often a

  8. Assessing the Value of Online Learning and Social Media in Pharmacy Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamilton, Leslie A; Franks, Andrea; Heidel, R Eric; McDonough, Sharon L K; Suda, Katie J

    2016-08-25

    Objective. To assess student preferences regarding online learning and technology and to evaluate student pharmacists' social media use for educational purposes. Methods. An anonymous 36-question online survey was administered to third-year student pharmacists enrolled in the Drug Information and Clinical Literature Evaluation course. Results. Four hundred thirty-one students completed the survey, yielding a 96% response rate. The majority of students used technology for academic activities, with 90% using smart phones and 91% using laptop computers. Fifty-eight percent of students also used social networking websites to communicate with classmates. Conclusion. Pharmacy students frequently use social media and some online learning methods, which could be a valuable avenue for delivering or supplementing pharmacy curricula. The potential role of social media and online learning in pharmacy education needs to be further explored.

  9. SEIR Model of Rumor Spreading in Online Social Network with Varying Total Population Size

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dong Suyalatu; Deng Yan-Bin; Huang Yong-Chang

    2017-01-01

    Based on the infectious disease model with disease latency, this paper proposes a new model for the rumor spreading process in online social network. In this paper what we establish an SEIR rumor spreading model to describe the online social network with varying total number of users and user deactivation rate. We calculate the exact equilibrium points and reproduction number for this model. Furthermore, we perform the rumor spreading process in the online social network with increasing population size based on the original real world Facebook network. The simulation results indicate that the SEIR model of rumor spreading in online social network with changing total number of users can accurately reveal the inherent characteristics of rumor spreading process in online social network . (paper)

  10. Effect of online social networking on employee productivity

    OpenAIRE

    A. Ferreira; T. du Plessis

    2009-01-01

    The popularity of social networking sites is relatively recent and the effect of online social networking (OSN) on employee productivity has not received much scholarly attention. The reason most likely lies in the social nature of social networking sites and OSN, which is assumed to have a negative effect on employee productivity and not bear organisational benefit. This reseach investigated recent Internet developments as seen in the social Web and specifically investigated the effect of OS...

  11. Tracking Multiple People Online and in Real Time

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-12-21

    NO. 0704-0188 3. DATES COVERED (From - To) - UU UU UU UU 21-12-2015 Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. Tracking multiple people ...online and in real time We cast the problem of tracking several people as a graph partitioning problem that takes the form of an NP-hard binary...PLEASE DO NOT RETURN YOUR FORM TO THE ABOVE ADDRESS. Duke University 2200 West Main Street Suite 710 Durham, NC 27705 -4010 ABSTRACT Tracking multiple

  12. Youth, new media, and HIV/AIDS: determinants of participation in an online health social movement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vijaykumar, Santosh; Wray, Ricardo J; Buskirk, Trent; Piplani, Himakshi; Banerjee, Joya; Furdyk, Michael; Pattni, Reshma

    2014-07-01

    Abstract This paper focuses on the Global Youth Coalition for HIV/AIDS (GYCA), a collaboration of young people who utilize the Internet to organize and inform the global youth HIV/AIDS social movement. We used a trans-disciplinary conceptual framework guided by the diffusion of innovations approach to explore factors that influence online participation among the coalition's members and to explain perceived effects of participation. We used a randomized stratified sampling strategy to conduct an online 7 week survey of GYCA's members (n=275). Descriptive statistics revealed that the majority of participants were from Africa (∼54%) and Asia (∼24%), with an average age of 27 years. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that participation in the e-consultations (R(2)=0.39, pinfluenced by a greater number of factors compared to the listserv (R(2)=0.20, pinfluenced perceptions about the coalition's social networking utility (R(2)=0.21, psocial networking utility significantly explained perceived effects on program areas such as knowledge sharing (R(2)=0.49, psocial movements. Initiatives such as GYCA need regular, intensive assessments to understand these factors for better tailoring their online activities to members' needs and for greater impact.

  13. Online and Offline Social Networks: Use of Social Networking Sites by Emerging Adults

    Science.gov (United States)

    Subrahmanyam, Kaveri; Reich, Stephanie M.; Waechter, Natalia; Espinoza, Guadalupe

    2008-01-01

    Social networking sites (e.g., MySpace and Facebook) are popular online communication forms among adolescents and emerging adults. Yet little is known about young people's activities on these sites and how their networks of "friends" relate to their other online (e.g., instant messaging) and offline networks. In this study, college students…

  14. Online social networking: a primer for radiology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prasanna, Prasanth M; Seagull, F Jacob; Nagy, Paul

    2011-10-01

    Online social networking is an immature, but rapidly evolving industry of web-based technologies that allow individuals to develop online relationships. News stories populate the headlines about various websites which can facilitate patient and doctor interaction. There remain questions about protecting patient confidentiality and defining etiquette in order to preserve the doctor/patient relationship and protect physicians. How much social networking-based communication or other forms of E-communication is effective? What are the potential benefits and pitfalls of this form of communication? Physicians are exploring how social networking might provide a forum for interacting with their patients, and advance collaborative patient care. Several organizations and institutions have set forth policies to address these questions and more. Though still in its infancy, this form of media has the power to revolutionize the way physicians interact with their patients and fellow health care workers. In the end, physicians must ask what value is added by engaging patients or other health care providers in a social networking format. Social networks may flourish in health care as a means of distributing information to patients or serve mainly as support groups among patients. Physicians must tread a narrow path to bring value to interactions in these networks while limiting their exposure to unwanted liability.

  15. An Agent-Based Approach to Modeling Online Social Influence

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Maanen, P.P. van; Vecht, B. van der

    2013-01-01

    The aim of this study is to better understand social influence in online social media. Therefore, we propose a method in which we implement, validate and improve an individual behavior model. The behavior model is based on three fundamental behavioral principles of social influence from the

  16. Addiction to Internet Use, Online Gaming, and Online Social Networking Among Young Adults in China, Singapore, and the United States.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Catherine So-Kum; Koh, Yee Woen; Gan, YiQun

    2017-11-01

    The current study investigated the rates of addictions to Internet use, online gaming, and online social networking as well as their associations with depressive symptoms among young adults in China, Singapore, and the United States. A total of 3267 undergraduate students were recruited. Psychological instruments were used to assess various Internet-related addictions and depressive symptoms. Male students were more addicted to Internet and online gaming whereas female students were more addicted to online social networking. Compared with students in the United States, Chinese and Singaporean students were more addicted to Internet use and online social networking but less to online gaming. The odds of depression among students with addiction to various Internet-related addictions were highest in China. Internet-related addiction is a new public health concern of young adults, especially in the Asia-Pacific regions. It is found to associate with depressive symptoms. Strategies should address this phenomenon with attention to specific needs of gender and region while managing mood disturbances.

  17. From the mouths of social media users: A focus group study exploring the social casino gaming–online gambling link

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Hyoun S.; Wohl, Michael J. A.; Gupta, Rina; Derevensky, Jeffrey

    2016-01-01

    Background and aims The potential link between social casino gaming and online gambling has raised considerable concerns among clinicians, researchers and policy makers. Unfortunately, however, there is a paucity of research examining this potential link, especially among young adults. This represents a significant gap given young adults are frequently exposed to and are players of social casino games. Methods To better understand the potential link between social casino games and online gambling, we conducted three focus groups (N = 30) at two large Canadian Universities with college students who were avid social media users (who are regularly exposed to social casino games). Results Many participants spontaneously mentioned that social casino games were a great opportunity to build gambling skills before playing for real money. Importantly, some participants expressed a belief that there is a direct progression from social casino gaming to online gambling. Conversely, others believed the transition to online gambling depended on a person’s personality, rather than mere exposure to social casino games. While many young adults in our focus groups felt immune to the effects of social casino games, there was a general consensus that social casino games may facilitate the transition to online gambling among younger teenagers (i.e., 12–14 yr olds), due to the ease of accessibility and early exposure. Discussion The results of the present research point to the need for more study on the effects of social casino gambling as well as a discussion concerning regulation of social casino games in order to minimize their potential risks. PMID:28092197

  18. From the mouths of social media users: A focus group study exploring the social casino gaming-online gambling link.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Hyoun S; Wohl, Michael J A; Gupta, Rina; Derevensky, Jeffrey

    2016-03-01

    Background and aims The potential link between social casino gaming and online gambling has raised considerable concerns among clinicians, researchers and policy makers. Unfortunately, however, there is a paucity of research examining this potential link, especially among young adults. This represents a significant gap given young adults are frequently exposed to and are players of social casino games. Methods To better understand the potential link between social casino games and online gambling, we conducted three focus groups (N = 30) at two large Canadian Universities with college students who were avid social media users (who are regularly exposed to social casino games). Results Many participants spontaneously mentioned that social casino games were a great opportunity to build gambling skills before playing for real money. Importantly, some participants expressed a belief that there is a direct progression from social casino gaming to online gambling. Conversely, others believed the transition to online gambling depended on a person's personality, rather than mere exposure to social casino games. While many young adults in our focus groups felt immune to the effects of social casino games, there was a general consensus that social casino games may facilitate the transition to online gambling among younger teenagers (i.e., 12-14 yr olds), due to the ease of accessibility and early exposure. Discussion The results of the present research point to the need for more study on the effects of social casino gambling as well as a discussion concerning regulation of social casino games in order to minimize their potential risks.

  19. Social Media and Physicians’ Online Identity Crisis

    OpenAIRE

    DeCamp, Matthew; Koenig, Thomas W.; Chisolm, Margaret S.

    2013-01-01

    Physicians are increasingly counted among Face-book’s 1 billion users and Twitter’s 500 million members. Beyond these social media platforms, other innovative social media tools are being used in medical practice, including for online consultation,1 in the conduct of clinical research,2 and in medical school curricula.3 Social media content is brief, characterized as “many-to-many” communication, and able to spread rapidly across the Internet beyond a person’s control. These and other feature...

  20. Configurations of using social networking sites and perceived online social capital among adults with and without disabilities

    OpenAIRE

    Viluckienė, Jolita; Ruškus, Jonas

    2017-01-01

    Drawing on nationally representative survey 2014 data, this article examines the implications of social networking sites (SNS) use and the relationship with perceived online social capital among Lithuanian adults with and without disabilities. By contributing to the wide academic discussion on the value of online and social networks for people with disabilities, this research shows that intensive participation on SNS (as Facebook) presupposes stronger affective and evaluative dimensions of so...

  1. Frequency of victimization experiences and well-being among online, offline and combined victims on social online network sites of German children and adolescents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael eGlüer

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Victimization is associated with negative developmental outcomes in childhood and adolescence. However, previous studies have provided mixed results regarding the association between offline and online victimization and indicators of social, psychological, and somatic well-being. In this study, we investigated 1,906 German children and adolescents (grades 5 to 10, mean age = 13.9; SD = 2.1 with and without offline or online victimization experiences who participated in a social online network (SNS. Online questionnaires were used to assess previous victimization (offline, online, combined, and without, somatic and psychological symptoms, self-esteem, and social self-concept (social competence, resistance to peer influence, esteem by others. In total, 1,362 (71.4% children and adolescents reported being a member of at least one social online network, and 377 students (28.8% reported previous victimization. Most children and adolescents had offline victimization experiences (17.5%, whereas 2.7% reported online victimization, and 8.6% reported combined experiences. Girls reported more online and combined victimization, and boys reported more offline victimization. The type of victimization (offline, online, combined was associated with increased reports of psychological and somatic symptoms, lower self-esteem and esteem by others, and lower resistance to peer influences. The effects were comparable for the groups with offline and online victimization. They were, however, increased in the combined group in comparison to victims with offline experiences alone.

  2. Mental disorder recovery correlated with centralities and interactions on an online social network

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xinpei Ma

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available Recent research has established both a theoretical basis and strong empirical evidence that effective social behavior plays a beneficial role in the maintenance of physical and psychological well-being of people. To test whether social behavior and well-being are also associated in online communities, we studied the correlations between the recovery of patients with mental disorders and their behaviors in online social media. As the source of the data related to the social behavior and progress of mental recovery, we used PatientsLikeMe (PLM, the world’s first open-participation research platform for the development of patient-centered health outcome measures. We first constructed an online social network structure based on patient-to-patient ties among 200 patients obtained from PLM. We then characterized patients’ online social activities by measuring the numbers of “posts and views” and “helpful marks” each patient obtained. The patients’ recovery data were obtained from their self-reported status information that was also available on PLM. We found that some node properties (in-degree, eigenvector centrality and PageRank and the two online social activity measures were significantly correlated with patients’ recovery. Furthermore, we re-collected the patients’ recovery data two months after the first data collection. We found significant correlations between the patients’ social behaviors and the second recovery data, which were collected two months apart. Our results indicated that social interactions in online communities such as PLM were significantly associated with the current and future recoveries of patients with mental disorders.

  3. Identity Confusion and Materialism Mediate the Relationship Between Excessive Social Network Site Usage and Online Compulsive Buying.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharif, Saeed Pahlevan; Khanekharab, Jasmine

    2017-08-01

    This study investigates the mediating role of identity confusion and materialism in the relationship between social networking site (SNS) excessive usage and online compulsive buying among young adults. A total of 501 SNS users aged 17 to 23 years (M = 19.68, SD = 1.65) completed an online survey questionnaire. A serial multiple mediator model was developed and hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling. The results showed that excessive young adult SNS users had a higher tendency toward compulsive buying online. This was partly because they experienced higher identity confusion and developed higher levels of materialism. Targeted psychological interventions seeking to gradually increase identity clarity to buffer the detrimental effects of SNS usage and identity confusion in young adults are suggested.

  4. Linking Online and Offline Social Worlds: Opportunities and Threats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, Cailing

    2017-01-01

    Social networks bring both opportunities and threats to the users. On one hand, social networks provide a platform for users to build online profiles, make connections with others beyond geographical boundaries, enjoy the "openness" of social networks to meet their intrinsic need of "self-presentation", explore and strengthen…

  5. Sentiment Polarization and Balance among Users in Online Social Networks

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hillmann, Robert; Trier, Matthias

    2012-01-01

    Communication within online social network applications enables users to express and share sentiments electronically. Existing studies examined the existence or distribution of sentiments in online communication at a general level or in small-observed groups. Our paper extends this research...... by analyzing sentiment exchange within social networks from an ego-network perspective. We draw from research on social influence and social attachment to develop theories of node polarization, balance effects and sentiment mirroring within communication dyads. Our empirical analysis covers a multitude...... of social networks in which the sentiment valence of all messages was determined. Subsequently we studied ego-networks of focal actors (ego) and their immediate contacts. Results support our theories and indicate that actors develop polarized sentiments towards individual peers but keep sentiment in balance...

  6. Creating Participatory Online Learning Environments: A Social Learning Approach Revisited

    Science.gov (United States)

    Conley, Quincy; Lutz, Heather S.; Padgitt, Amanda J.

    2017-01-01

    Online learning has never been more popular than it is today. Due to the rapid growth of online instruction at colleges and universities, questions about the effectiveness of online courses have been raised. In this paper, we suggest guidelines for the selection and application of social media tools. In addition to describing the potential…

  7. SEIR Model of Rumor Spreading in Online Social Network with Varying Total Population Size

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, Suyalatu; Deng, Yan-Bin; Huang, Yong-Chang

    2017-10-01

    Based on the infectious disease model with disease latency, this paper proposes a new model for the rumor spreading process in online social network. In this paper what we establish an SEIR rumor spreading model to describe the online social network with varying total number of users and user deactivation rate. We calculate the exact equilibrium points and reproduction number for this model. Furthermore, we perform the rumor spreading process in the online social network with increasing population size based on the original real world Facebook network. The simulation results indicate that the SEIR model of rumor spreading in online social network with changing total number of users can accurately reveal the inherent characteristics of rumor spreading process in online social network. Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant Nos. 11275017 and 11173028

  8. Perceived Stress in Online Prostate Cancer Community Participants: Examining Relationships with Stigmatization, Social Support Network Preference, and Social Support Seeking.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rising, Camella J; Bol, Nadine; Burke-Garcia, Amelia; Rains, Stephen; Wright, Kevin B

    2017-06-01

    Men with prostate cancer often need social support to help them cope with illness-related physiological and psychosocial challenges. Whether those needs are met depends on receiving support optimally matched to their needs. This study examined relationships between perceived stress, prostate cancer-related stigma, weak-tie support preference, and online community use for social support in a survey of online prostate cancer community participants (n = 149). Findings revealed a positive relationship between stigma and perceived stress. This relationship, however, was moderated by weak-tie support preference and online community use for social support. Specifically, stigma was positively related to perceived stress when weak-tie support was preferred. Analyses also showed a positive relationship between stigma and perceived stress in those who used their online community for advice or emotional support. Health communication scholars should work collaboratively with diagnosed men, clinicians, and online community administrators to develop online interventions that optimally match social support needs.

  9. Online social support as a buffer against online and offline peer and sexual victimization among U.S. LGBT and non-LGBT youth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ybarra, Michele L; Mitchell, Kimberly J; Palmer, Neal A; Reisner, Sari L

    2015-01-01

    In today's technology-infused world, we need to better understand relationships youth form with friends online, how they compare to relationships formed in-person, and whether these online relationships confer protective benefits. This is particularly important from the perspective of peer victimization, given that social support in-person appears to reduce the odds of victimization in-person. To address this literature gap, data from a sample of 5,542 U.S. adolescents, collected online between August 2010 and January 2011, were analyzed. The main variables of interest were: online and in-person peer victimization (including generalized and bullying forms) and online and in-person sexual victimization (including generalized and sexual harassment forms). Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth were more likely than non-LGBT youth to have online friends and to appraise these friends as better than their in-person friends at providing emotional support. Peer victimization and unwanted sexual experiences were more commonly reported by LGBT than non-LGBT youth. Perceived quality of social support, either online or in-person, did little to attenuate the relative odds of victimization for LGBT youth. For all youth, in-person social support was associated with reduced odds of bully victimization (online and in-person) and sexual harassment (in-person), but was unrelated to the other outcomes of interest. Online social support did not reduce the odds of any type of victimization assessed. Together, these findings suggest that online friends can be an important source of social support, particularly for LGBT youth. Nonetheless, in-person social support appears to be more protective against victimization, suggesting that one is not a replacement for the other. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. A Study of Malware Propagation via Online Social Networking

    Science.gov (United States)

    Faghani, Mohammad Reza; Nguyen, Uyen Trang

    The popularity of online social networks (OSNs) have attracted malware creators who would use OSNs as a platform to propagate automated worms from one user's computer to another's. On the other hand, the topic of malware propagation in OSNs has only been investigated recently. In this chapter, we discuss recent advances on the topic of malware propagation by way of online social networking. In particular, we present three malware propagation techniques in OSNs, namely cross site scripting (XSS), Trojan and clickjacking types, and their characteristics via analytical models and simulations.

  11. Methods of Profile Cloning Detection in Online Social Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zabielski Michał

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available With the arrival of online social networks, the importance of privacy on the Internet has increased dramatically. Thus, it is important to develop mechanisms that will prevent our hidden personal data from unauthorized access and use. In this paper an attempt was made to present a concept of profile cloning detection in Online Social Networks (OSN using Graph and Networks Theory. By analysing structural similarity of network and value of attributes of user personal profile, we will be able to search for attackers which steal our identity.

  12. Examining relations between locus of control, loneliness, subjective well-being, and preference for online social interaction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ye, Yinghua; Lin, Lin

    2015-02-01

    The unprecedented popularity of online communication has raised interests and concerns among the public as well as in scholarly circles. Online communications have pushed people farther away from one another. This study is a further examination of the effects of online communications on well-being, in particular: Locus of control, Loneliness, Subjective well-being, and Preference for online social interaction. Chinese undergraduate students (N = 260; 84 men, 176 women; M age = 20.1 yr., SD = 1.2) were questioned about demographic information and use of social media as well as four previously validated questionnaires related to well-being. Most participants used QQ, a popular social networking program, as the major channel for online social interactions. Locus of control was positively related to Loneliness and Preference for online social interaction, but negatively related to Subjective well-being; Loneliness (positively) and Subjective well-being (negatively) were related to Preference for online social interaction; and Loneliness and Subjective well-being had a full mediating effect between the relationships of Locus of control and Preference for online social interaction. The findings of the study showed that more lonely, unhappy, and externally controlled students were more likely to be engaged in online social interaction. Improving students' locus of control, loneliness, and happiness may help reduce problematic Internet use.

  13. Online Social Behavior in Twitter : A Literature Review

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Aarts, O.A.J.; Maanen, P.P. van; Ouboter, T.; Schraagen, J.M.

    2012-01-01

    This literature review is aimed at examining state of the art research in the field of online social networks. The goal is to identify the current challenges within this area of research, given the questions raised in society. In this review we pay attention to three aspects of social networks:

  14. The role of social media in online weight management: systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Tammy; Chopra, Vineet; Zhang, Catherine; Woolford, Susan J

    2013-11-28

    Social media applications are promising adjuncts to online weight management interventions through facilitating education, engagement, and peer support. However, the precise impact of social media on weight management is unclear. The objective of this study was to systematically describe the use and impact of social media in online weight management interventions. PubMed, PsycINFO, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Scopus were searched for English-language studies published through March 25, 2013. Additional studies were identified by searching bibliographies of electronically retrieved articles. Randomized controlled trials of online weight management interventions that included a social media component for individuals of all ages were selected. Studies were evaluated using 2 systematic scales to assess risk of bias and study quality. Of 517 citations identified, 20 studies met eligibility criteria. All study participants were adults. Because the included studies varied greatly in study design and reported outcomes, meta-analysis of interventions was not attempted. Although message boards and chat rooms were the most common social media component included, their effect on weight outcomes was not reported in most studies. Only one study measured the isolated effect of social media. It found greater engagement of participants, but no difference in weight-related outcomes. In all, 65% of studies were of high quality; 15% of studies were at low risk of bias. Despite the widespread use of social media, few studies have quantified the effect of social media in online weight management interventions; thus, its impact is still unknown. Although social media may play a role in retaining and engaging participants, studies that are designed to measure its effect are needed to understand whether and how social media may meaningfully improve weight management.

  15. Social Capital on Facebook: The Impact of Personality and Online Communication Behaviors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weiqin, Eliza Leong; Campbell, Marilyn; Kimpton, Melanie; Wozencroft, Kelly; Orel, Alexandra

    2016-01-01

    Online relationship formation through social networking sites helps to meet the developmental need for intimacy in emerging adults. Through the use of the "rich get richer" and the "social compensation" hypotheses, it is evident that personality characteristics such as extraversion and introversion impact online relationship…

  16. Do Social Casino Gamers Migrate to Online Gambling? An Assessment of Migration Rate and Potential Predictors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Hyoun S; Wohl, Michael J A; Salmon, Melissa M; Gupta, Rina; Derevensky, Jeffrey

    2015-12-01

    Social casino games (i.e., free-to-play online gambling games) are enjoyed by millions of players worldwide on a daily basis. Despite being free to play, social casino games share many similarities to traditional casino games. As such, concerns have been raised as to whether social casino games influences the migration to online gambling among people who have not engaged in such activity (see Griffiths in World Online Gambl 9:12-13, 2010). To date, however, no empirical research has assessed this possibility. Thus, the purpose of the present research was to assess the extent to which social casino gamers migrate to online gambling and potential predictors (time spent on social casino games, skill building, enhancement and micro-transactions) of such migration. To this end, social casino gamers who never gambled online (N = 409) completed a questionnaire battery assessing our variables of interest and were re-contacted 6-months later to see if they had engaged in online gambling during the intervening months. Approximately 26% of social casino gamers reported having migrated to online gambling. Importantly, engagement in micro-transactions was the only unique predictor of migration from social casino gaming to online gambling. The implications for the potential harms associated with social casino gaming are discussed.

  17. Community Structure in Online Collegiate Social Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Traud, Amanda; Kelsic, Eric; Mucha, Peter; Porter, Mason

    2009-03-01

    Online social networking sites have become increasingly popular with college students. The networks we studied are defined through ``friendships'' indicated by Facebook users from UNC, Oklahoma, Caltech, Georgetown, and Princeton. We apply the tools of network science to study the Facebook networks from these five different universities at a single point in time. We investigate each single-institution network's community structure, which we obtain through partitioning the graph using an eigenvector method. We use both graphical and quantitative tools, including pair-counting methods, which we interpret through statistical analysis and permutation tests to measure the correlations between the network communities and a set of characteristics given by each user (residence, class year, major, and high school). We also analyze the single gender subsets of these networks, and the impact of missing demographical data. Our study allows us to compare the online social networks for the five schools as well as infer differences in offline social interactions. At the schools studied, we were able to define which characteristics of the Facebook users correlate best with friendships.

  18. Your Health Buddies Matter: Preferential Selection and Social Influence on Weight Management in an Online Health Social Network.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meng, Jingbo

    2016-12-01

    A growing number of online social networks are designed with the intention to promote health by providing virtual space wherein individuals can seek and share information and support with similar others. Research has shown that real-world social networks have a significant influence on one's health behavior and outcomes. However, there is a dearth of studies on how individuals form social networks in virtual space and whether such online social networks exert any impact on individuals' health outcomes. Built on the Multi-Theoretical Multilevel (MTML) framework and drawing from literature on social influence, this study examined the mechanisms underlying the formation of an online health social network and empirically tested social influence on individual health outcomes through the network. Situated in a weight management social networking site, the study tracked a health buddy network of 709 users and their weight management activities and outcomes for 4 months. Actor-based modeling was used to test the joint dynamics of preferential selection and social influence among health buddies. The results showed that baseline, inbreeding, and health status homophily significantly predicted preferential selection of health buddies in the weight management social networking site, whereas self-interest in seeking experiential health information did not. The study also found peer influence of online health buddy networks on individual weight outcomes, such that an individual's odds of losing weight increased if, on average, the individual's health buddies were losing weight.

  19. Online social networks and resilient profile in university students with disabilities

    OpenAIRE

    Suriá, Raquel

    2015-01-01

    Desde hace algunos años, conocer si el uso de la redes sociales online está asociado a determinados perfiles de personalidad ha cobrado interés. Este puede ser el caso de algunas capacidades personales vinculadas a la competencia social como la resiliencia. El presente estudio examina si los jóvenes estudiantes con discapacidad que utilizan las redes sociales online tienen más desarrollada su capacidad resiliente. Participaron 96 estudiantes universitarios con diferentes tipos de discapacidad...

  20. Multiple social identifications and adolescents' self-esteem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benish-Weisman, Maya; Daniel, Ella; Schiefer, David; Möllering, Anna; Knafo-Noam, Ariel

    2015-10-01

    The research examined the relationship between multiple social identifications and self-esteem. Early adolescents (M = 11.4, SD = .95) and mid-adolescents (M = 15.9, SD = 1.18) from Germany and Israel (n = 2337) were studied. Respondents described their social identification as students, family members, and as members of the majority national group and reported self-esteem. A longitudinal, cross-sectional and cross-cultural design revealed, as predicted, multiple social identifications related positively to self-esteem concurrently; they also related positively to self-esteem longitudinally over the course of a year. Moreover, multiple social identifications were found to be antecedent to self-esteem, not vice versa. Finally, multiple social identifications were found to decrease over time. The article discusses the contribution of multiple social identifications to self-esteem at different ages and in various contexts. Copyright © 2015 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. The relationship of loneliness and social anxiety with children's and adolescents' online communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bonetti, Luigi; Campbell, Marilyn Anne; Gilmore, Linda

    2010-06-01

    Children and adolescents now communicate online to form and/or maintain relationships with friends, family, and strangers. Relationships in "real life" are important for children's and adolescents' psychosocial development; however, they can be difficult for those who experience feelings of loneliness and/or social anxiety. The aim of this study was to investigate differences in usage of online communication patterns between children and adolescents with and without self-reported loneliness and social anxiety. Six hundred twenty-six students ages 10 to 16 years completed a survey on the amount of time they spent communicating online, the topics they discussed, the partners they engaged with, and their purposes for communicating over the Internet. Participants were administered a shortened version of the UCLA Loneliness Scale and an abbreviated subscale of the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A). Additionally, age and gender differences in usage of the online communication patterns were examined across the entire sample. Findings revealed that children and adolescents who self-reported being lonely communicated online significantly more frequently about personal and intimate topics than did those who did not self-report being lonely. The former were motivated to use online communication significantly more frequently to compensate for their weaker social skills to meet new people. Results suggest that Internet usage allows them to fulfill critical needs of social interactions, self-disclosure, and identity exploration. Future research, however, should explore whether or not the benefits derived from online communication may also facilitate lonely children's and adolescents' offline social relationships.

  2. Do online social media cut through the constraints that limit the size of offline social networks?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dunbar, R I M

    2016-01-01

    The social brain hypothesis has suggested that natural social network sizes may have a characteristic size in humans. This is determined in part by cognitive constraints and in part by the time costs of servicing relationships. Online social networking offers the potential to break through the glass ceiling imposed by at least the second of these, potentially enabling us to maintain much larger social networks. This is tested using two separate UK surveys, each randomly stratified by age, gender and regional population size. The data show that the size and range of online egocentric social networks, indexed as the number of Facebook friends, is similar to that of offline face-to-face networks. For one sample, respondents also specified the number of individuals in the inner layers of their network (formally identified as support clique and sympathy group), and these were also similar in size to those observed in offline networks. This suggests that, as originally proposed by the social brain hypothesis, there is a cognitive constraint on the size of social networks that even the communication advantages of online media are unable to overcome. In practical terms, it may reflect the fact that real (as opposed to casual) relationships require at least occasional face-to-face interaction to maintain them.

  3. Online Learning for Social Constructivism: Creating a Conducive ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    On-line learning is a process which is facilitated through the use of the Internet and the World Wide Web. It has the potential for stimulating learning on a social constructivist paradigm given the wide range of applications available on the Internet and the web. The social constructivist paradigm is associated with creative ...

  4. Finding The Most Important Actor in Online Crowd by Social Network Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yuliana, I.; Santosa, P. I.; Setiawan, N. A.; Sukirman

    2017-02-01

    Billion of people create trillions of connections through social media every single day. The increasing use of social media has led to dramatic changes in the of way science, government, healthcare, entertainment and enterprise operate. Large-scale participation in Technology-Mediated Social Participation (TMSP) system has opened up incredible new opportunities to deploy online crowd. This descriptive-correlational research used social network analysis (SNA) on data gathered from Fanpage Facebook of Greenpeace Indonesia related to important critical issues, the bushfires in 2015. SNA identifies relations on each member by sociometrics parameter such as three centrality (degree, closeness and betweenesse) for measuring and finding the most important actor in the online community. This paper use Fruchterman Rein-gold algorithm to visualize the online community in a graph, while Clauset-Newman-Moore is a technique to identify groups in community. As the result found 3735 vertices related to actors, 6927 edges as relation, 14 main actors in size order and 22 groups in Greenpeace Indonesia online community. This research contributes to organize some information for Greenpeace Indonesia managing their potency in online community to identify human behaviour.

  5. Entrepreneur online social networks: structure, diversity and impact on start-up survival

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Song, Y.; Vinig, T.

    2012-01-01

    In this paper, we discuss the results of a pilot study in which we use a novel approach to collect entrepreneur online social network data from LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. We studied the size and structure of entrepreneur social networks by analysing the online network industry and location

  6. Facebook and romantic relationships: intimacy and couple satisfaction associated with online social network use.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hand, Matthew M; Thomas, Donna; Buboltz, Walter C; Deemer, Eric D; Buyanjargal, Munkhsanaa

    2013-01-01

    Online social networks, such as Facebook, have gained immense popularity and potentially affect the way people build and maintain interpersonal relationships. The present study sought to examine time spent on online social networks, as it relates to intimacy and relationship satisfaction experienced in romantic relationships. Results did not find relationships between an individual's usage of online social networks and his/her perception of relationship satisfaction and intimacy. However, the study found a negative relationship between intimacy and the perception of a romantic partner's use of online social networks. This finding may allude to an attributional bias in which individuals are more likely to perceive a partner's usage as negative compared to their own usage. Additionally, it was found that intimacy mediates the relationship between online social network usage and overall relationship satisfaction, which suggests that the level of intimacy experienced in a relationship may serve as a buffer that protects the overall level of satisfaction.

  7. Navigating Online Selves: Social, Cultural, and Material Contexts of Social Media Use by Diasporic Gay Men

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexander Dhoest

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Social media not only create new opportunities but also pose new challenges for the ways people navigate their online selves. As noted by boyd, social media are characterized by unique dynamics such as collapsed contexts, implying that one’s distinct offline social worlds meet online. This creates particular challenges for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ people, at least those who find it crucial to maintain distinct contexts in which they disclose or conceal their gender and/or sexual selves. However, the existing scholarship on social media use by LGBTQs is predominantly anchored in English-language Western contexts and tends to lose sight of the cultural specificities of Internet use. Therefore, in this article, we build on the scholarship to further investigate the role of context for disclosing or concealing gender and/or sexual selves online. More specifically, we ask, “How do social, cultural, and material contexts affect the ways LGBTQs navigate their selves on social media?” To investigate this question, we analyze in-depth face-to-face interviews with gay men who themselves, or whose parents, migrated to Belgium. Because their migration background forces them to negotiate different social, cultural, and material contexts, our focus on diasporic gay men helps to bring out the issue of context in social media use.

  8. Gender differences in collaborative learning over online social networks: Epistemological beliefs and behaviors

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosanna Y.-Y. Chan

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available Online social networks are popular venues for computer-supported collaborative work and computer-supported collaborative learning. Professionals within the same discipline, such as software developers, often interact over various social network sites for knowledge updates and collective understandings. The current study aims at gathering empirical evidences concerning gender differences in online social network beliefs and behaviors. A total of 53 engineering postgraduate students were engaged in a blogging community for collaborative learning. Participants’ beliefs about collaboration and nature of knowledge and knowing (i.e. epistemological beliefs are investigated. More specifically, social network analysis metrics including in-degree, out-degree, closeness centrality, and betweenness centrality are obtained from an 8-interval longitudinal SNA. Methodologically speaking, the current work puts forward mixed methods of longitudinal SNA and quantitative beliefs survey to explore online social network participants’ beliefs and behaviors. The study’s findings demonstrate significant gender differences in collaborative learning through online social networks, including (1 female engineering postgraduate students engage significantly more actively in online communications, (2 male engineering postgraduate students are more likely to be the potential controllers of information flows, and (3 gender differences exist in belief gains related to social aspects, but not individual's epistemic aspects. Overall, participants in both genders demonstrated enhanced beliefs in collaboration as well as the nature of knowledge and knowing.

  9. Social interactions in massively multiplayer online role-playing gamers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cole, Helena; Griffiths, Mark D

    2007-08-01

    To date, most research into massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) has examined the demographics of play. This study explored the social interactions that occur both within and outside of MMORPGs. The sample consisted of 912 self-selected MMORPG players from 45 countries. MMORPGs were found to be highly socially interactive environments providing the opportunity to create strong friendships and emotional relationships. The study demonstrated that the social interactions in online gaming form a considerable element in the enjoyment of playing. The study showed MMORPGs can be extremely social games, with high percentages of gamers making life-long friends and partners. It was concluded that virtual gaming may allow players to express themselves in ways they may not feel comfortable doing in real life because of their appearance, gender, sexuality, and/or age. MMORPGs also offer a place where teamwork, encouragement, and fun can be experienced.

  10. Online marketing & social media : case: Mediterranean Palace Hotel, Thessaloniki

    OpenAIRE

    Arnis, Angelos

    2012-01-01

    Traditional companies and especially in European countries such as Greece, lack the knowledge and motivation in order to move away from the traditional marketing methods to more revolutionary ways, such as online marketing. The purpose of this thesis is to explain what is online marketing and the importance of a sound presence on the social media. It also sets as a marketing plan, proposals on how the hotel in question should act in order to strengthen their presence in the Online and Soc...

  11. Online information services in the social sciences

    CERN Document Server

    Jacobs, Neil

    2004-01-01

    Information professionals are increasingly responsible not only for running traditional information and library services but also for providing an online presence for their organisation. This book shows how best practice in delivering online information services should be based on actual user needs and behaviour. A series of case studies provide real life examples of how social science information is being used in the community. The book then draws on these case studies to outline the main issues facing service providers: such as usability, metadata and management. The book concludes with a lo

  12. Exploring the Role of Syntactic Information on User Behavior in Online Social Platforms

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sjöklint, Mimmi

    2013-01-01

    of this information is available through numbers and numbers as self-representative visualisations such as likes, views, shares, endorsements and diggs, which sparked an interest in its role in influencing users. This study thus explores the role of syntactic information on user behaviour in online social platforms......The proliferation of information technologies, applications and online services has changed the way users access information. In particular, an increasing amount of users engage with online social platforms on a daily basis where they are exposed to a continuous stream of information. A great deal...... information. Nevertheless, it became clear that public syntactic information was still unconsciously processed and applied as a measure or benchmark on the online social content....

  13. Quantifying Users' Interconnectedness in Online Social Networks - An Indispensible Step for Economic Valuation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gneiser, Martin; Heidemann, Julia; Klier, Mathias; Landherr, Andrea; Probst, Florian

    Online social networks have been gaining increasing economic importance in light of the rising number of their users. Numerous recent acquisitions priced at enormous amounts have illustrated this development and revealed the need for adequate business valuation models. The value of an online social network is largely determined by the value of its users, the relationships between these users, and the resulting network effects. Therefore, the interconnectedness of a user within the network has to be considered explicitly to get a reasonable estimate for the economic value. Established standard business valuation models, however, do not sufficiently take these aspects into account. Thus, we propose a measure based on the PageRank-algorithm to quantify users’ interconnectedness in an online social network. This is a first but indispensible step towards an adequate economic valuation of online social networks.

  14. Spontaneous emergence of social influence in online systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Onnela, Jukka-Pekka; Reed-Tsochas, Felix

    2010-10-26

    Social influence drives both offline and online human behavior. It pervades cultural markets, and manifests itself in the adoption of scientific and technical innovations as well as the spread of social practices. Prior empirical work on the diffusion of innovations in spatial regions or social networks has largely focused on the spread of one particular technology among a subset of all potential adopters. Here we choose an online context that allows us to study social influence processes by tracking the popularity of a complete set of applications installed by the user population of a social networking site, thus capturing the behavior of all individuals who can influence each other in this context. By extending standard fluctuation scaling methods, we analyze the collective behavior induced by 100 million application installations, and show that two distinct regimes of behavior emerge in the system. Once applications cross a particular threshold of popularity, social influence processes induce highly correlated adoption behavior among the users, which propels some of the applications to extraordinary levels of popularity. Below this threshold, the collective effect of social influence appears to vanish almost entirely, in a manner that has not been observed in the offline world. Our results demonstrate that even when external signals are absent, social influence can spontaneously assume an on-off nature in a digital environment. It remains to be seen whether a similar outcome could be observed in the offline world if equivalent experimental conditions could be replicated.

  15. Predictors of excessive use of social media and excessive online gaming in Czech teenagers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spilková, Jana; Chomynová, Pavla; Csémy, Ladislav

    2017-12-01

    Background and aims Young people's involvement in online gaming and the use of social media are increasing rapidly, resulting in a high number of excessive Internet users in recent years. The objective of this paper is to analyze the situation of excessive Internet use among adolescents in the Czech Republic and to reveal determinants of excessive use of social media and excessive online gaming. Methods Data from secondary school students (N = 4,887) were collected within the 2015 European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs. Logistic regression models were constructed to describe the individual and familial discriminative factors and the impact of the health risk behavior of (a) excessive users of social media and (b) excessive players of online games. Results The models confirmed important gender-specific distinctions - while girls are more prone to online communication and social media use, online gaming is far more prevalent among boys. The analysis did not indicate an influence of family composition on both the excessive use of social media and on excessive online gaming, and only marginal effects for the type of school attended. We found a connection between the excessive use of social media and binge drinking and an inverse relation between excessive online gaming and daily smoking. Discussion and conclusion The non-existence of significant associations between family environment and excessive Internet use confirmed the general, widespread of this phenomenon across the social and economic strata of the teenage population, indicating a need for further studies on the topic.

  16. Place Existing Online Business Communication Classes into the International Context: Social Presence from Potential Learners' Perspectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Junhua; Wang, Hua

    2012-01-01

    Recent scholarship on global online courses points to the need to examine the issue of social context in an online global learning environment. To explore global learners' cultural perspectives on the social climate of an online class, we first review the social presence theory--which can be used to examine the social climate in an online…

  17. Social identity threat motivates science-discrediting online comments.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter Nauroth

    Full Text Available Experiencing social identity threat from scientific findings can lead people to cognitively devalue the respective findings. Three studies examined whether potentially threatening scientific findings motivate group members to take action against the respective findings by publicly discrediting them on the Web. Results show that strongly (vs. weakly identified group members (i.e., people who identified as "gamers" were particularly likely to discredit social identity threatening findings publicly (i.e., studies that found an effect of playing violent video games on aggression. A content analytical evaluation of online comments revealed that social identification specifically predicted critiques of the methodology employed in potentially threatening, but not in non-threatening research (Study 2. Furthermore, when participants were collectively (vs. self- affirmed, identification did no longer predict discrediting posting behavior (Study 3. These findings contribute to the understanding of the formation of online collective action and add to the burgeoning literature on the question why certain scientific findings sometimes face a broad public opposition.

  18. Social Identity Threat Motivates Science-Discrediting Online Comments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nauroth, Peter; Gollwitzer, Mario; Bender, Jens; Rothmund, Tobias

    2015-01-01

    Experiencing social identity threat from scientific findings can lead people to cognitively devalue the respective findings. Three studies examined whether potentially threatening scientific findings motivate group members to take action against the respective findings by publicly discrediting them on the Web. Results show that strongly (vs. weakly) identified group members (i.e., people who identified as “gamers”) were particularly likely to discredit social identity threatening findings publicly (i.e., studies that found an effect of playing violent video games on aggression). A content analytical evaluation of online comments revealed that social identification specifically predicted critiques of the methodology employed in potentially threatening, but not in non-threatening research (Study 2). Furthermore, when participants were collectively (vs. self-) affirmed, identification did no longer predict discrediting posting behavior (Study 3). These findings contribute to the understanding of the formation of online collective action and add to the burgeoning literature on the question why certain scientific findings sometimes face a broad public opposition. PMID:25646725

  19. Emergence, evolution and scaling of online social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Le-Zhi; Huang, Zi-Gang; Rong, Zhi-Hai; Wang, Xiao-Fan; Lai, Ying-Cheng

    2014-01-01

    Online social networks have become increasingly ubiquitous and understanding their structural, dynamical, and scaling properties not only is of fundamental interest but also has a broad range of applications. Such networks can be extremely dynamic, generated almost instantaneously by, for example, breaking-news items. We investigate a common class of online social networks, the user-user retweeting networks, by analyzing the empirical data collected from Sina Weibo (a massive twitter-like microblogging social network in China) with respect to the topic of the 2011 Japan earthquake. We uncover a number of algebraic scaling relations governing the growth and structure of the network and develop a probabilistic model that captures the basic dynamical features of the system. The model is capable of reproducing all the empirical results. Our analysis not only reveals the basic mechanisms underlying the dynamics of the retweeting networks, but also provides general insights into the control of information spreading on such networks.

  20. Emergence, evolution and scaling of online social networks.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Le-Zhi Wang

    Full Text Available Online social networks have become increasingly ubiquitous and understanding their structural, dynamical, and scaling properties not only is of fundamental interest but also has a broad range of applications. Such networks can be extremely dynamic, generated almost instantaneously by, for example, breaking-news items. We investigate a common class of online social networks, the user-user retweeting networks, by analyzing the empirical data collected from Sina Weibo (a massive twitter-like microblogging social network in China with respect to the topic of the 2011 Japan earthquake. We uncover a number of algebraic scaling relations governing the growth and structure of the network and develop a probabilistic model that captures the basic dynamical features of the system. The model is capable of reproducing all the empirical results. Our analysis not only reveals the basic mechanisms underlying the dynamics of the retweeting networks, but also provides general insights into the control of information spreading on such networks.

  1. Social identity threat motivates science-discrediting online comments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nauroth, Peter; Gollwitzer, Mario; Bender, Jens; Rothmund, Tobias

    2015-01-01

    Experiencing social identity threat from scientific findings can lead people to cognitively devalue the respective findings. Three studies examined whether potentially threatening scientific findings motivate group members to take action against the respective findings by publicly discrediting them on the Web. Results show that strongly (vs. weakly) identified group members (i.e., people who identified as "gamers") were particularly likely to discredit social identity threatening findings publicly (i.e., studies that found an effect of playing violent video games on aggression). A content analytical evaluation of online comments revealed that social identification specifically predicted critiques of the methodology employed in potentially threatening, but not in non-threatening research (Study 2). Furthermore, when participants were collectively (vs. self-) affirmed, identification did no longer predict discrediting posting behavior (Study 3). These findings contribute to the understanding of the formation of online collective action and add to the burgeoning literature on the question why certain scientific findings sometimes face a broad public opposition.

  2. The social sharing of emotion (SSE) in online social networks: a case study in Live Journal

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rodriguez Hidalgo, C.T.; Tan, E.S.; Verlegh, P.W.J.

    2015-01-01

    Social Sharing of Emotion (SSE) occurs when one person shares an emotional experience with another and is considered potentially beneficial. Though social sharing has been shown prevalent in interpersonal communication, research on its occurrence and communication structure in online social networks

  3. Frequency of Victimization Experiences and Well-Being Among Online, Offline, and Combined Victims on Social Online Network Sites of German Children and Adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glüer, Michael; Lohaus, Arnold

    2015-01-01

    Victimization is associated with negative developmental outcomes in childhood and adolescence. However, previous studies have provided mixed results regarding the association between offline and online victimization and indicators of social, psychological, and somatic well-being. In this study, we investigated 1,890 German children and adolescents (grades 5-10, mean age = 13.9; SD = 2.1) with and without offline or online victimization experiences who participated in a social online network (SNS). Online questionnaires were used to assess previous victimization (offline, online, combined, and without), somatic and psychological symptoms, self-esteem, and social self-concept (social competence, resistance to peer influence, esteem by others). In total, 1,362 (72.1%) children and adolescents reported being a member of at least one SNS, and 377 students (28.8%) reported previous victimization. Most children and adolescents had offline victimization experiences (17.5%), whereas 2.7% reported online victimization, and 8.6% reported combined experiences. Girls reported more online and combined victimization, and boys reported more offline victimization. The type of victimization (offline, online, combined) was associated with increased reports of psychological and somatic symptoms, lower self-esteem and esteem by others, and lower resistance to peer influences. The effects were comparable for the groups with offline and online victimization. They were, however, increased in the combined group in comparison to victims with offline experiences alone.

  4. Tweacher: New proposal for Online Social Networks Impact in Secondary Education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sebastián ROMERO

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents and analyzes the potential uses and motivations of online social networks in education, with special emphasis on secondary education. First, we show several previous researches supporting the use of social networking as an educational tool and discuss Edmodo, an educative online social network. The work carried out during two academic years with senior students of primary and secondary schools is also analyzed. After that we present Tweacher an educative social network application and evaluate its use in the classroom to prove its useful use between teachers and students. This research has allowed us to see the reality of social network use among young people and identify the challenges of its application to education environment.

  5. The dark side of social media: Associations between the Dark Triad of personality, self-disclosure online and selfie-related behaviours

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elżbieta Sanecka

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The present study investigated the relations between the Dark Triad personality traits (i.e., Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy, distinct dimensions of self-disclosure online (i.e., honesty, amount, positive valence, and intent and selfie related-behaviours (taking, posting and editing selfies. The results indicated, that all three Dark Triad components were positively correlated with posting and editing selfies on social networking sites (SNSs. However, multiple regression analysis demonstrated that only narcissism predicted selfie-related behaviours. Narcissism and Machiavellianism were positively related to the amount of personal information disclosed online and the tendency to self-disclose intentionally in computer-mediated communication (CMC. Moreover, we found no significant correlations between the perceived controllability of Internet communication and two types of self-promotion in the Internet (self-disclosure online and selfie-related behaviours. Our findings demonstrate the importance of analysing the "dark" personality traits in the context of self-promotional behaviours in social media.

  6. Does social climate influence positive eWOM? A study of heavy-users of online communities.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carla Ruiz-Mafe

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper provides a deeper understanding of the role of social influences on positive eWOM behaviour (PeWOM of heavy-users of online communities. Drawing on Social Interaction Utility Framework, Group Marketing and Social Learning Theories, we develop and test a research model integrating the interactions between the social climate of a website and Interpersonal Influences in PeWOM. 262 Spanish heavy-users of online communities were selected and the data analysed using partial least squares equation modelling. Overall, the model explains 59% of the variance of PeWOM on online communities. Findings reveal that interaction with other members of the online community (Social Presence is the main predictor of PeWOM. Social Identity is a mediator between Social Presence and PeWOM. Interpersonal Influence has an important role as a moderator variable; the greater the impact of Interpersonal Influence, the stronger the relationship between Social Presence and PeWOM.

  7. Multiple comorbidities of 21 psychological disorders and relationships with psychosocial variables: a study of the online assessment and diagnostic system within a web-based population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Asadi, Ali M; Klein, Britt; Meyer, Denny

    2015-02-26

    While research in the area of e-mental health has received considerable attention over the last decade, there are still many areas that have not been addressed. One such area is the comorbidity of psychological disorders in a Web-based sample using online assessment and diagnostic tools, and the relationships between comorbidities and psychosocial variables. We aimed to identify comorbidities of psychological disorders of an online sample using an online diagnostic tool. Based on diagnoses made by an automated online assessment and diagnostic system administered to a large group of online participants, multiple comorbidities (co-occurrences) of 21 psychological disorders for males and females were identified. We examined the relationships between dyadic comorbidities of anxiety and depressive disorders and the psychosocial variables sex, age, suicidal ideation, social support, and quality of life. An online complex algorithm based on the criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition, Text Revision, was used to assign primary and secondary diagnoses of 21 psychological disorders to 12,665 online participants. The frequency of co-occurrences of psychological disorders for males and females were calculated for all disorders. A series of hierarchical loglinear analyses were performed to examine the relationships between the dyadic comorbidities of depression and various anxiety disorders and the variables suicidal ideation, social support, quality of life, sex, and age. A 21-by-21 frequency of co-occurrences of psychological disorders matrix revealed the presence of multiple significant dyadic comorbidities for males and females. Also, for those with some of the dyadic depression and the anxiety disorders, the odds for having suicidal ideation, reporting inadequate social support, and poorer quality of life increased for those with two-disorder comorbidity than for those with only one of the same two disorders. Comorbidities of

  8. Customer brand engagement on online social media platforms

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Chrysochou, Polymeros; Malciute, Justina

    delivers a thorough investigation of the concept and proposes a conceptual model of customer brand engagement on online social media platforms. The study suggests that customer brand relationship related factors will influence the level of customer engagement, which in turn will affect the levels......The aim of this paper is to contribute to the knowledge of a newly emerged concept of customer engagement with brands in the context of online social media platforms. Drawing on the overview of currently available academic literature and the results of a quantitative consumer study, the paper...... of behavioral loyalty and intention to recommend the brand. Hence, this paper is an important contribution to the academic marketing literature in the field of customer engagement, which also provides useful managerial insights for marketing practitioners....

  9. Social Media, Online Shopping Activities and Perceived Risks in Malaysia

    OpenAIRE

    Majid, M.; Firend, A.R

    2017-01-01

    The Internet shopping experience offers dissimilar ways of off-online communications with communication differences tools that need a better decision of their effect on customer communications. Social networking sites is also fast becoming the platform for interaction, attracting new potential customers and has become the trend for companies to engage with their consumers online. The main objective of this research is to examine Malaysia customer’s risk perception toward online shopping via s...

  10. Social value and information quality in online health information search

    OpenAIRE

    Hameed, Tahir; Swar, Bobby

    2016-01-01

    This paper extends and validates a model of value-driven online healthcare information search in online shared contexts. Perceived value is an important factor behind users' decisions concerning search, consumption and reuse of products and services. The role of utilitarian, hedonic and epistemic value of information in user satisfaction and intention to repeat online search is well recognized, but little support has been found for social value affecting user satisfaction critical for such de...

  11. Boys and girls taking risks online: A gendered perspective on social context and adolescents' risky online behavior

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Notten, N.J.W.R.; Nikken, P.

    2016-01-01

    This study explores gender differences in the relationship between adolescents' risky online behavior and their social context, as in family factors and the prevalence of Internet use in a country. Using the EU Kids Online dataset, including information on 8554, 14- to 16-year-old adolescents in 25

  12. An Online Life Like Any Other: Identity, Self-Determination, and Social Networking Among Adults with Intellectual Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chadwick, Darren D; Fullwood, Chris

    2018-01-01

    Research focusing on online identity and the personal experiences of adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) is currently limited. Eleven adults with ID were interviewed regarding personal experiences of being online and using social media. Data were analyzed qualitatively using thematic network analysis. Two global themes, online relatedness and sharing and online agency and support, highlighted the positive potential of social media in enabling the development and maintenance of social bonds, valued social roles, and feelings of enjoyment, competence, autonomy, and self-worth. Participants reported sharing various expressed online identities that did not focus on or hide impairment, challenging notions of dependency, with participants both providing support and being supported online.

  13. Social Media Marketing – Analysis of Online presence of Slovak banks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tomas Feige

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Paper focuses on areas of Social Media Marketing and Social Network Analysis. It describes case-study of joint university-business project of analysis of online presence of Slovak banks which took place in cooperation with IBM CZ in early 2012. This project was aimed at general analysis of online presence of Slovak banks, uncovering the structure of various channels and forms of bank-customer interaction and identifying key actors in banks social networks along with general sentiment and climate. Paper gives a general overview of the project and its challenges and presents high-level results.

  14. Disaster Loss and Social Media: Can Online Information Increase Flood Resilience?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Allaire, M.

    2016-12-01

    When confronted with natural disasters, individuals around the world increasingly use online resources to become informed of forecasted conditions and advisable actions. This study tests the effectiveness of online information and social media in enabling households to reduce disaster losses. The 2011 Bangkok flood is utilized as a case study since it was one of the first major disasters to affect a substantial population connected to social media. The role of online information is investigated with a mixed methods approach. Both quantitative (propensity score matching) and qualitative (in-depth interviews) techniques are employed. The study relies on two data sources - survey responses from 469 Bangkok households and in-depth interviews with twenty-three internet users who are a subset of the survey participants. Propensity score matching indicates that social media enabled households to reduce flood losses by an average of 37% (USD 3,708), using a nearest neighbor estimator. This reduction is massive when considering that total flood losses for the full sample averaged USD 4,903. Social media offered information not available from other sources, such as localized and nearly real-time updates of flood location and depth. With this knowledge, households could move belongings to higher ground before floodwaters arrived. These findings suggest that utilizing social media users as sensors could better inform populations during disasters. Overall, the study reveals that online information can enable effective disaster preparedness and reduce losses.

  15. Understanding Online Health Groups for Depression: Social Network and Linguistic Perspectives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Ronghua; Zhang, Qingpeng

    2016-03-10

    Mental health problems have become increasingly prevalent in the past decade. With the advance of Web 2.0 technologies, social media present a novel platform for Web users to form online health groups. Members of online health groups discuss health-related issues and mutually help one another by anonymously revealing their mental conditions, sharing personal experiences, exchanging health information, and providing suggestions and support. The conversations in online health groups contain valuable information to facilitate the understanding of their mutual help behaviors and their mental health problems. We aimed to characterize the conversations in a major online health group for major depressive disorder (MDD) patients in a popular Chinese social media platform. In particular, we intended to explain how Web users discuss depression-related issues from the perspective of the social networks and linguistic patterns revealed by the members' conversations. Social network analysis and linguistic analysis were employed to characterize the social structure and linguistic patterns, respectively. Furthermore, we integrated both perspectives to exploit the hidden relations between them. We found an intensive use of self-focus words and negative affect words. In general, group members used a higher proportion of negative affect words than positive affect words. The social network of the MDD group for depression possessed small-world and scale-free properties, with a much higher reciprocity ratio and clustering coefficient value as compared to the networks of other social media platforms and classic network models. We observed a number of interesting relationships, either strong correlations or convergent trends, between the topological properties and linguistic properties of the MDD group members. (1) The MDD group members have the characteristics of self-preoccupation and negative thought content, according to Beck's cognitive theory of depression; (2) the social structure

  16. Does Sentiment Among Users in Online Social Networks Polarize or Balance Out?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Trier, Matthias; Hillmann, Robert

    2017-01-01

    Users express and share sentiments electronically when they communicate within online social network applications. One way to analyze such interdependent data is focusing on the inter-user relationships by applying a sociological perspective based on social network analysis. Existing studies exam...... examined the existence or distribution of sentiments in online communication at a general level or in small observed groups....

  17. Composition and structure of a large online social network in The Netherlands.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rense Corten

    Full Text Available Limitations in data collection have long been an obstacle in research on friendship networks. Most earlier studies use either a sample of ego-networks, or complete network data on a relatively small group (e.g., a single organization. The rise of online social networking services such as Friendster and Facebook, however, provides researchers with opportunities to study friendship networks on a much larger scale. This study uses complete network data from Hyves, a popular online social networking service in The Netherlands, comprising over eight million members and over 400 million online friendship relations. In the first study of its kind for The Netherlands, I examine the structure of this network in terms of the degree distribution, characteristic path length, clustering, and degree assortativity. Results indicate that this network shares features of other large complex networks, but also deviates in other respects. In addition, a comparison with other online social networks shows that these networks show remarkable similarities.

  18. Composition and structure of a large online social network in The Netherlands.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corten, Rense

    2012-01-01

    Limitations in data collection have long been an obstacle in research on friendship networks. Most earlier studies use either a sample of ego-networks, or complete network data on a relatively small group (e.g., a single organization). The rise of online social networking services such as Friendster and Facebook, however, provides researchers with opportunities to study friendship networks on a much larger scale. This study uses complete network data from Hyves, a popular online social networking service in The Netherlands, comprising over eight million members and over 400 million online friendship relations. In the first study of its kind for The Netherlands, I examine the structure of this network in terms of the degree distribution, characteristic path length, clustering, and degree assortativity. Results indicate that this network shares features of other large complex networks, but also deviates in other respects. In addition, a comparison with other online social networks shows that these networks show remarkable similarities.

  19. Things online social networking can take away: Reminders of social networking sites undermine the desirability of offline socializing and pleasures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Shiang-Shiang; Chang, Yevvon Yi-Chi; Chiou, Wen-Bin

    2017-04-01

    People are beginning to develop symbiotic relationships with social networking sites (SNSs), which provide users with abundant opportunities for social interaction. We contend that if people perceive SNSs as sources of social connection, the idea of SNSs may reduce the desire to pursue offline social activities and offline pleasures. Experiment 1 demonstrated that priming with SNSs was associated with a weakened desirability of offline social activities and an increased inclination to work alone. Felt relatedness mediated the link between SNS primes and reduced desire to engage in offline social activities. Experiment 2 showed that exposure to SNS primes reduced the desirability of offline socializing and lowered the desire for offline pleasurable experiences as well. Moreover, heavy users were more susceptible to this detrimental effect. We provide the first experimental evidence that the idea of online social networking may modulate users' engagement in offline social activities and offline pleasures. Hence, online social networking may satisfy the need for relatedness but undercut the likelihood of reaping enjoyment from offline social life. © 2016 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  20. Developing Critical Social Justice Literacy in an Online Seminar

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bondy, Elizabeth; Hambacher, Elyse; Murphy, Amy S.; Wolkenhauer, Rachel; Krell, Desi

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this article is to report on an effort to cultivate a critical social justice perspective and critical social justice praxis among educators enrolled in an online graduate program. Although the entire program was organized around themes of equity, collaboration, and leadership, this study focused on educators' perspectives of the…

  1. Engineering online and in-person social networks to sustain physical activity: application of a conceptual model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rovniak, Liza S; Sallis, James F; Kraschnewski, Jennifer L; Sciamanna, Christopher N; Kiser, Elizabeth J; Ray, Chester A; Chinchilli, Vernon M; Ding, Ding; Matthews, Stephen A; Bopp, Melissa; George, Daniel R; Hovell, Melbourne F

    2013-08-14

    High rates of physical inactivity compromise the health status of populations globally. Social networks have been shown to influence physical activity (PA), but little is known about how best to engineer social networks to sustain PA. To improve procedures for building networks that shape PA as a normative behavior, there is a need for more specific hypotheses about how social variables influence PA. There is also a need to integrate concepts from network science with ecological concepts that often guide the design of in-person and electronically-mediated interventions. Therefore, this paper: (1) proposes a conceptual model that integrates principles from network science and ecology across in-person and electronically-mediated intervention modes; and (2) illustrates the application of this model to the design and evaluation of a social network intervention for PA. A conceptual model for engineering social networks was developed based on a scoping literature review of modifiable social influences on PA. The model guided the design of a cluster randomized controlled trial in which 308 sedentary adults were randomly assigned to three groups: WalkLink+: prompted and provided feedback on participants' online and in-person social-network interactions to expand networks for PA, plus provided evidence-based online walking program and weekly walking tips; WalkLink: evidence-based online walking program and weekly tips only; Minimal Treatment Control: weekly tips only. The effects of these treatment conditions were assessed at baseline, post-program, and 6-month follow-up. The primary outcome was accelerometer-measured PA. Secondary outcomes included objectively-measured aerobic fitness, body mass index, waist circumference, blood pressure, and neighborhood walkability; and self-reported measures of the physical environment, social network environment, and social network interactions. The differential effects of the three treatment conditions on primary and secondary

  2. Social Capital, Self-Esteem, and Use of Online Social Network Sites: A Longitudinal Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steinfield, Charles; Ellison, Nicole B.; Lampe, Cliff

    2008-01-01

    A longitudinal analysis of panel data from users of a popular online social network site, Facebook, investigated the relationship between intensity of Facebook use, measures of psychological well-being, and bridging social capital. Two surveys conducted a year apart at a large U.S. university, complemented with in-depth interviews with 18 Facebook…

  3. Professional Online Presence and Learning Networks: Educating for Ethical Use of Social Media

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forbes, Dianne

    2017-01-01

    In a teacher education context, this study considers the use of social media for building a professional online presence and learning network. This article provides an overview of uses of social media in teacher education, presents a case study of key processes in relation to professional online presence and learning networks, and highlights…

  4. Role of Social Presence and Cognitive Absorption in Online Learning Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leong, Peter

    2011-01-01

    This article investigates the relationships between social presence, cognitive absorption, interest, and student satisfaction in online learning. A hypothesized structural equation model was developed to study these critical variables that may influence interaction in online learning environments. Contrary to expectations, the study determined…

  5. Correlations among Social Anxiety, Self-Esteem, Impulsivity, and Game Genre in Patients with Problematic Online Game Playing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Jeong Ha; Han, Doug Hyun; Kim, Bung-Nyun; Cheong, Jae Hoon

    2016-01-01

    Objective Recent studies of online game addiction have suggested that social interaction and impulsivity are critical factors for the etiology and progress of online game addiction. We hypothesized that the genre of the online game is associated with impulsivity and sociality in individuals with online game addictions. Methods In total, 212 patients with problematic online game playing were divided into four groups by game genre: 1) massive multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG), 2) real-time strategy (RTS), 3) first-person shooter (FPS), and 4) other. Their symptoms and characteristics were assessed using 8 scales and 2 tests to estimate self-esteem, impulsiveness, comorbidity, social interaction status, and cognitive function. Results The mean social anxiety score was highest in the MMORPG group and lowest in the FPS group. The mean self-esteem score was highest in the RTS group. Social anxiety score was positively correlated with Internet addiction score in the MMORPG group, and the self-esteem score was positively correlated with Internet addiction score in the RTS group. Conclusion The genre of online game was not associated with impulsivity, but social anxiety status varied significantly with game genre, and differences in social anxiety were especially pronounced in patients playing the MMORPG (highest social anxiety) and FPS (lowest social anxiety) game genres. In addition, self-esteem was highest in the RTS game genre. PMID:27247595

  6. Correlations among Social Anxiety, Self-Esteem, Impulsivity, and Game Genre in Patients with Problematic Online Game Playing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Jeong Ha; Han, Doug Hyun; Kim, Bung-Nyun; Cheong, Jae Hoon; Lee, Young-Sik

    2016-05-01

    Recent studies of online game addiction have suggested that social interaction and impulsivity are critical factors for the etiology and progress of online game addiction. We hypothesized that the genre of the online game is associated with impulsivity and sociality in individuals with online game addictions. In total, 212 patients with problematic online game playing were divided into four groups by game genre: 1) massive multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG), 2) real-time strategy (RTS), 3) first-person shooter (FPS), and 4) other. Their symptoms and characteristics were assessed using 8 scales and 2 tests to estimate self-esteem, impulsiveness, comorbidity, social interaction status, and cognitive function. The mean social anxiety score was highest in the MMORPG group and lowest in the FPS group. The mean self-esteem score was highest in the RTS group. Social anxiety score was positively correlated with Internet addiction score in the MMORPG group, and the self-esteem score was positively correlated with Internet addiction score in the RTS group. The genre of online game was not associated with impulsivity, but social anxiety status varied significantly with game genre, and differences in social anxiety were especially pronounced in patients playing the MMORPG (highest social anxiety) and FPS (lowest social anxiety) game genres. In addition, self-esteem was highest in the RTS game genre.

  7. Evolution of a large online social network

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hu Haibo; Wang Xiaofan

    2009-01-01

    Although recently there are extensive research on the collaborative networks and online communities, there is very limited knowledge about the actual evolution of the online social networks (OSN). In the Letter, we study the structural evolution of a large online virtual community. We find that the scale growth of the OSN shows non-trivial S shape which may provide a proper exemplification for Bass diffusion model. We reveal that the evolutions of many network properties, such as density, clustering, heterogeneity and modularity, show non-monotone feature, and shrink phenomenon occurs for the path length and diameter of the network. Furthermore, the OSN underwent a transition from degree assortativity characteristic of collaborative networks to degree disassortativity characteristic of many OSNs. Our study has revealed the evolutionary pattern of interpersonal interactions in a specific population and provided a valuable platform for theoretical modeling and further analysis

  8. Online Social Support for the Prevention of Smoking Relapse: A Content Analysis of the WhatsApp and Facebook Social Groups.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cheung, Yee Tak Derek; Chan, Ching Han Helen; Wang, Man Ping; Li, Ho Cheung William; Lam, Tai-Hing

    2017-06-01

    Online social groups have been increasingly used for smoking cessation intervention. This study aimed to explore the social support components of the online discussion through WhatsApp and Facebook, how these components addressed the need of relapse prevention, and how the participants evaluated this intervention. We coded and analyzed the posts (N = 467) by the 82 recent quitters in WhatsApp and Facebook social groups, who were recruited from the eight smoking cessation clinics in Hong Kong to participate in a pragmatic randomized trial of relapse prevention. Participants' postintervention feedback was collected from the 13 qualitative interviews after the intervention. The WhatsApp social groups had more participants' posts than the Facebook counterparts. The participants' posts in the online social groups could be classified as sharing views and experiences (55.5%), encouragement (28.7%), and knowledge and information (15.8%). About half of the participants' posts (52.9%) addressed the themes listed in the U.S. Clinical Practice Guideline for preventing smoking relapse. The participants perceived the posts as useful reminders for smoking cessation, but avoidance of reporting relapse, inactive discussions, and uninteresting content were barriers to the success of the intervention. Online social groups provided a useful platform for the delivery of cessation support and encouragement of reporting abstinence, which support relapse prevention. The effectiveness of such intervention can be improved by encouraging more self-report of relapse, active discussions, sharing of interesting content, and using an appropriate discussion platform. Quitters who participate in the online social groups can benefit from peer support and information sharing, and hence prevent smoking relapse.

  9. Competition between global and local online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kleineberg, Kaj-Kolja; Boguñá, Marián

    2016-04-01

    The overwhelming success of online social networks, the key actors in the Web 2.0 cosmos, has reshaped human interactions globally. To help understand the fundamental mechanisms which determine the fate of online social networks at the system level, we describe the digital world as a complex ecosystem of interacting networks. In this paper, we study the impact of heterogeneity in network fitnesses on the competition between an international network, such as Facebook, and local services. The higher fitness of international networks is induced by their ability to attract users from all over the world, which can then establish social interactions without the limitations of local networks. In other words, inter-country social ties lead to increased fitness of the international network. To study the competition between an international network and local ones, we construct a 1:1000 scale model of the digital world, consisting of the 80 countries with the most Internet users. Under certain conditions, this leads to the extinction of local networks; whereas under different conditions, local networks can persist and even dominate completely. In particular, our model suggests that, with the parameters that best reproduce the empirical overtake of Facebook, this overtake could have not taken place with a significant probability.

  10. Competition between global and local online social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kleineberg, Kaj-Kolja; Boguñá, Marián

    2016-04-27

    The overwhelming success of online social networks, the key actors in the Web 2.0 cosmos, has reshaped human interactions globally. To help understand the fundamental mechanisms which determine the fate of online social networks at the system level, we describe the digital world as a complex ecosystem of interacting networks. In this paper, we study the impact of heterogeneity in network fitnesses on the competition between an international network, such as Facebook, and local services. The higher fitness of international networks is induced by their ability to attract users from all over the world, which can then establish social interactions without the limitations of local networks. In other words, inter-country social ties lead to increased fitness of the international network. To study the competition between an international network and local ones, we construct a 1:1000 scale model of the digital world, consisting of the 80 countries with the most Internet users. Under certain conditions, this leads to the extinction of local networks; whereas under different conditions, local networks can persist and even dominate completely. In particular, our model suggests that, with the parameters that best reproduce the empirical overtake of Facebook, this overtake could have not taken place with a significant probability.

  11. Academics and Social Networking Sites: Benefits, Problems and Tensions in Professional Engagement with Online Networking

    OpenAIRE

    Jordan, Katy; Weller, Martin

    2018-01-01

    The web has had a profound effect on the ways people interact, with online social networks arguably playing an important role in changing or augmenting how we connect with others. However, uptake of online social networking by the academic community varies, and needs to be understood. This paper presents an independent, novel analysis of a large-scale dataset published by Nature Publishing Group detailing the results of a survey about academics use of online social networking services. An ope...

  12. The strategic impact of social networks on the online gaming industry : strategic use of technology

    OpenAIRE

    Sousa, Sofia Taveira de

    2012-01-01

    This dissertation focuses on assessing the strategic potential of social networks by answering the following research question: Is there any strategic impact of social networks on the online gaming industry? In order to analyze the strategic potential of social networks for online games, we identify the main factors that online players consider as crucial for them to keep playing. These factors can either be related to the game’s strategy itself, such as all the details, graphics and ambig...

  13. Adolescents' and Emerging Adults' Social Networking Online: Homophily or Diversity?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mazur, Elizabeth; Richards, Lacey

    2011-01-01

    More than half of all online American adolescents and emerging adults have created personal profiles for social networking on the Internet. Does homophily in their offline friendships extend online? Drawing mainly on research of face-to-face friendship, we collected data from the public spaces, called "walls," of 129 young Americans ages 16 to 19…

  14. Actual versus perceived peer sexual risk behavior in online youth social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Black, Sandra R; Schmiege, Sarah; Bull, Sheana

    2013-09-01

    Perception of peer behaviors is an important predictor of actual risk behaviors among youth. However, we lack understanding of peer influence through social media and of actual and perceived peer behavior concordance. The purpose of this research is to document the relationship between individual perception of and actual peer sexual risk behavior using online social networks. The data are a result of a secondary analysis of baseline self-reported and peer-reported sexual risk behavior from a cluster randomized trial including 1,029 persons from 162 virtual networks. Individuals (seeds) recruited up to three friends who then recruited additional friends, extending three waves from the seed. ANOVA models compared network means of actual participant behavior across categories of perceived behavior. Concordance varied between reported and perceived behavior, with higher concordance between perceived and reported condom use, multiple partners, concurrent partners, sexual pressure, and drug and alcohol use during sex. Individuals significantly over-reported risk and under-reported protective peer behaviors related to sex.

  15. E-learning on the road: online learning and social media for continuing professional competency.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alan M Batt

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Background The impact of social media and online learning in health professions education has previously shown generally positive results in medical, nursing and pharmacy students. To date there has not been any extensive research into social media and online learning use by prehospital health care professionals such as paramedics. Aim & Methods We sought to identify the extent to which Irish pre-hospital practitioners make use of online learning and social media for continuous professional competency (CPC, and the means by which they do so. A cross-sectional online survey of practitioners was conducted to obtain both quantitative and qualitative data. The release of the survey was in a controlled manner to PHECC registrants via various channels. Participation was voluntary and anonymous. Results A total of 248 respondents completed the survey in full by closing date of 31 March 2015, representing 5.4% of all registrants (n=4,555. 77% of respondents were male, and the majority were registered as Emergency Medical Technicians (49%, followed by Advanced Paramedics (26%. Over 78% of respondents used a mobile device in the course of their clinical duties; the majority used an iOS device. Social media and online learning were considered learning tools by over 75% of respondents, and over 74% agreed they should be further incorporated into prehospital education. The most popular platforms for CPC activities were YouTube and Facebook. The majority of respondents (88% viewed self-directed activities to constitute continuous professional development activity, but 64% felt that an activity that resulted in the awarding of a certificate was better value. Over 90% of respondents had previous experience with online learning, but only 42% indicated they had previously purchased or paid for online learning. Conclusion Prehospital practitioners in Ireland in the population studied consider online learning and social media acceptable for CPC purposes. The main

  16. Online social networks—Paradise of computer viruses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fan, W.; Yeung, K. H.

    2011-01-01

    Online social network services have attracted more and more users in recent years. So the security of social networks becomes a critical problem. In this paper, we propose a virus propagation model based on the application network of Facebook, which is the most popular among these social network service providers. We also study the virus propagation with an email virus model and compare the behaviors of a virus spreading on Facebook with the original email network. It is found that Facebook provides the same chance for a virus spreading while it gives a platform for application developers. And a virus will spread faster in the Facebook network if users of Facebook spend more time on it.

  17. Effects of Electronic Trust on Purchase Intentions in Online Social Review Networks: The Case of Tripadvisor.com

    OpenAIRE

    Öztüren, Ali

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this research study is to examine the effects of trust beliefs on purchase intentions of trip planners within the context of online social review network by analyzing dimensions of e-trust and effects on purchase intentions. With the intention to test these effects a survey was executed and the data collected from 320 participants. Multiple regression analysis was conducted to analyze the hypotheses related to the factors affecting the overall electronic trust level and purchas...

  18. Does social presence or the potential for interaction reduce social gaze in online social scenarios? Introducing the "live lab" paradigm.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gregory, Nicola J; Antolin, Jastine V

    2018-05-01

    Research has shown that people's gaze is biased away from faces in the real world but towards them when they are viewed onscreen. Non-equivalent stimulus conditions may have represented a confound in this research, however, as participants viewed onscreen stimuli as pre-recordings where interaction was not possible compared with real-world stimuli which were viewed in real time where interaction was possible. We assessed the independent contributions of online social presence and ability for interaction on social gaze by developing the "live lab" paradigm. Participants in three groups ( N = 132) viewed a confederate as (1) a live webcam stream where interaction was not possible (one-way), (2) a live webcam stream where an interaction was possible (two-way), or (3) a pre-recording. Potential for interaction, rather than online social presence, was the primary influence on gaze behaviour: participants in the pre-recorded and one-way conditions looked more to the face than those in the two-way condition, particularly, when the confederate made "eye contact." Fixation durations to the face were shorter when the scene was viewed live, particularly, during a bid for eye contact. Our findings support the dual function of gaze but suggest that online social presence alone is not sufficient to activate social norms of civil inattention. Implications for the reinterpretation of previous research are discussed.

  19. When Sharing Is a Bad Idea: The Effects of Online Social Network Engagement and Sharing Passwords with Friends on Cyberbullying Involvement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meter, Diana J; Bauman, Sheri

    2015-08-01

    Every day, children and adolescents communicate online via social networking sites (SNSs). They also report sharing passwords with peers and friends, a potentially risky behavior in regard to cyber safety. This longitudinal study tested the hypotheses that social network engagement in multiple settings would predict more cyberbullying involvement over time, and that youth who reported sharing passwords would also experience an increase in cyberbullying involvement. Data were collected at two time points one year apart from 1,272 third through eighth grade students. In line with the first study hypothesis, participating in more online SNSs was associated with increased cyberbullying involvement over time, as well as sharing passwords over time. Cyberbullying involvement at T1 predicted decreases in sharing passwords over time, suggesting that youth become aware of the dangers of sharing passwords as a result of their experience. Sharing passwords at T1 was unrelated to cyberbullying involvement at T2. Although it seems that youth may be learning from their previous mistakes, due to the widespread use of social media and normality of sharing passwords among young people, it is important to continue to educate youth about cyber safety and risky online behavior.

  20. Suicidality, psychopathology, and the internet: Online time vs. online behaviors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harris, Keith M; Starcevic, Vladan; Ma, Jing; Zhang, Wei; Aboujaoude, Elias

    2017-09-01

    This study investigated whether several psychopathology variables, including suicidality, could predict the time people spend using the internet (hours online). Next, we examined a specific at-risk population (suicidal individuals) by their online behaviors, comparing suicidal individuals who went online for suicide-related purposes with suicidal individuals who did not go online for suicide-related purposes. An anonymous online sample of 713 (aged 18-71) reported hours online, psychiatric histories, and completed several standardized scales. After accounting for age and education, hierarchical regression modeling showed that the assessed psychopathology variables, including suicidality, did not explain significant variance in hours online. Hours online were better predicted by younger age, greater willingness to develop online relationships, higher perceived social support, higher curiosity, and lower extraversion. Suicidal participants, who did or did not go online for suicide-related purposes, did not differ on hours online. Multiple regression modeling showed that those who went online for suicide-related purposes were likely to be younger, more suicidal, and more willing to seek help from online mental health professionals. These findings revealed that hours online are not a valid indicator of psychopathology. However, studying online behaviors of specific at-risk groups could be informative and useful, including for suicide prevention efforts. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  1. Social communication : the impact of online customer reviews on purchase intention

    OpenAIRE

    Johansen, Kai Vegard; Hovland, Filip Lundberg

    2013-01-01

    Consumer-generated product reviews have proliferated online. Driven by the notion that customers’ decision to purchase a product is influenced by the information they obtain from online customer reviews, this thesis examines the impact of online customer reviews on purchase intention. To do so, the research integrates traditional communication theories, in particular social communication by Hovland (1948), with the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) to build a theoretical model. Importantly, ...

  2. Social and Virtual Networks: Evaluating Synchronous Online Interviewing Using Instant Messenger

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hinchcliffe, Vanessa; Gavin, Helen

    2009-01-01

    This paper describes an evaluation of the quality and utility of synchronous online interviewing for data collection in social network research. Synchronous online interviews facilitated by Instant Messenger as the communication medium, were undertaken with ten final year university students. Quantitative and qualitative content analysis of…

  3. Collaborative Online Teaching: A Model for Gerontological Social Work Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fulton, Amy E.; Walsh, Christine A.; Azulai, Anna; Gulbrandsen, Cari; Tong, Hongmei

    2015-01-01

    Social work students and faculty are increasingly embracing online education and collaborative teaching. Yet models to support these activities have not been adequately developed. This paper describes how a team of instructors developed, delivered, and evaluated an undergraduate gerontological social work course using a collaborative online…

  4. Theoretical Foundations for Enhancing Social Connectedness in Online Learning Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Slagter van Tryon, Patricia J.; Bishop, M. J.

    2009-01-01

    Group social structure provides a comfortable and predictable context for interaction in learning environments. Students in face-to-face learning environments process social information about others in order to assess traits, predict behaviors, and determine qualifications for assuming particular responsibilities within a group. In online learning…

  5. Multiple Social Networks, Data Models and Measures for

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Magnani, Matteo; Rossi, Luca

    2017-01-01

    Multiple Social Network Analysis is a discipline defining models, measures, methodologies, and algorithms to study multiple social networks together as a single social system. It is particularly valuable when the networks are interconnected, e.g., the same actors are present in more than one...

  6. Social support and responsiveness in online patient communities: impact on service quality perceptions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nambisan, Priya; Gustafson, David H; Hawkins, Robert; Pingree, Suzanne

    2016-02-01

    Hospitals frequently evaluate their service quality based on the care and services provided to patients by their clinical and non-clinical staff.(1,2) However, such evaluations do not take into consideration the many interactions that patients have in online patient communities with the health-care organization (HCO) as well as with peer patients. Patients' interactions in these online communities could impact their perceptions regarding the HCO's service quality. The objective of this pilot study was to evaluate the impact of social support and responsiveness that patients experience in an HCO's online community on patients' perceptions regarding the HCO's service quality. The study data are collected from CHESS, a health-care programme (Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System) run by the Centre for Health Enhancement System Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Findings show that the social support and the responsiveness received from peer patients in the online patient communities will impact patients' perceptions regarding the service quality of the HCO even when the organizational members themselves do not participate in the online discussions. The results indicate that interactions in such HCO-provided online patient communities should not be ignored as they could translate into patients' perceptions regarding HCOs' service quality. Ways to improve responsiveness and social support in an HCO's online patient community are discussed. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  7. A sneak into the Devil's Colony - Fake Profiles in Online Social Networks

    OpenAIRE

    Wani, Mudasir Ahmad; Jabin, Suraiya

    2017-01-01

    Online Social Networks (OSNs) play an important role for internet users to carry out their daily activities like content sharing, news reading, posting messages, product reviews and discussing events etc. At the same time, various kinds of spammers are also equally attracted towards these OSNs. These cyber criminals including sexual predators, online fraudsters, advertising campaigners, catfishes, and social bots etc. exploit the network of trust by various means especially by creating fake p...

  8. Choosing your network: social preferences in an online health community.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Centola, Damon; van de Rijt, Arnout

    2015-01-01

    A growing number of online health communities offer individuals the opportunity to receive information, advice, and support from peers. Recent studies have demonstrated that these new online contacts can be important informational resources, and can even exert significant influence on individuals' behavior in various contexts. However little is known about how people select their health contacts in these virtual domains. This is because selection preferences in peer networks are notoriously difficult to detect. In existing networks, unobserved pressures on tie formation--such as common organizational memberships, introductions to friends of friends, or limitations on accessibility--may mistakenly be interpreted as individual preferences for interacting/not interacting with others. We address these issues by adopting a social media approach to studying network formation. We study social selection using an in vivo study within an online exercise program, in which anonymous participants have equal opportunities for initiating relationships with other program members. This design allows us to identify individuals' preferences for health contacts, and to evaluate what these preferences imply for members' access to new kinds of health information, and for the kinds of social influences to which they are exposed. The study was conducted within a goal-oriented fitness competition, in which participation was greatest among a small core of active individuals. Our results show that the active participants displayed indifference to the fitness and exercise profiles of others, disregarding information about others' fitness levels, exercise preferences, and workout experiences, instead selecting partners almost entirely on the basis of similarities on gender, age, and BMI. Interestingly, the findings suggest that rather than expanding and diversifying their sources of health information, participants' choices limited the value of their online resources by selecting contacts

  9. Online gaming in the context of social anxiety.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Bianca W; Leeson, Peter R C

    2015-06-01

    In 2014, over 23 million individuals were playing massive multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs). In light of the framework provided by Davis's (2001) cognitive-behavioral model of pathological Internet use, social anxiety, expressions of true self, and perceived in-game and face-to-face social support were examined as predictors of Generalized Problematic Internet Use Scale (GPIUS) scores and hours spent playing MMORPGs per week. Data were collected from adult MMORPG players via an online survey (N = 626). Using structural equation modeling, the hypothesized model was tested on 1 half of the sample (N = 313) and then retested on the other half of the sample. The results indicated that the hypothesized model fit the data well in both samples. Specifically, expressing true self in game, higher levels of social anxiety, larger numbers of in-game social supports, and fewer supportive face-to-face relationships were significant predictors of higher GPIUS scores, and the number of in-game supports was significantly associated with time spent playing. The current study provides clinicians and researchers with a deeper understanding of MMORPG use by being the first to apply, test, and replicate a theory-driven model across 2 samples of MMORPG players. In addition, the present findings suggest that a psychometric measure of MMORPG usage is more indicative of players' psychological and social well-being than is time spent playing these games. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  10. Correlations among Social Anxiety, Self-Esteem, Impulsivity, and Game Genre in Patients with Problematic Online Game Playing

    OpenAIRE

    Park, Jeong Ha; Han, Doug Hyun; Kim, Bung-Nyun; Cheong, Jae Hoon; Lee, Young-Sik

    2016-01-01

    Objective Recent studies of online game addiction have suggested that social interaction and impulsivity are critical factors for the etiology and progress of online game addiction. We hypothesized that the genre of the online game is associated with impulsivity and sociality in individuals with online game addictions. Methods In total, 212 patients with problematic online game playing were divided into four groups by game genre: 1) massive multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG), 2) re...

  11. Quantifying social influence in an online cultural market.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krumme, Coco; Cebrian, Manuel; Pickard, Galen; Pentland, Sandy

    2012-01-01

    We revisit experimental data from an online cultural market in which 14,000 users interact to download songs, and develop a simple model that can explain seemingly complex outcomes. Our results suggest that individual behavior is characterized by a two-step process--the decision to sample and the decision to download a song. Contrary to conventional wisdom, social influence is material to the first step only. The model also identifies the role of placement in mediating social signals, and suggests that in this market with anonymous feedback cues, social influence serves an informational rather than normative role.

  12. Quantifying social influence in an online cultural market.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Coco Krumme

    Full Text Available We revisit experimental data from an online cultural market in which 14,000 users interact to download songs, and develop a simple model that can explain seemingly complex outcomes. Our results suggest that individual behavior is characterized by a two-step process--the decision to sample and the decision to download a song. Contrary to conventional wisdom, social influence is material to the first step only. The model also identifies the role of placement in mediating social signals, and suggests that in this market with anonymous feedback cues, social influence serves an informational rather than normative role.

  13. Empirical analysis of online social networks in the age of Web 2.0

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fu, Feng; Liu, Lianghuan; Wang, Long

    2008-01-01

    Today the World Wide Web is undergoing a subtle but profound shift to Web 2.0, to become more of a social web. The use of collaborative technologies such as blogs and social networking site (SNS) leads to instant online community in which people communicate rapidly and conveniently with each other. Moreover, there are growing interest and concern regarding the topological structure of these new online social networks. In this paper, we present empirical analysis of statistical properties of two important Chinese online social networks-a blogging network and an SNS open to college students. They are both emerging in the age of Web 2.0. We demonstrate that both networks possess small-world and scale-free features already observed in real-world and artificial networks. In addition, we investigate the distribution of topological distance. Furthermore, we study the correlations between degree (in/out) and degree (in/out), clustering coefficient and degree, popularity (in terms of number of page views) and in-degree (for the blogging network), respectively. We find that the blogging network shows disassortative mixing pattern, whereas the SNS network is an assortative one. Our research may help us to elucidate the self-organizing structural characteristics of these online social networks embedded in technical forms.

  14. Botiga online i xarxa social de vins i destil·lats

    OpenAIRE

    González Murillo, Elisabet

    2015-01-01

    Plataforma web relacionada con el mundo del vino. La aplicación está formada por dos partes bien diferenciadas, una tienda online de vinos y una red social. Actualmente, no existe ninguna aplicación que haya unido estos dos conceptos a favor del usuario. Web platform related to the world of wine. The application is composed of two different parts: an online wine shop and a social network. At present, there is no application joining this two concepts for the user. Thus, this web will bring ...

  15. MARKETING COMMUNICATION IN ONLINE SOCIAL PROGRAMS: OHANIAN MODEL OF SOURCE CREDIBILITY

    OpenAIRE

    Serban Corina

    2010-01-01

    The development of the Internet as a medium for interaction with customers has resulted in many changes regarding the promotion of organizations. Online marketing is nowadays used not only to sell a product on the market, but also requires ideas and behavioral change. Non-profit organizations active in online communication are based on the quality of their provided information. Crediblity, attractiveness and usefullness are the key elements that provide effective online social programs. This ...

  16. The role of feedback and social presence in an online peer coaching program for student teachers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Thurlings, M.C.G.; Vermeulen, M.; Bastiaens, T.J.; Stijnen, P.J.J.

    2014-01-01

    Feedback is essential in any kind of learning. This study focused on feedback in online learning and conceptualized feedback as a social interaction process. Online learning rests on social interaction, which is affected by feelings of social presence. Therefore, we investigated received and

  17. The role of feedback and social presence in an online peer coaching program for student teachers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Thurlings, Marieke; Vermeulen, Marjan; Bastiaens, Theo; Stijnen, Sjef

    2018-01-01

    Feedback is essential in any kind of learning. This study focused on feedback in online learning and conceptualized feedback as a social interaction process. Online learning rests on social interaction, which is affected by feelings of social presence. Therefore, we investigated received and

  18. Do levels of social competence influence the perception of social affordances among students with low levels of education? An exploratory case study of the relationship between offline and online socializing factors

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Moekotte, Paulo; Brand-Gruwel, Saskia; Ritzen, Henk

    2018-01-01

    In this exploratory case study we investigate the relation between off line and online factors that influence social dynamics of online, collaborative learning, that is the levels of social competence and the perception of social affordances. We argued that low educated with low social competences

  19. Online Social Participation, Social Capital and Literacy of Adolescents with Hearing Loss: A Pilot Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wong, Cara L.; Ching, Teresa Y. C.; Whitfield, Jessica; Duncan, Jill

    2016-01-01

    The internet and social media have fast become an everyday aspect of adolescents' lives. Online participation may increase social capital and be particularly beneficial for individuals who are deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH), as it provides an alternative method to communicate, interact with others and access information. However, reduced levels of…

  20. Understanding and Accommodating Online Social Communities: A Common Sense Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lennon, Sean M.

    2013-01-01

    Online social networks such as Facebook have changed the context and definitions of socialization. Focusing on teacher use, this article considers the size and impact of these forums and the importance many young professionals feel toward them. Themed as a common sense approach, the author uses anecdotal points and discussions with…

  1. Emotions, everyday life and the social web: age, gender and social web engagement effects on online emotional expression

    OpenAIRE

    Beneito-Montagut, Roser

    2017-01-01

    Emotional expression is key to the maintenance and development of interpersonal relationships online. This study develops and applies a novel analytical framework for the study of emotional expression on the social web in everyday life. The analytical framework proposed is based on previous ethnographic work and the self-reported measurement of the visual cues, action cues and verbal cues that people use to express emotions on the social web. It is empirically tested, using an online survey o...

  2. A Meta-Analysis of Approaches to Engage Social Work Students Online

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farrel, Dorothy; Ray, Kateri; Rich, Telvis; Suarez, Zulema; Christenson, Brian; Jennigs, Lisa

    2018-01-01

    With an increase in social work courses being offered in online and hybrid formats, it is imperative that social work programs understand the new teaching tenets and engagement mediums employed to meet the new Council on Social Work Education's Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards. This meta-analysis explores best-practices pedagogy for…

  3. Using Social Media to Increase Accessibility to Online Teaching Resources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Kelly, B; McHugh, S; McHugh, T; Fady, N; Boyle, E; Hill, A D K

    2015-09-01

    The key learning points of Surgical Grand Rounds (SGR) are often not accessible at times of exam revision for students. We sought to use Twitter as an online teaching repository. A SGR Twitter profile was created. 23 SGR presentations were made accessible on Twitter over a 3 month period. 93 students were invited to complete a questionnaire assessing usage of the repository. 84 (90%) in total responded, of these, 25 (80.6%) felt that the online provision of SGR through twitter was "useful". The majority (71%) felt that the online content was easily accessible. The novel use of social media is a useful adjunctive educational tool in accessing an online repository of SGR presentations.

  4. The dark side of social media: Associations between the Dark Triad of personality, self-disclosure online and selfie-related behaviours

    OpenAIRE

    Elżbieta Sanecka

    2017-01-01

    The present study investigated the relations between the Dark Triad personality traits (i.e., Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy), distinct dimensions of self-disclosure online (i.e., honesty, amount, positive valence, and intent) and selfie related-behaviours (taking, posting and editing selfies). The results indicated, that all three Dark Triad components were positively correlated with posting and editing selfies on social networking sites (SNSs). However, multiple regression an...

  5. The Role of Online Social Identity in the Relationship Between Alcohol-Related Content on Social Networking Sites and Adolescent Alcohol Use.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pegg, Karlee J; O'Donnell, Alexander W; Lala, Girish; Barber, Bonnie L

    2018-01-01

    Social networking sites (SNSs) are social platforms that facilitate communication. For adolescents, peers play a crucial role in constructing the self online through displays of group norms on SNSs. The current study investigated the role of online social identity (OSI) in the relationship between adolescent exposure to alcohol-related content posted by peers on SNSs and alcohol use. In a sample (N = 929) of Australian adolescents (Age M = 17.25, SD = 0.31) higher levels of exposure to alcohol-related content on SNSs was associated with higher levels of alcohol use. Importantly, the association was stronger when the participants reported higher OSI particularly when also reporting low or moderate amount of time spent on SNS. The findings can be explained by social identity literature that demonstrates individuals align their behaviors with other members of their social group to demonstrate, enact, and maintain social identity. The results of this study reflect the importance of considering the construction of the "self" through online and offline constructs.

  6. Fuzzy Modelling for Human Dynamics Based on Online Social Networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cuenca-Jara, Jesus; Terroso-Saenz, Fernando; Valdes-Vela, Mercedes; Skarmeta, Antonio F

    2017-08-24

    Human mobility mining has attracted a lot of attention in the research community due to its multiple implications in the provisioning of innovative services for large metropolises. In this scope, Online Social Networks (OSN) have arisen as a promising source of location data to come up with new mobility models. However, the human nature of this data makes it rather noisy and inaccurate. In order to deal with such limitations, the present work introduces a framework for human mobility mining based on fuzzy logic. Firstly, a fuzzy clustering algorithm extracts the most active OSN areas at different time periods. Next, such clusters are the building blocks to compose mobility patterns. Furthermore, a location prediction service based on a fuzzy rule classifier has been developed on top of the framework. Finally, both the framework and the predictor has been tested with a Twitter and Flickr dataset in two large cities.

  7. Social media, social avatars and the psyche: is Facebook good for us?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brunskill, David

    2013-12-01

    This paper aims to explore how social media users represent themselves online, and to consider whether this process has inherent potential to impact upon the psyche of the individual. Advanced thinking around social media may exist on an organizational level, but on an individual level there exists a need to catch up, as the psychological dimensions of going online are significant and deserve consideration. Inherent to the experience of using social media is the self selection of favorable material to represent the individual. This process is cumulative, and effectively creates a socially-derived and socially-driven, composite online image ('social avatar'). Humans notably select their best aspects for presentation to others and the social avatar reflects this tendency, effectively facilitating the creation of a 'gap' between online image (representation) and offline identity (substance). The creation of a social avatar should therefore be an important and conscious consideration for all users of social media, not just those individuals already struggling with the task of integrating the multiple facets which make up modern personal identity. Social avatars appear to be an important factor in understanding the inherent potential for social media to affect the psyche/contribute to psychopathology within the individual.

  8. Factors associated with online victimisation among Malaysian adolescents who use social networking sites: a cross-sectional study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marret, Mary J; Choo, Wan Yuen

    2017-01-01

    Objective To determine the prevalence of online interpersonal victimisation and its association with patterns of social networking site (SNS) use, offline victimisation, offline perpetration and parental conflict among Malaysian adolescents using SNS. Methods A cross-sectional study of students from randomly selected public secondary schools in the state of Negeri Sembilan was conducted using an anonymous self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire examined patterns of SNS use and included measures of online victimisation, online perpetration, offline victimisation and parental conflict. A response rate of 91% from a total of 1634 yielded a sample of 1487 students between 15 years and 16 years of age. Results Ninety-two per cent of respondents had used at least one SNS. More than half of SNS users (52.2%) reported experiences of online victimisation over the past 12 months. Boys were significantly more likely to experience online harassment compared with girls (52.2% vs 43.3%, p<0.001). There were no significant gender differences in experiences of unwanted sexual solicitation. Adolescents who engaged in perpetration behaviours online had almost six times higher odds of reporting frequent online victimisation compared with online behaviours involving personal disclosure. There was a significant dose-response relationship between engagement in multiple types of online behaviour and the risk of frequent online victimisation. Both online and offline perpetrations were associated with an increased risk of victimisation. Those who were victimised offline or experienced parental conflict were twice as likely to report online victimisation. Conclusion Interventions to prevent online electronic aggression should target perpetration behaviour both online and offline. Youth should be equipped with skills in communication and decision-making in relationships that can be applied across a spectrum of contexts both online and offline. PMID:28667209

  9. Dimensionality and effects of information motivation on users’ online social network advertising acceptance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    IMRAN ANWAR MIR

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Social media has produced substantial changes in the communication landscape. Online social network sites (SNS grew as a common platform for online social interaction. SNS firms generate revenue from the advertising appearing on SNS. Their survival depends on users’ approval of such social network advertising (SNA. Marketing literature indicates that users accept advertising if it is consistent with their motivations for using social media. Information seeking is the most recognized SNS motivation. Yet, research on evaluating the influence of SNS information motivation on users’ approval of SNA is scarce. Based on SNS uses and gratifications theory, this study proposes a multidimensional model that shows the influence of SNS information motivation on users’ approval of SNA.

  10. Social Tie Strength and Online Victimization: An Analysis of Young People Aged 15–30 Years in Four Nations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Teo Keipi

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Online interaction through the use of social networking sites (SNS continues to be a significant component of the socialization of young people today, yet little research exists toward linking various relational forms to prevalent and much-studied online risks cross-nationally. This article provides a link between relational dynamics and online risks identified in previous research toward a new perspective on how social tie strength is related to experiences of hate victimization and harassment online. The analysis is based on survey data of Finnish ( n  = 555, American ( n  = 1033, German ( n  = 978, and British ( n  = 999 young people aged 15–30 years. Variables, including age, gender, main activity, SNS use, quantity, and extent of online and offline social networks including social tie strength and online community identification, were analyzed toward finding their associations with online hate victimization and harassment. Results showed that experiences of hate victimization and harassment were similar cross-nationally and that those who were personally harassed online also reported high SNS activity. Furthermore, no association was found between social network size and negative experiences. Notable cross-national differences were also detected in the results. Findings emphasize the importance of understanding variables fostering online risks for young people while providing a new perspective on what aspects of social life may help negate negative effects online.

  11. Marketing the Academic Library with Online Social Network Advertising

    OpenAIRE

    CHan, Christopher

    2012-01-01

    Facebook is now a ubiquitous part of the lives of many university students across the world. The libraries that serve them now have an opportunity to leverage this online social network to promote their services and resources. However, the effectiveness of a library’s efforts in this area will depend greatly on the number of connections it can make between its users and its Facebook presence. Building on a previous investigation that suggested online advertising might be a cost-effective way ...

  12. Similarity and the Quality of Online and Offline Social Relationships among Adolescents in Israel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mesch, Gustavo S.; Talmud, Ilan

    2007-01-01

    Studies on online social relationships have focused on how Internet use is associated with sociability, but have not compared the quality of online with offline relationships. On the other hand, studies on adolescent friendship formation have used school samples disregarding the Internet as a new social context for it. We took a different…

  13. Getting acquainted through social networking sites: testing a model of online uncertainty reduction and social attraction

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Antheunis, M.L.; Valkenburg, P.M.; Peter, J.

    2010-01-01

    The first aim of this study was to examine which uncertainty reduction strategies members of social network sites used to gain information about a person who they had recently met online. The second aim was to investigate whether and how these uncertainty reduction strategies resulted in social

  14. Getting acquainted through social networking sites: Testing a model of online uncertainty reduction and social attraction

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Antheunis, M.L.; Valkenburg, P.M.; Peter, J.

    2008-01-01

    The first aim of this study was to examine which uncertainty reduction strategies members of social networking sites used to gain information about a person who they had recently met online. The second aim was to investigate whether and how these uncertainty reduction strategies resulted in social

  15. User-friendly matching protocol for online social networks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Tang, Qiang

    2010-01-01

    In this paper, we outline a privacy-preserving matching protocol for OSN (online social network) users to find their potential friends. With the proposed protocol, a logged-in user can match her profile with that of an off-line stranger, while both profiles are maximally protected. Our solution

  16. Modeling geo-homopholy in online social networks for population distribution projection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuanxing Zhang

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Purpose – Projecting the population distribution in geographical regions is important for many applications such as launching marketing campaigns or enhancing the public safety in certain densely populated areas. Conventional studies require the collection of people’s trajectory data through offline means, which is limited in terms of cost and data availability. The wide use of online social network (OSN apps over smartphones has provided the opportunities of devising a lightweight approach of conducting the study using the online data of smartphone apps. This paper aims to reveal the relationship between the online social networks and the offline communities, as well as to project the population distribution by modeling geo-homophily in the online social networks. Design/methodology/approach – In this paper, the authors propose the concept of geo-homophily in OSNs to determine how much the data of an OSN can help project the population distribution in a given division of geographical regions. Specifically, the authors establish a three-layered theoretic framework that first maps the online message diffusion among friends in the OSN to the offline population distribution over a given division of regions via a Dirichlet process and then projects the floating population across the regions. Findings – By experiments over large-scale OSN data sets, the authors show that the proposed prediction models have a high prediction accuracy in characterizing the process of how the population distribution forms and how the floating population changes over time. Originality/value – This paper tries to project population distribution by modeling geo-homophily in OSNs.

  17. Online Social Networking, Sexual Risk and Protective Behaviors: Considerations for Clinicians and Researchers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holloway, Ian W; Dunlap, Shannon; Del Pino, Homero E; Hermanstyne, Keith; Pulsipher, Craig; Landovitz, Raphael J

    2014-09-01

    Online social networking refers to the use of internet-based technologies that facilitate connection and communication between users. These platforms may be accessed via computer or mobile device (e.g., tablet, smartphone); communication between users may include linking of profiles, posting of text, photo and video content, instant messaging and email. This review provides an overview of recent research on the relationship between online social networking and sexual risk and protective behaviors with a focus on use of social networking sites (SNS) among young people and populations at high risk for sexually transmitted infections (STIs). While findings are mixed, the widespread use of SNS for sexual communication and partner seeking presents opportunities for the delivery and evaluation of public health interventions. Results of SNS-based interventions to reduce sexual risk are synthesized in order to offer hands-on advice for clinicians and researchers interested in engaging patients and study participants via online social networking.

  18. Factors associated with online victimisation among Malaysian adolescents who use social networking sites: a cross-sectional study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marret, Mary J; Choo, Wan Yuen

    2017-06-30

    To determine the prevalence of online interpersonal victimisation and its association with patterns of social networking site (SNS) use, offline victimisation, offline perpetration and parental conflict among Malaysian adolescents using SNS. A cross-sectional study of students from randomly selected public secondary schools in the state of Negeri Sembilan was conducted using an anonymous self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire examined patterns of SNS use and included measures of online victimisation, online perpetration, offline victimisation and parental conflict. A response rate of 91% from a total of 1634 yielded a sample of 1487 students between 15 years and 16 years of age. Ninety-two per cent of respondents had used at least one SNS. More than half of SNS users (52.2%) reported experiences of online victimisation over the past 12 months. Boys were significantly more likely to experience online harassment compared with girls (52.2% vs 43.3%, ponline had almost six times higher odds of reporting frequent online victimisation compared with online behaviours involving personal disclosure. There was a significant dose-response relationship between engagement in multiple types of online behaviour and the risk of frequent online victimisation. Both online and offline perpetrations were associated with an increased risk of victimisation. Those who were victimised offline or experienced parental conflict were twice as likely to report online victimisation. Interventions to prevent online electronic aggression should target perpetration behaviour both online and offline. Youth should be equipped with skills in communication and decision-making in relationships that can be applied across a spectrum of contexts both online and offline. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  19. Social Scholars: Educators' Digital Identity Construction in Open, Online Learning Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wise, Julie B.; O'Byrne, W. Ian

    2015-01-01

    The #WalkMyWorld project was an open, social media experiment developed to provide preservice and in-service teachers and K-12 students with an opportunity to focus on developing media literacies and civic engagement in online spaces. The study employed a basic interpretative qualitative study approach (Merriam, 2002) to examine how online social…

  20. Using Mobile Apps and Social Media for Online Learner-Generated Content

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henry, Paul David

    2014-01-01

    As part of an evolutionary approach to extending and enhancing the online learning experience for adult students in the LMS-based online college courses that I teach, I have been introducing learning activities that use social media and mobile devices. However, realizing that student adoption of mobile devices with data plans such as smartphones…

  1. Perceptions of Social Loafing in Online Learning Groups: A study of Public University and U.S. Naval War College students

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    William D. Ferree

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available Social loafing research has spanned several decades and fields of study. Research has provided support for both the existence of social loafing and its antecedents within the laboratory, classroom, and work place. Studies regarding the perceptions of social loafing and its effects in the online learning environment, however, are largely non-existent. This study surveyed 227 online learning students who were participating in online learning groups. The study seeks to determine whether the perception of social loafing exists within online learning groups. In addition, several psychosocial factors identified in face-to-face environments are analyzed to determine their impact in online learning groups. Evidence supports both the perception of social loafing in online learning groups as well as similarities between social loafing antecedents in face-to-face groups and those in the online learning environment.

  2. Online Social Networking and Mental Health

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-01-01

    Abstract During the past decade, online social networking has caused profound changes in the way people communicate and interact. It is unclear, however, whether some of these changes may affect certain normal aspects of human behavior and cause psychiatric disorders. Several studies have indicated that the prolonged use of social networking sites (SNS), such as Facebook, may be related to signs and symptoms of depression. In addition, some authors have indicated that certain SNS activities might be associated with low self-esteem, especially in children and adolescents. Other studies have presented opposite results in terms of positive impact of social networking on self-esteem. The relationship between SNS use and mental problems to this day remains controversial, and research on this issue is faced with numerous challenges. This concise review focuses on the recent findings regarding the suggested connection between SNS and mental health issues such as depressive symptoms, changes in self-esteem, and Internet addiction. PMID:25192305

  3. Online social networking and mental health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pantic, Igor

    2014-10-01

    During the past decade, online social networking has caused profound changes in the way people communicate and interact. It is unclear, however, whether some of these changes may affect certain normal aspects of human behavior and cause psychiatric disorders. Several studies have indicated that the prolonged use of social networking sites (SNS), such as Facebook, may be related to signs and symptoms of depression. In addition, some authors have indicated that certain SNS activities might be associated with low self-esteem, especially in children and adolescents. Other studies have presented opposite results in terms of positive impact of social networking on self-esteem. The relationship between SNS use and mental problems to this day remains controversial, and research on this issue is faced with numerous challenges. This concise review focuses on the recent findings regarding the suggested connection between SNS and mental health issues such as depressive symptoms, changes in self-esteem, and Internet addiction.

  4. Craving Facebook? Behavioral addiction to online social networking and its association with emotion regulation deficits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hormes, Julia M; Kearns, Brianna; Timko, C Alix

    2014-12-01

    To assess disordered online social networking use via modified diagnostic criteria for substance dependence, and to examine its association with difficulties with emotion regulation and substance use. Cross-sectional survey study targeting undergraduate students. Associations between disordered online social networking use, internet addiction, deficits in emotion regulation and alcohol use problems were examined using univariate and multivariate analyses of covariance. A large University in the Northeastern United States. Undergraduate students (n = 253, 62.8% female, 60.9% white, age mean = 19.68, standard deviation = 2.85), largely representative of the target population. The response rate was 100%. Disordered online social networking use, determined via modified measures of alcohol abuse and dependence, including DSM-IV-TR diagnostic criteria for alcohol dependence, the Penn Alcohol Craving Scale and the Cut-down, Annoyed, Guilt, Eye-opener (CAGE) screen, along with the Young Internet Addiction Test, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II, White Bear Suppression Inventory and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale. Disordered online social networking use was present in 9.7% [n = 23; 95% confidence interval (5.9, 13.4)] of the sample surveyed, and significantly and positively associated with scores on the Young Internet Addiction Test (P addictive. Modified measures of substance abuse and dependence are suitable in assessing disordered online social networking use. Disordered online social networking use seems to arise as part of a cluster of symptoms of poor emotion regulation skills and heightened susceptibility to both substance and non-substance addiction. © 2014 Society for the Study of Addiction.

  5. Are health behavior change interventions that use online social networks effective? A systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maher, Carol A; Lewis, Lucy K; Ferrar, Katia; Marshall, Simon; De Bourdeaudhuij, Ilse; Vandelanotte, Corneel

    2014-02-14

    The dramatic growth of Web 2.0 technologies and online social networks offers immense potential for the delivery of health behavior change campaigns. However, it is currently unclear how online social networks may best be harnessed to achieve health behavior change. The intent of the study was to systematically review the current level of evidence regarding the effectiveness of online social network health behavior interventions. Eight databases (Scopus, CINAHL, Medline, ProQuest, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cochrane, Web of Science and Communication & Mass Media Complete) were searched from 2000 to present using a comprehensive search strategy. Study eligibility criteria were based on the PICOS format, where "population" included child or adult populations, including healthy and disease populations; "intervention" involved behavior change interventions targeting key modifiable health behaviors (tobacco and alcohol consumption, dietary intake, physical activity, and sedentary behavior) delivered either wholly or in part using online social networks; "comparator" was either a control group or within subject in the case of pre-post study designs; "outcomes" included health behavior change and closely related variables (such as theorized mediators of health behavior change, eg, self-efficacy); and "study design" included experimental studies reported in full-length peer-reviewed sources. Reports of intervention effectiveness were summarized and effect sizes (Cohen's d and 95% confidence intervals) were calculated wherever possible. Attrition (percentage of people who completed the study), engagement (actual usage), and fidelity (actual usage/intended usage) with the social networking component of the interventions were scrutinized. A total of 2040 studies were identified from the database searches following removal of duplicates, of which 10 met inclusion criteria. The studies involved a total of 113,988 participants (ranging from n=10 to n=107,907). Interventions included

  6. Social networks and online environments: when science and practice co-evolve

    OpenAIRE

    Rosen, Devan; Barnett, George A.; Kim, Jang Hyun

    2011-01-01

    The science of social network analysis has co-evolved with the development of online environments and computer-mediated communication. Unique and precise data available from computer and information systems have allowed network scientists to explore novel social phenomena and develop new methods. Additionally, advances in the structural analysis and visualization of computer-mediated social networks have informed developers and shaped the design of social media tools. This article reviews som...

  7. Social media and online self-presentation: Effects on how we see ourselves and our bodies

    OpenAIRE

    de Vries, D.A.

    2014-01-01

    Social media are becoming more and more popular. Many adolescents and adults present themselves online through a social network site or dating profile. Such widespread engagement in self-presentation on social media may have implications for how we see ourselves and our bodies. These self-views, in turn, can have important consequences for our mental health and well-being. This dissertation investigates negative as well as positive effects of social media use and online self-presentation on s...

  8. Comparing social factors affecting recommender decisions in online and educational social network

    Science.gov (United States)

    MartÍn, Estefanía; Hernán-Losada, Isidoro; Haya, Pablo A.

    2016-01-01

    In the educational context, there is an increasing interest in learning networks. Recommender systems (RSs) can play an important role in achieving educational objectives. Although we can find many papers focused on recommendation techniques and algorithms, in general, less attention has been dedicated to social factors that influence the recommendation process. This process could be improved if we had a deeper understanding of the social factors that influence the quality or validity of a suggestion made by the RS. This work elucidates and analyses the social factors that influence the design and decision-making process of RSs. We conducted a survey in which 126 undergraduate students were asked to extract which are the main factors for improving suggestions when they are interacting with an Online Social Network (OSN) or in an Educational Social Network (ESN). The results show that different factors have to be considered depending on the type of network.

  9. Factors Affecting Online Impulse Buying: Evidence from Chinese Social Commerce Environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Umair Akram

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available First, the purpose of this study is to examine the impact of situational variables, scarcity and serendipity, on online impulse buying (OIB in Chinese social commerce (SC environment. Second, the study further assesses the moderating role of five dimensions of hedonic shopping value. Data were gathered from 671 online shoppers who come from two metropolitan cities of China, Beijing, and Shanghai. Structure equation modeling utilized was generated by AMOS 23 version to test the study hypotheses. The results confirm that situational factors positively influence the online impulse buying among Chinese online shoppers in SC environment. Four dimensions of hedonic shopping value (social shopping, relaxation shopping, adventure shopping and idea shopping positively moderate the relationship between serendipity and OIB; value shopping is insignificant with moderation effect. The finding is helpful to the online retailers and SC web developers by recommending them to take the scarcity and serendipity in their consideration. These factors have the potential to motivate the consumers to initiate the hedonic shopping aptitude to urge to buy impulsively. Unlike the previous work which remained unsuccessful in incorporating all factors into one study, this study has incorporated irrational and unplanned consumption along with rational and planned one in the same research.

  10. Using the Internet, Online Social Networks and Potentially Incurred Risk: Student Opinions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gintautė Žibėnienė

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available Regulation of harmful content on the Internet is a soaring problem in the expansion of the information society, and it is being discussed in different European countries. Therefore, it is important to discuss the issue of being safe online: to do research on what children think about when using the Internet, threats experienced while online, to discuss ways of recognising and protecting children from online threats (such as cyber bullying, bullying, abuse, temptations with purpose of sexual harassment, leaking of personal information, spreading, harmful and illegal Internet content, etc.. The research objective of this paper is to present the opinion of gymnasium students on using the Internet, online social networks and likely experienced threats. The methodology—opinion research of the gymnasium students, which was carried out 17–21 December 2012; an analysis of professional target publications and a questionnaire survey were also applied. Analysis of the research findings was based on the analysis methods of quantity analysis (descriptive and analysis of quality content. Statistical findings were analysed applying the software “Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS 21.0 for Windows.” According to the research of student opinion, it was revealed that the most common student online activities are browsing of chat websites, exchange of videos and other material, viewing, listening and participating in social networks, whereas erotica and viewing of pornography are the rarest activities and are unimportant for students. Online social networks are especially popular among students, as most interviewed students (95.3% have their own profile in social networks. Students mostly visit social networks to communicate, to make friends (77.1% of respondents, however, every second student (60.7% visits them just to spend time, which can be assumed about the problems of students’ leisure time. The vast majority of students think that

  11. Structural characteristics of the online social networks of maltreated youth and offline sexual risk behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Negriff, Sonya; Valente, Thomas W

    2018-02-07

    Maltreated youth are at risk for exposure to online sexual content and high-risk sexual behavior, yet characteristics of their online social networks have not been examined as a potential source of vulnerability. The aims of the current study were: 1) to test indicators of size (number of friends) and fragmentation (number of connections between friends) of maltreated young adults' online networks as predictors of intentional and unintentional exposure to sexual content and offline high-risk sexual behavior and 2) to test maltreatment as a moderator of these associations. Participants were selected from a longitudinal study on the effects of child maltreatment (n = 152; Mean age 21.84 years). Data downloaded from Facebook were used to calculate network variables of size (number of friends), density (connections between friends), average degree (average number of connections for each friend), and percent isolates (those not connected to others in the network). Self-reports of intentional and unintentional exposure to online sexual content and offline high-risk sexual behavior were the outcome variables. Multiple-group path modeling showed that only for the maltreated group having a higher percent of isolates in the network predicted intentional exposure to online sexual content and offline high-risk sexual behavior. An implication of this finding is that the composition of the Facebook network may be used as a risk indicator for individuals with child-welfare documented maltreatment experiences. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  12. Similarity between community structures of different online social networks and its impact on underlying community detection

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fan, W.; Yeung, K. H.

    2015-03-01

    As social networking services are popular, many people may register in more than one online social network. In this paper we study a set of users who have accounts of three online social networks: namely Foursquare, Facebook and Twitter. Community structure of this set of users may be reflected in these three online social networks. Therefore, high correlation between these reflections and the underlying community structure may be observed. In this work, community structures are detected in all three online social networks. Also, we investigate the similarity level of community structures across different networks. It is found that they show strong correlation with each other. The similarity between different networks may be helpful to find a community structure close to the underlying one. To verify this, we propose a method to increase the weights of some connections in networks. With this method, new networks are generated to assist community detection. By doing this, value of modularity can be improved and the new community structure match network's natural structure better. In this paper we also show that the detected community structures of online social networks are correlated with users' locations which are identified on Foursquare. This information may also be useful for underlying community detection.

  13. The Role of Online Social Identity in the Relationship Between Alcohol-Related Content on Social Networking Sites and Adolescent Alcohol Use

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Donnell, Alexander W.; Lala, Girish; Barber, Bonnie L.

    2018-01-01

    Abstract Social networking sites (SNSs) are social platforms that facilitate communication. For adolescents, peers play a crucial role in constructing the self online through displays of group norms on SNSs. The current study investigated the role of online social identity (OSI) in the relationship between adolescent exposure to alcohol-related content posted by peers on SNSs and alcohol use. In a sample (N = 929) of Australian adolescents (Age M = 17.25, SD = 0.31) higher levels of exposure to alcohol-related content on SNSs was associated with higher levels of alcohol use. Importantly, the association was stronger when the participants reported higher OSI particularly when also reporting low or moderate amount of time spent on SNS. The findings can be explained by social identity literature that demonstrates individuals align their behaviors with other members of their social group to demonstrate, enact, and maintain social identity. The results of this study reflect the importance of considering the construction of the “self” through online and offline constructs. PMID:28574719

  14. Incorporating profile information in community detection for online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fan, W.; Yeung, K. H.

    2014-07-01

    Community structure is an important feature in the study of complex networks. It is because nodes of the same community may have similar properties. In this paper we extend two popular community detection methods to partition online social networks. In our extended methods, the profile information of users is used for partitioning. We apply the extended methods in several sample networks of Facebook. Compared with the original methods, the community structures we obtain have higher modularity. Our results indicate that users' profile information is consistent with the community structure of their friendship network to some extent. To the best of our knowledge, this paper is the first to discuss how profile information can be used to improve community detection in online social networks.

  15. Effects of Social Network Exposure on Nutritional Learning: Development of an Online Educational Platform.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dagan, Noa; Beskin, Daniel; Brezis, Mayer; Reis, Ben Y

    2015-10-05

    Social networking sites (SNSs) such as Facebook have the potential to enhance online public health interventions, in part, as they provide social exposure and reinforcement. The objective of the study was to evaluate whether social exposure provided by SNSs enhances the effects of online public health interventions. As a sample intervention, we developed Food Hero, an online platform for nutritional education in which players feed a virtual character according to their own nutritional needs and complete a set of virtual sport challenges. The platform was developed in 2 versions: a "private version" in which a user can see only his or her own score, and a "social version" in which a user can see other players' scores, including preexisting Facebook friends. We assessed changes in participants' nutritional knowledge using 4 quiz scores and 3 menu-assembly scores. Monitoring feeding and exercising attempts assessed engagement with the platform. The 2 versions of the platform were randomly assigned between a study group (30 members receiving the social version) and a control group (33 members, private version). The study group's performance on the quizzes gradually increased over time, relative to that of the control group, becoming significantly higher by the fourth quiz (P=.02). Furthermore, the study group's menu-assembly scores improved over time compared to the first score, whereas the control group's performance deteriorated. Study group members spent an average of 3:40 minutes assembling each menu compared to 2:50 minutes in the control group, and performed an average of 1.58 daily sport challenges, compared to 1.21 in the control group (P=.03). This work focused on isolating the SNSs' social effects in order to help guide future online interventions. Our results indicate that the social exposure provided by SNSs is associated with increased engagement and learning in an online nutritional educational platform.

  16. Private Sharing of User Location over Online Social Networks

    OpenAIRE

    Freudiger, Julien; Neu, Raoul; Hubaux, Jean-Pierre

    2010-01-01

    Online social networks increasingly allow mobile users to share their location with their friends. Much to the detriment of users’ privacy, this also means that social network operators collect users’ lo- cation. Similarly, third parties can learn users’ location from localization and location visualization services. Ideally, third-parties should not be given complete access to users’ location. To protect location privacy, we design and implement a platform-independent solution for users to s...

  17. Leaking privacy and shadow profiles in online social networks

    OpenAIRE

    Garcia, David

    2017-01-01

    Social interaction and data integration in the digital society can affect the control that individuals have on their privacy. Social networking sites can access data from other services, including user contact lists where nonusers are listed too. Although most research on online privacy has focused on inference of personal information of users, this data integration poses the question of whether it is possible to predict personal information of nonusers. This article tests the shadow profile ...

  18. How the Use of Second Life Affects E-Learners' Perceptions of Social Interaction in Online Courses

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Samah Mansour

    2009-04-01

    Full Text Available Educators, researchers, and online courses designers are increasingly investigating the use of 3-D shared virtual worlds for online education. This paper discusses the importance of social interaction in e-learning. We present the idea of using Second Life, a 3-D shared virtual world, in online courses. The researchers investigated the impact of using Second Life as a learning environment and a communication medium in online courses. We measured the extent to which the completion of a learning task and the communication in Second Life can enhance the elearners' perceptions of social interaction via a self-report questionnaire. A prototype application called The Village of Belknap was developed by the Delphi Center of Teaching and Learning at the University of Louisville. The study compared the perception of social interaction of e-learners who participated in Second Life sessions with the perception of social interaction of e-learners who did not participate in the Second Life sessions. The results indicated that the use of Second Life has a positive impact on experiencing a high perception of social interaction in online courses.

  19. Users structure and behavior on an online social network during a political protest

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morales, A. J.; Losada, J. C.; Benito, R. M.

    2012-11-01

    Over the past years, new technologies and specially online social networks have penetrated into the world’s population at an accelerated pace. In this paper we analyze collected data from the web application Twitter, in order to describe the structure and dynamics of the emergent social networks, based on complexity science. We focused on a Venezuelan protest that took place exclusively by Twitter during December, 2010. We found a community structure with highly connected hubs and three different kinds of user behavior that determine the information flow dynamics. We noticed that even though online social networks appear to be a pure social environment, traditional media still holds loads of influence inside the network.

  20. De-Virtualizing Social Events: Understanding the Gap between Online and Offline Participation for Event Invitations

    OpenAIRE

    Huang, Ai-Ju; Wang, Hao-Chuan; Yuan, Chien Wen

    2013-01-01

    One growing use of computer-based communication media is for gathering people to initiate or sustain social events. Although the use of computer-mediated communication and social network sites such as Facebook for event promotion is becoming popular, online participation in an event does not always translate to offline attendance. In this paper, we report on an interview study of 31 participants that examines how people handle online event invitations and what influences their online and offl...

  1. Global reach of direct-to-consumer advertising using social media for illicit online drug sales.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mackey, Tim Ken; Liang, Bryan A

    2013-05-29

    Illicit or rogue Internet pharmacies are a recognized global public health threat that have been identified as utilizing various forms of online marketing and promotion, including social media. To assess the accessibility of creating illicit no prescription direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) online pharmacy social media marketing (eDTCA2.0) and evaluate its potential global reach. We identified the top 4 social media platforms allowing eDTCA2.0. After determining applicable platforms (ie, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and MySpace), we created a fictitious advertisement advertising no prescription drugs online and posted it to the identified social media platforms. Each advertisement linked to a unique website URL that consisted of a site error page. Employing Web search analytics, we tracked the number of users visiting these sites and their location. We used commercially available Internet tools and services, including website hosting, domain registration, and website analytic services. Illicit online pharmacy social media content for Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace remained accessible despite highly questionable and potentially illegal content. Fictitious advertisements promoting illicit sale of drugs generated aggregate unique user traffic of 2795 visits over a 10-month period. Further, traffic to our websites originated from a number of countries, including high-income and middle-income countries, and emerging markets. Our results indicate there are few barriers to entry for social media-based illicit online drug marketing. Further, illicit eDTCA2.0 has globalized outside US borders to other countries through unregulated Internet marketing.

  2. Student Voices Speak Quality Assurance: Continual Improvement in Online Social Work Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Secret, Mary; Bentley, Kia J.; Kadolph, Jessie C.

    2016-01-01

    As social work education expands instruction through the rise of distance education, educators seek new ways to improve quality in online courses. Quality assurance standards and student feedback offer valuable insights to ensure satisfying and effective online learning experiences. An examination of these two assessment approaches concurrently in…

  3. Limitation of degree information for analyzing the interaction evolution in online social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shang, Ke-Ke; Yan, Wei-Sheng; Xu, Xiao-Ke

    2014-04-01

    Previously many studies on online social networks simply analyze the static topology in which the friend relationship once established, then the links and nodes will not disappear, but this kind of static topology may not accurately reflect temporal interactions on online social services. In this study, we define four types of users and interactions in the interaction (dynamic) network. We found that active, disappeared, new and super nodes (users) have obviously different strength distribution properties and this result also can be revealed by the degree characteristics of the unweighted interaction and friendship (static) networks. However, the active, disappeared, new and super links (interactions) only can be reflected by the strength distribution in the weighted interaction network. This result indicates the limitation of the static topology data on analyzing social network evolutions. In addition, our study uncovers the approximately stable statistics for the dynamic social network in which there are a large variation for users and interaction intensity. Our findings not only verify the correctness of our definitions, but also helped to study the customer churn and evaluate the commercial value of valuable customers in online social networks.

  4. Competition as an Effective Tool in Developing Social Marketing Programs: Driving Behavior Change through Online Activities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Corina ŞERBAN

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Nowadays, social marketing practices represent an important part of people’s lives. Consumers’ understanding of the need for change has become the top priority for social organizations worldwide. As a result, the number of social marketing programs has increased, making people reflect more on their behaviors and on the need to take action. Competition in social marketing can bring many benefits. The more programs initiated, the more people will start to involve in society’s problems, hereby contributing to beneficial causes. However, social organizations are in the search for competitive advantages to differentiate them on the market. This paper aims to present the role of online communication in driving competitive advantage for social organizations. Using the structural equation model, the paper describes the relations between four characteristics of the online communication: credibility, attractiveness, persuasion and promotion and then presents the correlations between these variables and website competitiveness. The resulting model shows that owning a competitive advantage in social marketing can bring many advantages to both the non-profit organization and the consumer. Therefore, the online environment can be considered a good solution for better serving consumers’ social needs. Its contribution is significant especially in programs for children and adolescents, since teenagers spend more time on the Internet than adults and are more open to using the online channels of communication. In conclusion, this article opens new opportunities for social marketers to address society’s problems and supports the integration of the online communication tools in the competition strategy.

  5. Consumer Response to Social Media and Online Video Advertising

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    G. Liberali (Gui); G.L. Urban (Glen); C. Tucker (Catherine); Y. Bart (Yakov)

    2016-01-01

    textabstractThis paper investigates the effectiveness of social media advertising and online video advertising using three large-scale controlled field experiments in the U.S., China and the Netherlands. The study was implemented using a technological approach that allows researchers to combine

  6. Measurements and analysis of online social networks

    OpenAIRE

    González Sánchez, Roberto

    2014-01-01

    Mención Internacional Online Social Networks (OSNs) have become the most used Internet applications attracting hundreds of millions active users every day. The large amount of valuable information in OSNs (not even before available) has attracted the research community to design sophisticated techniques to collect, process, interpret and apply these data into a large range of disciplines including Sociology, Marketing, Computer Science, etc. This thesis presents a series of ...

  7. Beyond experimentation. Online strategies in social services

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sandra Beelen

    2010-12-01

    Jongeren in Vlaanderen zijn een groot deel van hun tijd online en een toenemend aantal hulpverleningsinstellingen verkent de mogelijkheid om via sociale media deze doelgroep te bereiken. Toegankelijke jeugdhulpverlening is cruciaal in de strijd tegen sociale exclusie. Dit artikel, dat zich baseert op ervaringen in de hulpverleningspraktijk, gaat nader in op de vraag of en hoe een toegankelijke hulpverlening gerealiseerd kan worden met behulp van sociale media. De auteurs beschrijven aan de hand van ontwikkelingen bij de JAC’s (Jongeren Advies Centra hoe ICT wordt gebruikt als een strategie om drempels weg te nemen en de toegankelijkheid van de centra voor jongeren te vergroten. Zij sluiten af met een oproep tot verder onderzoek dat de effecten van het gebruik van ICT in het sociaal werk evalueert, opdat sociaal werkpraktijken daarmee geïnspireerd en vernieuwd kunnen worden.

  8. Blogs and tweets, texting and friending social media and online professionalism in health care

    CERN Document Server

    DeJong, Sandra M

    2013-01-01

    Blogs and Tweets, Texting and Friending: Social Media and Online Professionalism in Health Care summarizes the most common mistakes - and their legal and ethical ramifications -made in social media by busy health care professionals. It gives best practices for using social media while maintaining online professionalism. The book goes on to identify categories of caution, from confidentiality of patient information and maintaining the professional's privacy to general netiquette in tweeting, texting, blogging, and friending. And it guides you in setting up a faculty page (or choosing

  9. Designing an Online Social Support Platform Through Co-Creation with Seniors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rochat, Jessica; Nap, Henk Herman; Ricci, Arnaud; Cornelisse, Lotte; Lukkien, Dirk; Lovis, Christian; Ehrler, Frédéric

    2018-01-01

    The high number of seniors that feels excluded of society highlights the necessity to promote active ageing. This intention can be supported through online platforms that encourage participation in social activities. The goal of the present study was to identify design principles of online support platforms for seniors through focus groups and to ideate the platform through co-creation sessions. The results show that a social platform for seniors must, among other, help to foster contact between users, and must provide services and meaningful activities. A first mock-up of the platform's design has been created based on the co-creation sessions and will be iteratively evaluated and enhanced in future studies in four countries across Europe. Our findings are in line with those of other studies demonstrating that seniors attach importance to trustworthiness and need to maintain social ties.

  10. On the relationship of online and offline social cognition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leonhard eSchilbach

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Social neuroscience studies the neurobiological underpinnings of people making sense of people. Due to both conceptual and methodological constraints, the majority of studies in this field of research, however, has employed experimental paradigms that focus on social cognition from an observer's rather than from an interactor's point of view (offline vs. online social cognition. This calls for an increased effort to systematically investigate the neural bases of participation in real-time social interaction. In light of the ontogenetic primacy of social interaction over observation and the idea that neural networks established during social interaction may be ‘re-used’ during observation, other important objectives of the field will be to relate new findings into the neural bases of social interaction to previous work investigating the neural bases of social observation as well as to find ways to directly compare the two.

  11. Investigating Social Commerce as an Alternate Model for Online Commerce in Developing Countries: a case of Pakistani Economy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amina Talat

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available The study is an empirical quantitative research. In light of intense literature review it proposes a new model for effectiveness of social commerce in Pakistan. It has three objectives. It firstly investigates the relationship between perceived risk, social networking focus, and perceived value effect trust. It secondly investigates the relationship between affective influence, word of mouth, affective influence, advertising influence, purchasing experience and viral reach on social commerce. Lastly it investigates how consumer value (adoption and purchase intention is affected by social commerce focus and trust. The software used is SPSS 15.0. Multiple regression equation has been employed to verify the hypotheses. Results show and validate the literature that positive or favorable views of users trigger positive attitude. However, there are two variables and dimensions that do not affect the attitude of users on social networks from the perspective of shopping i.e. social commerce; these are viral reach and previous purchasing experience on different websites. The results show that Pakistani users will welcome social commerce even if they have no previous experience for purchasing goods and services online.

  12. Online and Social Media Data As an Imperfect Continuous Panel Survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diaz, Fernando; Gamon, Michael; Hofman, Jake M; Kıcıman, Emre; Rothschild, David

    2016-01-01

    There is a large body of research on utilizing online activity as a survey of political opinion to predict real world election outcomes. There is considerably less work, however, on using this data to understand topic-specific interest and opinion amongst the general population and specific demographic subgroups, as currently measured by relatively expensive surveys. Here we investigate this possibility by studying a full census of all Twitter activity during the 2012 election cycle along with the comprehensive search history of a large panel of Internet users during the same period, highlighting the challenges in interpreting online and social media activity as the results of a survey. As noted in existing work, the online population is a non-representative sample of the offline world (e.g., the U.S. voting population). We extend this work to show how demographic skew and user participation is non-stationary and difficult to predict over time. In addition, the nature of user contributions varies substantially around important events. Furthermore, we note subtle problems in mapping what people are sharing or consuming online to specific sentiment or opinion measures around a particular topic. We provide a framework, built around considering this data as an imperfect continuous panel survey, for addressing these issues so that meaningful insight about public interest and opinion can be reliably extracted from online and social media data.

  13. Academics and Social Networking Sites: Benefits, Problems and Tensions in Professional Engagement with Online Networking

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jordan, Katy; Weller, Martin

    2018-01-01

    The web has had a profound effect on the ways people interact, with online social networks arguably playing an important role in changing or augmenting how we connect with others. However, uptake of online social networking by the academic community varies, and needs to be understood. This paper presents an independent, novel analysis of a…

  14. Relationship between Students' Emotional Intelligence, Social Bond, and Interactions in Online Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Heeyoung; Johnson, Scott D.

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of the study was to investigate the relationship between students' emotional intelligence, social bond, and their interactions in an online learning environment. The research setting in this study was a 100% online master's degree program within a university located in the Midwest of the United States. Eighty-four students participated…

  15. Global Reach of Direct-to-Consumer Advertising Using Social Media for Illicit Online Drug Sales

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liang, Bryan A

    2013-01-01

    Background Illicit or rogue Internet pharmacies are a recognized global public health threat that have been identified as utilizing various forms of online marketing and promotion, including social media. Objective To assess the accessibility of creating illicit no prescription direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) online pharmacy social media marketing (eDTCA2.0) and evaluate its potential global reach. Methods We identified the top 4 social media platforms allowing eDTCA2.0. After determining applicable platforms (ie, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and MySpace), we created a fictitious advertisement advertising no prescription drugs online and posted it to the identified social media platforms. Each advertisement linked to a unique website URL that consisted of a site error page. Employing Web search analytics, we tracked the number of users visiting these sites and their location. We used commercially available Internet tools and services, including website hosting, domain registration, and website analytic services. Results Illicit online pharmacy social media content for Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace remained accessible despite highly questionable and potentially illegal content. Fictitious advertisements promoting illicit sale of drugs generated aggregate unique user traffic of 2795 visits over a 10-month period. Further, traffic to our websites originated from a number of countries, including high-income and middle-income countries, and emerging markets. Conclusions Our results indicate there are few barriers to entry for social media–based illicit online drug marketing. Further, illicit eDTCA2.0 has globalized outside US borders to other countries through unregulated Internet marketing. PMID:23718965

  16. Social Media Interactions and Online Games - Building up New Human Relationships in Danube Region

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Predrag K Nikolić

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we are trying to explore possibilities of using online environment, multiplayer gaming culture and social media networks to engage people in the Danube Region around social, multi-cultural and environment initiatives. The Danube Region online community could become a new cultural phenomena, technology mediated, built on human interactions, common interests and cultural heritage which open space for future humancentered social and infrastructural design initiatives. We believe that such social media environment could also be a research playground where people form Danube Region may express their needs and desires as well as to leave the trace of their behavior, significant for further Danube Region development.

  17. How can online communication enhance older adults’ social connectivity? : Implementation and adoption issues

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hage, Maria Louisa

    2015-01-01

    It is often assumed online communication can enhance older adults’ social connectivity. However, previous studies have indicated two obstacles. First, older adults tend to be late adopters, or laggards. This raises the question how online communication tools can be implemented among a population

  18. A Replication Study on the Multi-Dimensionality of Online Social Presence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mykota, David B.

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of the present study is to conduct an external replication into the multi-dimensionality of social presence as measured by the Computer-Mediated Communication Questionnaire (Tu, 2005). Online social presence is one of the more important constructs for determining the level of interaction and effectiveness of learning in an online…

  19. Video Gaming in a Hyperconnected World: A Cross-sectional Study of Heavy Gaming, Problematic Gaming Symptoms, and Online Socializing in Adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colder Carras, Michelle; Van Rooij, Antonius J; Van de Mheen, Dike; Musci, Rashelle; Xue, Qian-Li; Mendelson, Tamar

    2017-03-01

    Examining online social interactions along with patterns of video gaming behaviors and game addiction symptoms has the potential to enrich our understanding of disorders related to excessive video game play. We performed latent class analysis in a sample of 9733 adolescents based on heavy use of games, social networking and instant messaging, and game addiction symptoms. We used latent class regression to determine associations between classes, psychosocial well-being and friendship quality. We identified two types of heavy gaming classes that differed in probability of online social interaction. Classes with more online social interaction reported fewer problematic gaming symptoms than those with less online social interaction. Most adolescents estimated to be in heavy gaming classes had more depressive symptoms than normative classes. Male non-social gamers had more social anxiety. Female social gamers had less social anxiety and loneliness, but lower self-esteem. Friendship quality attenuated depression in some male social gamers, but strengthened associations with loneliness in some male non-social gamers. In adolescents, symptoms of video game addiction depend not only on video game play but also on concurrent levels of online communication, and those who are very socially active online report fewer symptoms of game addiction.

  20. Can We Use Facebook Groups to Establish Social Presence in Online Courses?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Izmirli, Serkan

    2017-01-01

    In this research, the potential of Facebook groups used in an online course in order to establish social presence was examined. Qualitative research methodology was used in this study. The participants of the study were 12 senior undergraduate students taking the School Experience course online over a period of 12 weeks. A Facebook group where…

  1. Technology use and reasons to participate in online social networking websites for people living with HIV in the US

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horvath, Keith J.; Danilenko, Gene P.; Williams, Mark L.; Simoni, Jane; Amico, K. Rivet; Oakes, J. Michael; Rosser, B.R. Simon

    2012-01-01

    It is unknown if online social networking technologies are already highly integrated among some people living with HIV (PLWH) or have yet to be adopted. To fill this gap in understanding, 312 PLWH (84% male, 69% white) residing in the US completed on online survey in 2009 of their patterns of social networking and mobile phone use. Twenty-two persons also participated in one of two online focus groups. Results showed that 76% of participants with lower adherence to HIV medication used social networking websites/features at least once a week. Their ideal online social networking health websites included one that facilitated socializing with others (45% of participants) and relevant informational content (22%), although privacy was a barrier to use (26%). Texting (81%), and to a lesser extent mobile web-access (51%), was widely used among participants. Results support the potential reach of online social networking and text messaging intervention approaches. PMID:22350832

  2. How Multiple Social Identities Are Related to Creativity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steffens, Niklas K; Gocłowska, Małgorzata A; Cruwys, Tegan; Galinsky, Adam D

    2016-02-01

    The present research examined whether possessing multiple social identities (i.e., groups relevant to one's sense of self) is associated with creativity. In Study 1, the more identities individuals reported having, the more names they generated for a new commercial product (i.e., greater idea fluency). In Study 2, multiple identities were associated with greater fluency and originality (mediated by cognitive flexibility, but not by persistence). Study 3 validated these findings using a highly powered sample. We again found that multiple identities increase fluency and originality, and that flexibility (but not persistence) mediated the effect on originality. Study 3 also ruled out several alternative explanations (self-affirmation, novelty seeking, and generalized persistence). Across all studies, the findings were robust to controlling for personality, and there was no evidence of a curvilinear relationship between multiple identities and creativity. These results suggest that possessing multiple social identities is associated with enhanced creativity via cognitive flexibility. © 2015 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

  3. Promoting Oral Health Using Social Media Platforms: Seeking Arabic Online Oral Health Related Information (OHRI).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Almaiman, Sarah; Bahkali, Salwa; Alabdulatif, Norah; Bahkaly, Ahlam; Al-Surimi, Khaled; Househ, Mowafa

    2016-01-01

    Access to oral health care services around the world is limited by a lack of universal coverage. The internet and social media can be an important source for patients to access supplementary oral health related information (OHRI). Online OHRI presents an opportunity to enhance dental public health education about innumerable oral health issues and promote dental self-care. The aim of this study is to estimate the prevalence of social media users among the Saudi population and identify the preferred social media platform for seeking Arabic OHRI and its impact on seekers' knowledge, attitude, and behavior. A total of 2652 Twitter followers were surveyed, using a web-based self-administered questionnaire to collect data on demographic characteristics and online OHRI seeking behavior More than two thirds, 67.7% (n= 1796), of the participants reported they were seeking Arabic online OHRI, while 41.1% of the participants reported they had no preference for using a specific social media platform. These results emphasize the need and importance of supporting the content of social media with trusted and high quality online OHRI resources to promote a high level of public awareness about oral health and dental health services. Further studies in this regard are highly recommended on a larger scale of nationalities to explore the role of social media platform preference in promoting health promotion and dental public health awareness.

  4. Online social networks that connect users to physical activity partners: a review and descriptive analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakhasi, Atul; Shen, Album Xiaotian; Passarella, Ralph Joseph; Appel, Lawrence J; Anderson, Cheryl Am

    2014-06-16

    The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have identified a lack of encouragement, support, or companionship from family and friends as a major barrier to physical activity. To overcome this barrier, online social networks are now actively leveraging principles of companion social support in novel ways. The aim was to evaluate the functionality, features, and usability of existing online social networks which seek to increase physical activity and fitness among users by connecting them to physical activity partners, not just online, but also face-to-face. In September 2012, we used 3 major databases to identify the website addresses for relevant online social networks. We conducted a Google search using 8 unique keyword combinations: the common keyword "find" coupled with 1 of 4 prefix terms "health," "fitness," "workout," or "physical" coupled with 1 of 2 stem terms "activity partners" or "activity buddies." We also searched 2 prominent technology start-up news sites, TechCrunch and Y Combinator, using 2 unique keyword combinations: the common keyword "find" coupled with 1 of 2 stem terms "activity partners" and "activity buddies." Sites were defined as online social health activity networks if they had the ability to (1) actively find physical activity partners or activities for the user, (2) offer dynamic, real-time tracking or sharing of social activities, and (3) provide virtual profiles to users. We excluded from our analysis sites that were not Web-based, publicly available, in English, or free. Of the 360 initial search results, we identified 13 websites that met our complete criteria of an online social health activity network. Features such as physical activity creation (13/13, 100%) and private messaging (12/13, 92%) appeared almost universally among these websites. However, integration with Web 2.0 technologies such as Facebook and Twitter (9/13, 69%) and the option of direct event joining (8/13, 62%) were not as universally present. Largely

  5. Schools of California Online Resources for Education: History-Social Science One Stop Shopping for California's Social Studies Teachers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hill, Margaret; Benoit, Robert

    1998-01-01

    Reviews the resources available for social studies teachers from the Schools of California Online Resources for Education (SCORE): History Social Science World Wide Web site. Includes curriculum-aligned resources and lessons; standards and assessment information; interactive projects and field trips; teacher chat area; professional development…

  6. Engineering Online and In-person Social Networks for Physical Activity: A Randomized Trial

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rovniak, Liza S.; Kong, Lan; Hovell, Melbourne F.; Ding, Ding; Sallis, James F.; Ray, Chester A.; Kraschnewski, Jennifer L.; Matthews, Stephen A.; Kiser, Elizabeth; Chinchilli, Vernon M.; George, Daniel R.; Sciamanna, Christopher N.

    2016-01-01

    Background Social networks can influence physical activity, but little is known about how best to engineer online and in-person social networks to increase activity. Purpose To conduct a randomized trial based on the Social Networks for Activity Promotion model to assess the incremental contributions of different procedures for building social networks on objectively-measured outcomes. Methods Physically inactive adults (n = 308, age, 50.3 (SD = 8.3) years, 38.3% male, 83.4% overweight/obese) were randomized to 1 of 3 groups. The Promotion group evaluated the effects of weekly emailed tips emphasizing social network interactions for walking (e.g., encouragement, informational support); the Activity group evaluated the incremental effect of adding an evidence-based online fitness walking intervention to the weekly tips; and the Social Networks group evaluated the additional incremental effect of providing access to an online networking site for walking, and prompting walking/activity across diverse settings. The primary outcome was mean change in accelerometer-measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), assessed at 3 and 9 months from baseline. Results Participants increased their MVPA by 21.0 mins/week, 95% CI [5.9, 36.1], p = .005, at 3 months, and this change was sustained at 9 months, with no between-group differences. Conclusions Although the structure of procedures for targeting social networks varied across intervention groups, the functional effect of these procedures on physical activity was similar. Future research should evaluate if more powerful reinforcers improve the effects of social network interventions. Trial Registration Number NCT01142804 PMID:27405724

  7. Influence of Learning Styles on Social Structures in Online Learning Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cela, Karina; Sicilia, Miguel-Ángel; Sánchez-Alonso, Salvador

    2016-01-01

    In e-learning settings, the interactions of students with one another, with the course content and with the instructors generate a considerable amount of information that may be useful for understanding how people learn online. The objective of the present research was to use social network analysis to explore the social structure of an e-learning…

  8. Simulating Social Networks of Online Communities: Simulation as a Method for Sociability Design

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ang, Chee Siang; Zaphiris, Panayiotis

    We propose the use of social simulations to study and support the design of online communities. In this paper, we developed an Agent-Based Model (ABM) to simulate and study the formation of social networks in a Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) guild community. We first analyzed the activities and the social network (who-interacts-with-whom) of an existing guild community to identify its interaction patterns and characteristics. Then, based on the empirical results, we derived and formalized the interaction rules, which were implemented in our simulation. Using the simulation, we reproduced the observed social network of the guild community as a means of validation. The simulation was then used to examine how various parameters of the community (e.g. the level of activity, the number of neighbors of each agent, etc) could potentially influence the characteristic of the social networks.

  9. A Trigger or a Muffler? - Examining the Dynamics of Crosscutting Exposure and Political Expression in Online Social Media

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Soo Young Bae

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available This study explores the potential of online social media to serve as a sphere for political discourse and investigates the extent to which everyday uses of online social networking sites can expose citizens to politically diverse viewpoints.  In addition, this study asks whether such crosscutting exposure in online social networks will act as a trigger or a muffler for political expression – that is, whether exposure political difference will stimulate or discourage political discussions.  With analyses of a sample of online social networking site users in the context of the 2012 presidential election in South Korea, this study explicates the link between crosscutting exposure and citizens’ political expressions in social media.  Results reveal that contrary to the predictions in previous literature, exposure to politically incongruent viewpoints in online social networking sites does not seem to undermine users’ expressive behaviors but instead positively contribute to political expression.  In addition, this study shows the significant role of citizens’ perceptions of candidate support in their own networks, and illustrates that the dynamics of political expression differ significantly depending on the users’ age.

  10. High Agreement was Obtained Across Scores from Multiple Equated Scales for Social Anxiety Disorder using Item Response Theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sunderland, Matthew; Batterham, Philip; Calear, Alison; Carragher, Natacha; Baillie, Andrew; Slade, Tim

    2018-04-10

    There is no standardized approach to the measurement of social anxiety. Researchers and clinicians are faced with numerous self-report scales with varying strengths, weaknesses, and psychometric properties. The lack of standardization makes it difficult to compare scores across populations that utilise different scales. Item response theory offers one solution to this problem via equating different scales using an anchor scale to set a standardized metric. This study is the first to equate several scales for social anxiety disorder. Data from two samples (n=3,175 and n=1,052), recruited from the Australian community using online advertisements, were utilised to equate a network of 11 self-report social anxiety scales via a fixed parameter item calibration method. Comparisons between actual and equated scores for most of the scales indicted a high level of agreement with mean differences <0.10 (equivalent to a mean difference of less than one point on the standardized metric). This study demonstrates that scores from multiple scales that measure social anxiety can be converted to a common scale. Re-scoring observed scores to a common scale provides opportunities to combine research from multiple studies and ultimately better assess social anxiety in treatment and research settings. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  11. Multiple modernities, modern subjectivities and social order

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jung, Dietrich; Sinclair, Kirstine

    2015-01-01

    to modern subjectivity formation. In combining conceptual tools from these strands of social theory, we argue that the emergence of multiple modernities should be understood as a historical result of idiosyncratic social constructions combining global social imaginaries with religious and other cultural......Taking its point of departure in the conceptual debate about modernities in the plural, this article presents a heuristic framework based on an interpretative approach to modernity. The article draws on theories of multiple modernities, successive modernities and poststructuralist approaches...... traditions. In the second part of the article we illustrate this argument with three short excursions into the history of Islamic reform in the 19th and 20th centuries. In this way we interpret the modern history of Muslim societies as based on cultural conflicts between different forms of social order...

  12. Social Annotation Valence: The Impact on Online Informed Consent Beliefs and Behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balestra, Martina; Shaer, Orit; Okerlund, Johanna; Westendorf, Lauren; Ball, Madeleine; Nov, Oded

    2016-07-20

    Social media, mobile and wearable technology, and connected devices have significantly expanded the opportunities for conducting biomedical research online. Electronic consent to collecting such data, however, poses new challenges when contrasted to traditional consent processes. It reduces the participant-researcher dialogue but provides an opportunity for the consent deliberation process to move from solitary to social settings. In this research, we propose that social annotations, embedded in the consent form, can help prospective participants deliberate on the research and the organization behind it in ways that traditional consent forms cannot. Furthermore, we examine the role of the comments' valence on prospective participants' beliefs and behavior. This study focuses specifically on the influence of annotations' valence on participants' perceptions and behaviors surrounding online consent for biomedical research. We hope to shed light on how social annotation can be incorporated into digitally mediated consent forms responsibly and effectively. In this controlled between-subjects experiment, participants were presented with an online consent form for a personal genomics study that contained social annotations embedded in its margins. Individuals were randomly assigned to view the consent form with positive-, negative-, or mixed-valence comments beside the text of the consent form. We compared participants' perceptions of being informed and having understood the material, their trust in the organization seeking the consent, and their actual consent across conditions. We find that comment valence has a marginally significant main effect on participants' perception of being informed (F2=2.40, P=.07); specifically, participants in the positive condition (mean 4.17, SD 0.94) felt less informed than those in the mixed condition (mean 4.50, SD 0.69, P=.09). Comment valence also had a marginal main effect on the extent to which participants reported trusting the

  13. Human-Centered Development of an Online Social Network for Metabolic Syndrome Management.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Núñez-Nava, Jefersson; Orozco-Sánchez, Paola A; López, Diego M; Ceron, Jesus D; Alvarez-Rosero, Rosa E

    2016-01-01

    According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), a quarter of the world's population has Metabolic Syndrome (MS). To develop (and assess the users' degree of satisfaction of) an online social network for patients who suffer from Metabolic Syndrome, based on the recommendations and requirements of the Human-Centered Design. Following the recommendations of the ISO 9241-210 for Human-Centered Design (HCD), an online social network was designed to promote physical activity and healthy nutrition. In order to guarantee the active participation of the users during the development of the social network, a survey, an in-depth interview, a focal group, and usability tests were carried out with people suffering from MS. The study demonstrated how the different activities, recommendations, and requirements of the ISO 9241-210 are integrated into a traditional software development process. Early usability tests demonstrated that the user's acceptance and the effectiveness and efficiency of the social network are satisfactory.

  14. Social networking and online recruiting for HIV research: ethical challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curtis, Brenda L

    2014-02-01

    Social networking sites and online advertising organizations provide HIV/AIDS researchers access to target populations, often reaching difficult-to-reach populations. However, this benefit to researchers raises many issues for the protections of prospective research participants. Traditional recruitment procedures have involved straightforward transactions between the researchers and prospective participants; online recruitment is a more complex and indirect form of communication involving many parties engaged in the collecting, aggregating, and storing of research participant data. Thus, increased access to online data has challenged the adequacy of current and established procedures for participants' protections, such as informed consent and privacy/confidentiality. Internet-based HIV/AIDS research recruitment and its ethical challenges are described, and research participant safeguards and best practices are outlined.

  15. Social Networking and Online Recruiting for HIV Research: Ethical Challenges

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curtis, Brenda L.

    2015-01-01

    Social networking sites and online advertising organizations provide HIV/AIDS researchers access to target populations, often reaching difficult-to-reach populations. However, this benefit to researchers raises many issues for the protections of prospective research participants. Traditional recruitment procedures have involved straightforward transactions between the researchers and prospective participants; online recruitment is a more complex and indirect form of communication involving many parties engaged in the collecting, aggregating, and storing of research participant data. Thus, increased access to online data has challenged the adequacy of current and established procedures for participants’ protections, such as informed consent and privacy/confidentiality. Internet-based HIV/AIDS research recruitment and its ethical challenges are described, and research participant safeguards and best practices are outlined. PMID:24572084

  16. Imagining Flipped Workshops: Considerations for Designing Online Modules for Social Justice Education Workshops

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tharp, D. Scott

    2017-01-01

    Online learning, defined as the use of Web-based technology to facilitate some or all learning experiences, continues to interest many universities. While technology shapes the landscape of higher education, questions remain regarding the ability and appropriateness of online learning spaces for social justice education (Dominique, 2016). This…

  17. Social control in online communities of consumption: a framework for community management

    OpenAIRE

    Sibai, Olivier; de Valck, K.; Farrell, A.M.; Rudd, J.M.

    2015-01-01

    Online communities of consumption (OCCs) represent highly diverse groups of consumers whose interests are not always aligned. Social control in OCCs aims to effectively manage problems arising from this heterogeneity. Extant literature on social control in OCCs is fragmented as some studies focus on the principles of social control, while others focus on the implementation. Moreover, the domain is undertheorized. This article integrates the disparate literature on social control in OCCs provi...

  18. The relationship between online social networking and depression : a systematic review of quantitative studies

    OpenAIRE

    Baker, David; Perez Algorta, Guillermo Daniel

    2016-01-01

    Online social networking sites (SNSs) such as Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace are used by billions of people every day to communicate and interact with others. There has been increasing interest in the potential impact of online social networking on wellbeing, with a broadening body of new research into factors associated with both positive and negative mental health outcomes such as depression. This systematic review of empirical studies (n=30) adds to existing research in this field by exami...

  19. Friend or Foe? Fake Profile Identification in Online Social Networks

    OpenAIRE

    Fire, Michael; Kagan, Dima; Elyashar, Aviad; Elovici, Yuval

    2013-01-01

    The amount of personal information unwillingly exposed by users on online social networks is staggering, as shown in recent research. Moreover, recent reports indicate that these networks are infested with tens of millions of fake users profiles, which may jeopardize the users' security and privacy. To identify fake users in such networks and to improve users' security and privacy, we developed the Social Privacy Protector software for Facebook. This software contains three protection layers,...

  20. Perceived social support as a factor of rural women’s digital inclusion in online social networks

    OpenAIRE

    Rebollo Catalán, María Ángeles; Vico Bosch, Alba

    2014-01-01

    Este artículo presenta los resultados de un estudio sobre la inclusión digital de las mujeres rurales en las redes sociales. Su objetivo fundamental es conocer el apoyo social percibido por las mujeres dentro de las redes sociales online y su relación con la inclusión digital, considerando también si existen diferencias en el grado de apoyo en función de la edad y la situación familiar y laboral. Para ello, aplicamos sendas escalas de medida del apoyo social percibido y la inclusión ...

  1. Social Media Use and Well-Being in People with Physical Disabilities: Influence of SNS and Online Community Uses on Social Support, Depression, and Psychological Disposition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, H Erin; Cho, Jaehee

    2018-04-13

    This study examined the relationships across social media use, social support, depression, and general psychological disposition among people with movement or mobility disabilities in Korea. First, with survey data (n = 91) collected from users of social network sites (SNSs) and online communities, hypotheses regarding positive associations between intensity of an individual's engagement in social media and four different types of social support-emotional, instrumental, informational, and appraisal support-were tested as well as hypotheses regarding mediation effects of the social support variables in the association between social media use and depression. Second, through focus group interviews (n = 15), influences of social media use on social support were more thoroughly explored as well as their influences on general psychological disposition. Results from hierarchical regression analyses confirmed that both intensity of SNS use and online community use significantly predicted instrumental, informational, and appraisal support, while they did not predict emotional support. Further regression and Sobel tests showed that higher levels of intensity of SNS use and of online community use both led to lower levels of depression through the mediation of instrumental and informational support. Analysis of the interviews further revealed the positive roles of social media use in building social support and healthy psychological dispositions. However, analysis also revealed some negative consequences of and limitations to social media use for those with physical disabilities. These findings expand our knowledge of the context and implications of engaging in online social activities for people with physical disabilities.

  2. Using Social Media to Improve Student-Instructor Communication in an Online Learning Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Rong; Shen, Yide; Li, Lei

    2018-01-01

    The lack of effective faculty-student interaction has been identified as a main contributor to the high dropout rate in online education. For this paper, the authors conducted an empirical study using a social networking tool, specifically Facebook, to improve student-instructor communication and student performance in an online learning…

  3. The impact of an online Facebook support group for people with multiple sclerosis on non-active users

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jacqui Steadman

    2014-11-01

    Objectives: This study therefore aimed to explore the experiences of non-active users of an online Facebook support group for PwMS. Emphasis was placed on the facilitators and the barriers that were associated with membership to this group. Method: An exploratory qualitative research design was implemented, whereby thematic analysis was utilised to examine the ten semi-structured interviews that were conducted. Results: Several facilitators were acquired through the online support group; namely emotional support (constant source of support, exposure to negative aspects of the disease,informational support (group as a source of knowledge, quality of information and social companionship (place of belonging. Some barriers were also identified; namely emotional support (emotions lost online, response to messages, exposure to negative aspects of the disease, informational support (information posted on the group, misuse of group and social companionship (non-active status. Conclusion: These findings demonstrate that the non-active members of the online support group for PwMS have valid reasons for their non-active membership status. More important,the findings suggest that the online Facebook support group provided the group members with an important support network in the form of emotional support, informational support and social companionship, despite their non-active membership status or the barriers that have been identified.

  4. Assessing the online social environment for surveillance of obesity prevalence.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rumi Chunara

    Full Text Available Understanding the social environmental around obesity has been limited by available data. One promising approach used to bridge similar gaps elsewhere is to use passively generated digital data.This article explores the relationship between online social environment via web-based social networks and population obesity prevalence.We performed a cross-sectional study using linear regression and cross validation to measure the relationship and predictive performance of user interests on the online social network Facebook to obesity prevalence in metros across the United States of America (USA and neighborhoods within New York City (NYC. The outcomes, proportion of obese and/or overweight population in USA metros and NYC neighborhoods, were obtained via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance and NYC EpiQuery systems. Predictors were geographically specific proportion of users with activity-related and sedentary-related interests on Facebook.Higher proportion of the population with activity-related interests on Facebook was associated with a significant 12.0% (95% Confidence Interval (CI 11.9 to 12.1 lower predicted prevalence of obese and/or overweight people across USA metros and 7.2% (95% CI: 6.8 to 7.7 across NYC neighborhoods. Conversely, greater proportion of the population with interest in television was associated with higher prevalence of obese and/or overweight people of 3.9% (95% CI: 3.7 to 4.0 (USA and 27.5% (95% CI: 27.1 to 27.9, significant (NYC. For activity-interests and national obesity outcomes, the average root mean square prediction error from 10-fold cross validation was comparable to the average root mean square error of a model developed using the entire data set.Activity-related interests across the USA and sedentary-related interests across NYC were significantly associated with obesity prevalence. Further research is needed to understand how the online social environment relates to

  5. Engineering Online and In-Person Social Networks for Physical Activity: A Randomized Trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rovniak, Liza S; Kong, Lan; Hovell, Melbourne F; Ding, Ding; Sallis, James F; Ray, Chester A; Kraschnewski, Jennifer L; Matthews, Stephen A; Kiser, Elizabeth; Chinchilli, Vernon M; George, Daniel R; Sciamanna, Christopher N

    2016-12-01

    Social networks can influence physical activity, but little is known about how best to engineer online and in-person social networks to increase activity. The purpose of this study was to conduct a randomized trial based on the Social Networks for Activity Promotion model to assess the incremental contributions of different procedures for building social networks on objectively measured outcomes. Physically inactive adults (n = 308, age, 50.3 (SD = 8.3) years, 38.3 % male, 83.4 % overweight/obese) were randomized to one of three groups. The Promotion group evaluated the effects of weekly emailed tips emphasizing social network interactions for walking (e.g., encouragement, informational support); the Activity group evaluated the incremental effect of adding an evidence-based online fitness walking intervention to the weekly tips; and the Social Networks group evaluated the additional incremental effect of providing access to an online networking site for walking as well as prompting walking/activity across diverse settings. The primary outcome was mean change in accelerometer-measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), assessed at 3 and 9 months from baseline. Participants increased their MVPA by 21.0 min/week, 95 % CI [5.9, 36.1], p = .005, at 3 months, and this change was sustained at 9 months, with no between-group differences. Although the structure of procedures for targeting social networks varied across intervention groups, the functional effect of these procedures on physical activity was similar. Future research should evaluate if more powerful reinforcers improve the effects of social network interventions. The trial was registered with the ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01142804).

  6. Social networking site (SNS) use by adolescent mothers: Can social support and social capital be enhanced by online social networks? - A structured review of the literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nolan, Samantha; Hendricks, Joyce; Ferguson, Sally; Towell, Amanda

    2017-05-01

    to critically appraise the available literature and summarise the evidence relating to adolescent mothers' use of social networking sites in terms of any social support and social capital they may provide and to identify areas for future exploration. social networking sites have been demonstrated to provide social support to marginalised individuals and provide psycho-social benefits to members of such groups. Adolescent mothers are at risk of; social marginalisation; anxiety disorders and depressive symptoms; and poorer health and educational outcomes for their children. Social support has been shown to benefit adolescent mothers thus online mechanisms require consideration. a review of original research articles METHOD: key terms and Boolean operators identified research reports across a 20-year timeframe pertaining to the area of enquiry in: CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Medline, Scopus, ERIC, ProQuest, PsychINFO, Web of Science, Health Collection (Informit) and Google Scholar databases. Eight original research articles met the inclusion criteria for this review. studies demonstrate that adolescent mothers actively search for health information using the Internet and social networking sites, and that social support and social capital can be attributed to their use of specifically created online groups from within targeted health interventions. Use of a message board forum for pregnant and parenting adolescents also demonstrates elements of social support. There are no studies to date pertaining to adolescent mothers' use of globally accessible social networking sites in terms of social support provision and related outcomes. further investigation is warranted to explore the potential benefits of adolescent mothers' use of globally accessible social networking sites in terms of any social support provision and social capital they may provide. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Social Presence for Different Tasks and Perceived Learning in Online Hospitality Culture Exchange

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Mei-jung; Chen, Hsueh Chu

    2013-01-01

    This study utilized online discussion and project construction tasks to determine the extent of social presence and collaborative learning for hospitality culture exchange. The online culture exchange lasted for 6 weeks from September to November 2011. Forty-four English majors from a hospitality college in Taiwan and an institute of education in…

  8. EFFECT OF SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING ON BRAND EQUITY OF ONLINE COMPANIES

    OpenAIRE

    Satheeka Kavisekera; Nalin Abeysekera

    2016-01-01

    Social Media is a prominent marketing tool profoundly used by E-Businesses to draw the attention of the online target audience that could be converted to direct traffic. However, the non-exclusivity of social media has created a unique issue for virtual enterprises that are entirely depending on digital media. The main emphasis of this study is to appreciate the significance of Social Media Marketing in promoting the Brand Equity of E-Commerce enterprises. The empirical study is based on Ka...

  9. Online and social media presence of Australian and New Zealand urologists.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davies, Nicholas; Murphy, Declan G; van Rij, Simon; Woo, Henry H; Lawrentschuk, Nathan

    2015-12-01

    To assess the online and social media presence of all practising Australian and New Zealand urologists. In July 2014, all active members of the Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand (USANZ) were identified. A comprehensive search of Google and each social media platform (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube) was undertaken for each urologist to identify any private websites or social media profiles. Of the 435 urologists currently practising in Australia and New Zealand, 305 (70.1%) have an easily identifiable social media account. LinkedIn (51.3%) is the most commonly used form of social media followed by Twitter (33.3%) and private Facebook (30.1%) accounts. About half (49.8%) have a private business website. The average number of social media accounts per urologist is 1.42 and 16 urologists (3.7%) have an account with all searched social media platforms. Over half of those with a Twitter account (55.9%) follow a dedicated urology journal club and have a median (range) number of 'followers' of 12 (1-2 862). Social media users had a median (range) of 2 (0-8 717) 'tweets' on Twitter, 2 (1-45) LinkedIn posts and 1 (1-14) YouTube video. This study represents a unique dataset not relying on selection or recall bias but using data freely available to patients and colleagues to gauge social media presence of urologists. Most Australian and New Zealand urologists have a readily identifiable online and social media presence, with widespread and consistent use across both countries. © 2015 The Authors BJU International © 2015 BJU International Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  10. Pharmacy faculty members' perspectives on the student/faculty relationship in online social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Metzger, Anne H; Finley, Kristen N; Ulbrich, Timothy R; McAuley, James W

    2010-12-15

    To describe pharmacy faculty members' use of the online social network Facebook and compare the perspectives of faculty members with and without Facebook profiles regarding student/faculty relationships. An electronic survey instrument was sent to full-time faculty members (n = 183) at 4 colleges of pharmacy in Ohio seeking their opinions on student/faculty relationships on Facebook. If respondents answered "yes" to having a Facebook profile, they were asked 14 questions on aspects of being "friends" with students. If respondents answered "no," they were asked 4 questions. Of the 95 respondents (52%) to the survey instrument, 44 faculty members (46%) had a Facebook profile, while 51 faculty members (54%) did not. Those who had a profile had been faculty members for an average of 8.6 years, versus 11.4 years for those who did not have a Facebook profile. Seventy-nine percent of faculty members who used Facebook were not "friends" with their students. The majority of respondents reported that they would decline/ignore a "friend" request from a student, or decline until after the student graduated. Although a limited number of faculty members had used Facebook for online discussions, teaching purposes, or student organizations, the majority of universities did not have policies on the use of social networking sites. Online social network sites are used widely by students and faculty members, which may raise questions regarding professionalism and appropriate faculty/student relationships. Further research should address the student/preceptor relationship, other online social networking sites, and whether students are interested in using these sites within the classroom and/or professional organizations.

  11. Age/sex/location: uncovering the social cues in the development of online relationships.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whitty, M; Gavin, J

    2001-10-01

    Past research on online relationships has predominantly been concerned with how the quality of online relationships compares with offline relationships. This research has been more concerned with the medium itself than with the meanings that users construct around their interpersonal interactions within this medium. The current paper seeks to redress this imbalance by exploring the ways that available social cues are used to shape the meanings of online relationships. Sixty Internet users, ranging in age from 19-51 years, were interviewed about their online relationships. It was found that ideals that are important in traditional relationships, such as trust, honesty, and commitment are just as important in online relationships; however, the cues that signify these ideals vary.

  12. Online social networking sites-a novel setting for health promotion?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loss, Julika; Lindacher, Verena; Curbach, Janina

    2014-03-01

    Among adolescents, online social networking sites (SNS) such as Facebook are popular platforms for social interaction and may therefore be considered as 'novel settings' that could be exploited for health promotion. In this article, we examine the relevant definitions in health promotion and literature in order to analyze whether key characteristics of 'settings for health promotion' and the socio-ecological settings approach can be transferred to SNS. As many of our daily activities have shifted to cyberspace, we argue that online social interaction may gain more importance than geographic closeness for defining a 'setting'. While exposition to positive references to risk behavior by peers may render the SNS environment detrimental to health, SNS may allow people to create their own content and therefore foster participation. However, those health promotion projects delivered on SNS up until today solely relied on health education directed at end users. It remains unclear how health promotion on SNS can meet other requirements of the settings approach (e.g. building partnerships, changing the environment). As yet, one should be cautious in terming SNS a 'setting'. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Friending, IMing, and hanging out face-to-face: overlap in adolescents' online and offline social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reich, Stephanie M; Subrahmanyam, Kaveri; Espinoza, Guadalupe

    2012-03-01

    Many new and important developmental issues are encountered during adolescence, which is also a time when Internet use becomes increasingly popular. Studies have shown that adolescents are using these online spaces to address developmental issues, especially needs for intimacy and connection to others. Online communication with its potential for interacting with unknown others, may put teens at increased risk. Two hundred and fifty-one high school students completed an in-person survey, and 126 of these completed an additional online questionnaire about how and why they use the Internet, their activities on social networking sites (e.g., Facebook, MySpace) and their reasons for participation, and how they perceive these online spaces to impact their friendships. To examine the extent of overlap between online and offline friends, participants were asked to list the names of their top interaction partners offline and online (Facebook and instant messaging). Results reveal that adolescents mainly use social networking sites to connect with others, in particular with people known from offline contexts. While adolescents report little monitoring by their parents, there was no evidence that teens are putting themselves at risk by interacting with unknown others. Instead, adolescents seem to use the Internet, especially social networking sites, to connect with known others. While the study found moderate overlap between teens' closest online and offline friends, the patterns suggest that adolescents use online contexts to strengthen offline relationships. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

  14. An Exploratory Investigation of Social Stigma and Concealment in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cook, Jonathan E; Germano, Adriana L; Stadler, Gertraud

    2016-01-01

    We conducted a preliminary investigation into dimensions of stigma and their relation to disease concealment in a sample of American adults living with multiple sclerosis (MS). Fifty-three adults with MS in the United States completed an online survey assessing anticipated, internalized, and isolation stigma, as well as concealment. Responses to all the scales were relatively low, on average, but above scale minimums (P stigma and concealment were highest. Anticipated stigma strongly predicted concealment. Many adults living with MS may be concerned that they will be the target of social stigma because of their illness. These concerns are associated with disease concealment. More research is needed to investigate how MS stigma and concealment may be independent contributors to health in patients with MS.

  15. Multiple Social Identities Enhance Health Post-Retirement Because They Are a Basis for Giving Social Support

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Niklas K Steffens

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available We examine the extent to which multiple social identities are associated with enhanced health and well-being in retirement because they provide a basis for giving and receiving social support. Results from a cross-sectional study show that retirees (N = 171 who had multiple social identities following (but not prior to retirement report being (a more satisfied with retirement, (b in better health, and (c more satisfied with life in general. Furthermore, mediation analyses revealed an indirect path from multiple social identities to greater satisfaction with retirement and better health through greater provision, but not receipt, of social support to others. These findings are the first to point to the value of multiple group membership post-retirement as a basis for increased opportunities to give meaningful support to others. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications for the management of multiple identities in the process of significant life transitions such as retirement.

  16. [Being online without a purpose -- study of background variables of problematic internet use].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prievara, Dóra Katalin; Pikó, Bettina

    2016-01-01

    These days, use of the Internet is unavoidable for the younger generations. The online world is the primary source of infomation and quick communication, and these activities can take many hours per day. The main goal of the present study was to examine the correlations among problematic internet use, social factors, stress and life satisfaction. Data collection was going online during the first semester of the year 2014 (N= 386 girls). The anonymous questionnaire contained items on perceived social support and the amount of online activites beyond sociodemographics. After descriptive statistics, factor, correlation and multiple linear regression analyses were applied to detect interrelationships. According to our data, 78% of the participants spent daily at least 2 hours, 40% more than 4 hours online. Using factor analysis, four factors of online activities were identified: Social networking-surfing, News-information, Risky and Lonely game factors. Only the News-information factor was not related to the problematic internet use. Based on multiple regression analyses, we may conclude that shyness, stress, loneliness and two factors, the Social networking-surfing and the Risky factors acted as background variables for problematic internet use. As a summary we may conclude that the internet has an important role in the everyday life of the participants. In case of the direct aim of the online activities the problematic use did not appear. These activities were mostly searching for information and news. In introduction of prevention, education about the correct use of the internet may be reasonable as early as possible.

  17. The POL Model: Using a Social Constructivist Framework to Develop Blended and Online Learning

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dalsgaard, Christian; Godsk, Mikkel

    2007-01-01

    The paper presents a model for developing blended and online learning based on a given curriculum and typical learning objectives for university courses. The model consists of a three-step-process in which the instructor formulates product-oriented tasks, develops and structures the learning...... materials and tools, outlines a schedule, and supports the students' learning activity in developing a product. The model is based on our experiences with transforming traditional lecture-based lessons into problem-based blended and online learning using a social constructivist approach and a standard...... virtual learning environment (VLE). Our initial experiments indicate that our model is useful to develop blended and online modules and, furthermore, it seems fruitful to use a social constructivist framework and orienting learning activities towards the development of products....

  18. Motivations to play specifically predict excessive involvement in massively multiplayer online role-playing games: evidence from an online survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zanetta Dauriat, Francesca; Zermatten, Ariane; Billieux, Joël; Thorens, Gabriel; Bondolfi, Guido; Zullino, Daniele; Khazaal, Yasser

    2011-01-01

    Several studies have linked massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) with possible problematic usage or internet addiction. The main goal of the present study was to assess links between motivations to play in MMORPGs and addictive involvement in such types of games. A total of 696 gamers responded to an online survey. Five distinct motivations to play were identified in gamers: achievement, socializing, immersion, relaxing and escaping. Multiple regression analysis revealed that addictive MMORPG use patterns are predicted by achievement, escapism and socializing motives. Gender was also a significant predictor of problematic involvement in MMORPGs. Moreover, addictive MMORPG use positively correlated with the weekly time devoted to playing MMORPGs. Copyright © 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  19. FACEBOOK AS AN ACTOR - A CASE OF STUDENTS NEGOTIATING THEIR SOCIAL PRESENCE IN AN ONLINE COURSE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Monica Johannesen

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available This article reports on a study of a higher education online course based on asynchronous communication. The selection of technology for online discussions aimed at creating a sense of togetherness among the teachers and the students. This choice proved to be a source of insights into the differences of agency of a virtual learning environment (VLE compared to social media when it comes to social presence. We discuss the agency of Fronter, our formal VLE, and Facebook, when it comes to their effect on the relevant social networks at hand. Important issues identified are related to the quality and nature of the professional and social relations between teachers and students as well as their technology practices in the online course. The discussions are based on the concepts of immediacy and intimacy, as these issues kept appearing in the interviews with the students. The article suggests that the differences of materiality between VLEs and social media, exemplified here by Fronter and Facebook, matter in several respects: how social relations are established and sustained, the agency of the technology in respect to social presence and control and how the technologies affect the quality of dialogic pedagogy.

  20. POSTER: Privacy-Preserving Profile Similarity Computation in Online Social Networks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Jeckmans, Arjan; Tang, Qiang; Hartel, Pieter H.

    2011-01-01

    Currently, none of the existing online social networks (OSNs) enables its users to make new friends without revealing their private information. This leaves the users in a vulnerable position when searching for new friends. We propose a solution which enables a user to compute her profile similarity

  1. BRAND COMMUNICATION ON SOCIAL NETWORKS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Otilia-Elena PLATON

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available The communication represents a basic element for the marketing activity that helps companies to achieve their objectives. Building long-term relationships between brands and consumers is one of the most important objectives pursued by marketers. This involves brand communication and creating multiple connections with consumers, even in the online environment. From this point of view, social networks proved to be an effective way of linking brands and consumers online. This paper aims to present some aspects involved by the usage of social networks in brand communication by analyzing several examples of online marketing campaigns implemented on Facebook on the occasion of Valentine's Day by six different brands.

  2. How Social Media Users Negotiate Self-Censorship in the Online Public Sphere

    OpenAIRE

    Scott, Jes

    2015-01-01

    Research about the public sphere and social media often focus on what is being posted, rather than examining what is being omitted or why. The aim of this research is to explore this gap by providing ethnographic, qualitative research on how social media users negotiate self-censorship while engaging in the online public sphere.

  3. Social Work Online Education: A Model for Getting Started and Staying Connected

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moore, Sharon E.; Golder, Seana; Sterrett, Emma; Faul, Anna C.; Yankeelov, Pam; Weathers Mathis, Lynetta; Barbee, Anita P.

    2015-01-01

    Social work education has been greatly affected by ongoing technological advances in society at large and in the academy. Options for instructional delivery have been broadened tremendously. The University of Louisville is the first in Kentucky to put its master's of social work degree fully online, with a first cohort admitted in 2012. The…

  4. Characteristics of Social Network Gamers: in between Social Networking and Online Role-Playing Games

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olga eGeisel

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Current research on internet addiction (IA reported moderate to high prevalence rates of IA and comorbid psychiatric symptoms in users of social networking sites (SNS and online role-playing games. The aim of this study was to characterise adult users of an internet multiplayer strategy game within a SNS. Therefore, we conducted an exploratory study using an online survey to assess sociodemographic variables, psychopathology and the rate of IA in a sample of adult social network gamers by Young´s Internet Addiction Test (IAT, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS, the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II, the Symptom Checklist-90-R (SCL-90-R and the WHO Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF. All participants were listed gamers of combat zone in the SNS Facebook. In the IAT analysis, 16.2 % of the participants (n = 60 were categorized as subjects with IA and 19.5 % (n = 72 fulfilled the criteria for alexithymia. Comparing study participants with and without IA, the IA group had significantly more subjects with alexithymia, reported more depressive symptoms, and showed poorer quality of life. These findings suggest that social network gaming might also be associated with maladaptive patterns of internet use. Furthermore, a relationship between IA, alexithymia and depressive symptoms was found that needs to be elucidated by future studies.

  5. Review: Oliver Märker & Matthias Trénel (Eds.) (2003). Online-Mediation. Neue Medien in der Konfliktvermittlung – mit Beispielen aus Politik und Wirtschaft [Online-Mediation. New Media in Conflict Resolution—with Examples from Politics and Industry

    OpenAIRE

    Nicola Döring

    2004-01-01

    Online-Mediation deals with conflict resolution methods that are carried out partially or completely online. The book analyses online mediation as a socio-technical system through the means of the computer-based technological platform deeply interwoven with conflict-related social communication. The first part of the book discusses the multiple options and restrictions of online communication in moderation and mediation processes. For example, one advantage of online mediation is that geograp...

  6. Theoretical approaches of online social network interventions and implications for behavioral change: a systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arguel, Amaël; Perez-Concha, Oscar; Li, Simon Y W; Lau, Annie Y S

    2018-02-01

    The aim of this review was to identify general theoretical frameworks used in online social network interventions for behavioral change. To address this research question, a PRISMA-compliant systematic review was conducted. A systematic review (PROSPERO registration number CRD42014007555) was conducted using 3 electronic databases (PsycINFO, Pubmed, and Embase). Four reviewers screened 1788 abstracts. 15 studies were selected according to the eligibility criteria. Randomized controlled trials and controlled studies were assessed using Cochrane Collaboration's "risk-of-bias" tool, and narrative synthesis. Five eligible articles used the social cognitive theory as a framework to develop interventions targeting behavioral change. Other theoretical frameworks were related to the dynamics of social networks, intention models, and community engagement theories. Only one of the studies selected in the review mentioned a well-known theory from the field of health psychology. Conclusions were that guidelines are lacking in the design of online social network interventions for behavioral change. Existing theories and models from health psychology that are traditionally used for in situ behavioral change should be considered when designing online social network interventions in a health care setting. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  7. Original research: online social networking patterns among adolescents, young adults, and sexual offenders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dowdell, Elizabeth B; Burgess, Ann W; Flores, J Robert

    2011-07-01

    The use of online social networks like Facebook continues to increase rapidly among all age groups and segments of our society, presenting new opportunities for the exchange of sexual information as well as for potentially unsafe encounters between predators and the vulnerable or young. This study surveyed middle school, high school, and college-age students, as well as sexual offenders, regarding their use of social networking sites in order to provide information to better focus education and prevention efforts from nurses and other health care providers. Written questionnaires asking about various characteristics of participants' use of social networking sites were distributed to each group and filled out by 404 middle school students, 2,077 high school students, 1,284 students drawn from five traditional four-year colleges, and 466 adults who had committed either an Internet sexual offense or a hands-on sexual offense (in some cases both). Notable findings emerging from our analysis of the questionnaire responses included the following: offenders and students both frequent social networking sites, although at the time of the study offenders reported that they preferred Myspace and students that they preferred Facebook; nearly two-thirds of the Internet offenders said they'd initiated the topic of sex in their first chat session; more than half of the Internet offenders disguised their identity when online; most Internet offenders we surveyed said they preferred communicating with teenage girls rather than teenage boys; high school students' experience with "sexting" (sharing nude photos of themselves or others on cell phones or online) differed significantly according to their sex; a small number of students are being threatened and assaulted by people they meet online; avatar sites such as Second Life were used both by students and offenders, with both child molesters and Internet offenders expressing interest in Second Life. The use of the Internet presents

  8. Multirelational organization of large-scale social networks in an online world.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Szell, Michael; Lambiotte, Renaud; Thurner, Stefan

    2010-08-03

    The capacity to collect fingerprints of individuals in online media has revolutionized the way researchers explore human society. Social systems can be seen as a nonlinear superposition of a multitude of complex social networks, where nodes represent individuals and links capture a variety of different social relations. Much emphasis has been put on the network topology of social interactions, however, the multidimensional nature of these interactions has largely been ignored, mostly because of lack of data. Here, for the first time, we analyze a complete, multirelational, large social network of a society consisting of the 300,000 odd players of a massive multiplayer online game. We extract networks of six different types of one-to-one interactions between the players. Three of them carry a positive connotation (friendship, communication, trade), three a negative (enmity, armed aggression, punishment). We first analyze these types of networks as separate entities and find that negative interactions differ from positive interactions by their lower reciprocity, weaker clustering, and fatter-tail degree distribution. We then explore how the interdependence of different network types determines the organization of the social system. In particular, we study correlations and overlap between different types of links and demonstrate the tendency of individuals to play different roles in different networks. As a demonstration of the power of the approach, we present the first empirical large-scale verification of the long-standing structural balance theory, by focusing on the specific multiplex network of friendship and enmity relations.

  9. On-Line Resources for Teaching an Introductory Social Justice Course

    OpenAIRE

    Jacqueline Keil

    2007-01-01

    It is often difficult to interest students in a course in social justice using just textbooks. It is now possible to use free, on-line resources that positively affect student interest, comprehension, and participation in a course. Such a course is described. Links to suggested materials are provided.

  10. Tacit Knowledge in Online Learning: Community, Identity, and Social Capital

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oztok, Murat

    2013-01-01

    This article discusses the possibilities that tacit knowledge could provide for social constructivist pedagogies; in particular, pedagogies for online learning. Arguing that the tacit dimension of knowledge is critical for meaning making in situated learning practices and for a community of practice to function, the article considers whether…

  11. Environmental Learning in Online Social Networks: Adopting Environmentally Responsible Behaviors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robelia, Beth A.; Greenhow, Christine; Burton, Lisa

    2011-01-01

    Online social networks are increasingly important information and communication tools for young people and for the environmental movement. Networks may provide the motivation for young adults to increase environmental behaviors by increasing their knowledge of environmental issues and of the specific actions they can take to reduce greenhouse gas…

  12. Online Social Communication Patterns among Young Adult Women with Histories of Childhood Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mikami, Amori Yee; Szwedo, David E.; Ahmad, Shaikh I.; Samuels, Andrea Stier; Hinshaw, Stephen P.

    2015-01-01

    Little is known about adult women with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), however available evidence suggests that they experience social impairment. Online social networking websites such as Facebook have become endemic outlets through which emerging adults communicate with peers. No study has examined the peer interactions of emerging adults with childhood histories of ADHD in this developmentally relevant online domain. Participants in the current study were an ethnically diverse sample of 228 women, 140 of whom met diagnostic criteria for ADHD in childhood and 88 who composed a matched comparison sample. These women were assessed at three time points spanning 10 years (mean age = 9.6 at Wave 1, 14.1 at Wave 2, 19.6 at Wave 3). After statistical control of demographic covariates and comorbidites, childhood ADHD diagnosis predicted, by emerging adulthood, a greater stated preference for online social communication and a greater tendency to have used online methods to interact with strangers. A childhood diagnosis of ADHD also predicted observations of fewer Facebook friends and less closeness and support from Facebook friends in emerging adulthood. These associations were mediated by a composite of face-to-face peer relationship impairment during childhood and adolescence. Intriguingly, women with persistent diagnoses of ADHD from childhood to emerging adulthood differed from women with consistent comparison status in their online social communication; women with intermittent diagnoses of ADHD had scores intermediate between the other two groups. Results are discussed within the context of understanding the social relationships of women with childhood histories of ADHD. PMID:25894439

  13. Online social communication patterns among emerging adult women with histories of childhood attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mikami, Amori Yee; Szwedo, David E; Ahmad, Shaikh I; Samuels, Andrea Stier; Hinshaw, Stephen P

    2015-08-01

    Little is known about adult women with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); however, available evidence suggests that they experience social impairment. Online social networking websites such as Facebook have become endemic outlets through which emerging adults communicate with peers. No study has examined the peer interactions of emerging adults with childhood histories of ADHD in this developmentally relevant online domain. Participants in the current study were an ethnically diverse sample of 228 women, 140 of whom met diagnostic criteria for ADHD in childhood and 88 who composed a matched comparison sample. These women were assessed at 3 time points spanning 10 years (mean age = 9.6 at Wave 1, 14.1 at Wave 2, 19.6 at Wave 3). After statistical control of demographic covariates and comorbidities, childhood ADHD diagnosis predicted, by emerging adulthood, a greater stated preference for online social communication and a greater tendency to have used online methods to interact with strangers. A childhood diagnosis of ADHD also predicted observations of fewer Facebook friends and less closeness and support from Facebook friends in emerging adulthood. These associations were mediated by a composite of face-to-face peer relationship impairment during childhood and adolescence. Intriguingly, women with persistent diagnoses of ADHD from childhood to emerging adulthood differed from women with consistent comparison status in their online social communication; women with intermittent diagnoses of ADHD had scores intermediate between the other 2 groups. Results are discussed within the context of understanding the social relationships of women with childhood histories of ADHD. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  14. The relationship between social anxiety and online communication among adolescents in the city of Isfahan, Iran

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Narges Esfandiari

    2013-01-01

    Conclusions: It is suggested that students from middle school get assessed in terms of the level of social anxiety. Then, the quality and quantity of their online communication should be moderated through group training and consulting and referral to medical centers, if needed. The results of this study may lead to optimal use of online communications and reduce the personal, social and psychological problems of adolescents.

  15. MMORPG escapism predicts decreased well-being: examination of gaming time, game realism beliefs, and online social support for offline problems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaczmarek, Lukasz D; Drążkowski, Dariusz

    2014-05-01

    Massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) escapists are individuals who indulge in the MMORPG environment to avoid real world problems. Though a relationship between escapism and deteriorated well-being has been established, little is known about particular pathways that mediate this relationship. In the current study, we examined this topic by testing an integrative model of MMORPG escapism, which includes game realism beliefs, gaming time, offline social support, and online social support for offline problems. MMORPG players (N=1,056) completed measures of escapist motivation, game realism beliefs, social support, well-being, and reported gaming time. The tested structural equation model had a good fit to the data. We found that individuals with escapist motivation endorsed stronger game realism beliefs and spent more time playing MMORPGs, which, in turn, increased online support but decreased offline social support. Well-being was favorably affected by both online and offline social support, although offline social support had a stronger effect. The higher availability of online social support for offline problems did not compensate for the lower availability of offline support among MMORPG escapists. Understanding the psychological factors related to depletion of social resources in MMORPG players can help optimize MMORPGs as leisure activities.

  16. Interethnic Contact Online : Contextualising the Implications of Social Media Use by Second-Generation Migrant Youth

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dekker, Rianne; Belabas, Warda; Scholten, Peter

    2015-01-01

    Some studies suggest that social media encourage interethnic contact by removing social and spatial boundaries between ethnic communities while offering new spaces for communication and redefinition of ethnic identities. Others contend that social media add an online dimension to intra-ethnic

  17. On-line social decision making and antisocial behavior: some essential but neglected issues.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fontaine, Reid Griffith

    2008-01-01

    The last quarter century has witnessed considerable progress in the scientific study of social information processing (SIP) and aggressive behavior in children. SIP research has shown that social decision making in youth is particularly predictive of antisocial behavior, especially as children enter and progress through adolescence. In furtherance of this research, more sophisticated, elaborate models of on-line social decision making have been developed, by which various domains of evaluative judgment are hypothesized to account for both responsive decision making and behavior, as well as self-initiated, instrumental functioning. However, discussions of these models have neglected a number of key issues. In particular, the roles of nonconscious cognitive factors, learning and development, impulsivity and behavioral disinhibition, emotion, and other internal and external factors (e.g., pharmacological influences and audience effects) have been largely absent from scholarly writings. In response, this article introduces discussion of these factors and reviews their possible roles in on-line social decision making and antisocial behavior in youth.

  18. Understanding the impact of online social networks on disruptive innovation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Cizel, A; Boonstra, A.; Langley, D.J.; Tan, C.W.

    2013-01-01

    In this paper we explore the state of current knowledge about online social networks (OSNs), and their role in precipitating changes in existing market structures. We do so by reviewing more than 30 recent papers from top-ranked journals in the relevant fields of study. We begin by providing a

  19. On-Line Resources for Teaching an Introductory Social Justice Course

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jacqueline Keil

    2007-05-01

    Full Text Available It is often difficult to interest students in a course in social justice using just textbooks. It is now possible to use free, on-line resources that positively affect student interest, comprehension, and participation in a course. Such a course is described. Links to suggested materials are provided.

  20. Online Certificate Program Moves Participants to Advanced Stages of Concern for Social Marketing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chaudhary, Anil Kumar; Warner, Laura A.; Stofer, Kathryn A.

    2017-01-01

    Social marketing is an underused strategy that agricultural educators can employ to bring about behavior change. We designed an online certificate program for Extension professionals and other educators based on an identified need for social marketing professional development. The Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM) served as the conceptual…

  1. Online and Social Media Suicide Prevention Interventions for Young People: A Focus on Implementation and Moderation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rice, Simon; Robinson, Jo; Bendall, Sarah; Hetrick, Sarah; Cox, Georgina; Bailey, Eleanor; Gleeson, John; Alvarez-Jimenez, Mario

    2016-01-01

    Suicide remains a major global public health issue for young people. The reach and accessibility of online and social media-based interventions herald a unique opportunity for suicide prevention. To date, the large body of research into suicide prevention has been undertaken atheoretically. This paper provides a rationale and theoretical framework (based on the interpersonal theory of suicide), and draws on our experiences of developing and testing online and social media-based interventions. The implementation of three distinct online and social media-based intervention studies, undertaken with young people at risk of suicide, are discussed. We highlight the ways that these interventions can serve to bolster social connectedness in young people, and outline key aspects of intervention implementation and moderation. Insights regarding the implementation of these studies include careful protocol development mindful of risk and ethical issues, establishment of suitably qualified teams to oversee development and delivery of the intervention, and utilisation of key aspects of human support (i.e., moderation) to encourage longer-term intervention engagement. Online and social media-based interventions provide an opportunity to enhance feelings of connectedness in young people, a key component of the interpersonal theory of suicide. Our experience has shown that such interventions can be feasibly and safely conducted with young people at risk of suicide. Further studies, with controlled designs, are required to demonstrate intervention efficacy.

  2. Characteristics of Social Network Gamers: Results of an Online Survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geisel, Olga; Panneck, Patricia; Stickel, Anna; Schneider, Michael; Müller, Christian A

    2015-01-01

    Current research on Internet addiction (IA) reported moderate to high prevalence rates of IA and comorbid psychiatric symptoms in users of social networking sites (SNS) and online role-playing games. The aim of this study was to characterize adult users of an Internet multiplayer strategy game within a SNS. Therefore, we conducted an exploratory study using an online survey to assess sociodemographic variables, psychopathology, and the rate of IA in a sample of adult social network gamers by Young's Internet Addiction Test (IAT), the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-26), the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), the Symptom Checklist-90-R (SCL-90-R), and the WHO Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF). All participants were listed gamers of "Combat Zone" in the SNS "Facebook." In this sample, 16.2% of the participants were categorized as subjects with IA and 19.5% fulfilled the criteria for alexithymia. Comparing study participants with and without IA, the IA group had significantly more subjects with alexithymia, reported more depressive symptoms, and showed poorer quality of life. These findings suggest that social network gaming might also be associated with maladaptive patterns of Internet use. Furthermore, a relationship between IA, alexithymia, and depressive symptoms was found that needs to be elucidated by future studies.

  3. Towards Assisted Moderation in Online Healthcare Social Networks: Improving Trust in YouTube Searches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cañon, Daniel E; Lopez, Diego M; Blobel, Bernd

    2014-01-01

    Moderation of content in online Health Social Networks (HSN) is critical because information is not only published and produced by experts or health professionals, but also by users of that information. The objective of this paper is to propose a semi-automatic moderation Web Service for assessing the quality (trustworthiness) of health-related videos published on the YouTube social network. The service is relevant for moderators or community managers, who get enabled to control the quality of videos published on their online HSN sites. The HealthTrust metric was selected as the metric to be implemented in the service in order to support the assessment of trustworthiness of videos in Online HSN. The service is a RESTful service which can be integrated into open source Virtual Social Network Platforms, therefore improving trust in the process of searching and publishing content extracted from YouTube. A preliminary pilot evaluation in a simple use case demonstrated that the relevance of videos retrieved using the moderation service was higher compared to the relevance of the videos retrieved using the YouTube search engine.

  4. Investigating social gaze as an action-perception online performance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ouriel eGrynszpan

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available In interpersonal interactions, linguistic information is complemented by non-linguistic information originating largely from facial expressions. The study of online face-to-face social interaction thus entails investigating the multimodal simultaneous processing of oral and visual percepts. Moreover, gaze in and of itself functions as a powerful communicative channel. In this respect, gaze should not be examined as a purely perceptive process but also as an active social performance. We designed a task involving multimodal deciphering of social information based on virtual characters, embedded in naturalistic backgrounds, who directly address the participant with non-literal speech and meaningful facial expressions. Eighteen adult participants were to interpret an equivocal sentence which could be disambiguated by examining the emotional expressions of the character speaking to them face-to-face. To examine self-control and self-awareness of gaze in this context, visual feedback is provided to the participant by a real-time gaze-contingent viewing window centered on the focal point, while the rest of the display is blurred. Eye-tracking data showed that the viewing window induced changes in gaze behaviour, notably longer visual fixations. Notwithstanding, only half the participants ascribed the window displacements to their eye movements. These results highlight the dissociation between non volitional gaze adaptation and self-ascription of agency. Such dissociation provides support for a two-step account of the sense of agency composed of pre-noetic monitoring mechanisms and reflexive processes. We comment upon these results, which illustrate the relevance of our method for studying online social cognition, especially concerning Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD where poor pragmatic understanding of oral speech are considered linked to visual peculiarities that impede face exploration.

  5. User Participation and Honesty in Online Rating Systems: What a Social Network Can Do

    OpenAIRE

    Davoust, Alan; Esfandiari, Babak

    2016-01-01

    An important problem with online communities in general, and online rating systems in particular, is uncooperative behavior: lack of user participation, dishonest contributions. This may be due to an incentive structure akin to a Prisoners' Dilemma (PD). We show that introducing an explicit social network to PD games fosters cooperative behavior, and use this insight to design a new aggregation technique for online rating systems. Using a dataset of ratings from Yelp, we show that our aggrega...

  6. A Generic Framework for Extraction of Knowledge from Social Web Sources (Social Networking Websites for an Online Recommendation System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Javubar Sathick

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Mining social web data is a challenging task and finding user interest for personalized and non-personalized recommendation systems is another important task. Knowledge sharing among web users has become crucial in determining usage of web data and personalizing content in various social websites as per the user’s wish. This paper aims to design a framework for extracting knowledge from web sources for the end users to take a right decision at a crucial juncture. The web data is collected from various web sources and structured appropriately and stored as an ontology based data repository. The proposed framework implements an online recommender application for the learners online who pursue their graduation in an open and distance learning environment. This framework possesses three phases: data repository, knowledge engine, and online recommendation system. The data repository possesses common data which is attained by the process of acquiring data from various web sources. The knowledge engine collects the semantic data from the ontology based data repository and maps it to the user through the query processor component. Establishment of an online recommendation system is used to make recommendations to the user for a decision making process. This research work is implemented with the help of an experimental case study which deals with an online recommendation system for the career guidance of a learner. The online recommendation application is implemented with the help of R-tool, NLP parser and clustering algorithm.This research study will help users to attain semantic knowledge from heterogeneous web sources and to make decisions.

  7. Analyzing the Social Networks of High- and Low-Performing Students in Online Discussion Forums

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghadirian, Hajar; Salehi, Keyvan; Ayub, Ahmad Fauzi Mohd

    2018-01-01

    An ego network is an individual's social network relationships with core members. In this study, the ego network parameters in online discussion spaces of high- and low-performing students were compared. The extent to which students' ego networks changed over the course were also analyzed. Participation in 7 weeks of online discussions were…

  8. Web Sites for Young Children: Gateway to Online Social Networking?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bauman, Sheri; Tatum, Tanisha

    2009-01-01

    Traffic on Web sites for young children (ages 3-12) has increased exponentially in recent years. Advocates proclaim that they are safe introductions to the Internet and online social networking and teach essential 21st-century skills. Critics note developmental concerns. In this article, we provide basic information about Web sites for young…

  9. Classification of group behaviors in social media via social behavior grammars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levchuk, Georgiy; Getoor, Lise; Smith, Marc

    2014-06-01

    The increasing use of online collaboration and information sharing in the last decade has resulted in explosion of criminal and anti-social activities in online communities. Detection of such behaviors are of interest to commercial enterprises who want to guard themselves from cyber criminals, and the military intelligence analysts who desire to detect and counteract cyberwars waged by adversarial states and organizations. The most challenging behaviors to detect are those involving multiple individuals who share actions and roles in the hostile activities and individually appear benign. To detect these behaviors, the theories of group behaviors and interactions must be developed. In this paper we describe our exploration of the data from collaborative social platform to categorize the behaviors of multiple individuals. We applied graph matching algorithms to explore consistent social interactions. Our research led us to a conclusion that complex collaborative behaviors can be modeled and detected using a concept of group behavior grammars, in a manner analogous to natural language processing. These grammars capture constraints on how people take on roles in virtual environments, form groups, and interact over time, providing the building blocks for scalable and accurate multi-entity interaction analysis and social behavior hypothesis testing.

  10. The relationship between online social networking and sexual risk behaviors among men who have sex with men (MSM.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sean D Young

    Full Text Available Online social networking usage is growing rapidly, especially among at-risk populations, such as men who have sex with men (MSM. However, little research has studied the relationship between online social networking usage and sexual risk behaviors among at-risk populations. One hundred and eighteen Facebook-registered MSM (60.1% Latino, 28% African American; 11.9% other were recruited from online (social networking websites and banner advertisements and offline (local clinics, restaurants and organizations venues frequented by minority MSM. Inclusion criteria required participants to be men who were 18 years of age or older, had had sex with a man in the past 12 months, were living in Los Angeles, and had a Facebook account. Participants completed an online survey on their social media usage and sexual risk behaviors. Results from a multivariable regression suggest that number of sexual partners met from online social networking technologies is associated with increased: 1 likelihood of having exchanged sex for food, drugs, or a place to stay within the past 3 months; 2 number of new partners within the past 3 months; 3 number of male sex partners within the past 3 months; and 4 frequency of engaging in oral sex within the past 3 months, controlling for age, race, education, and total number of sexual partners. Understanding the relationship between social media sex-seeking and sexual risk behaviors among at-risk populations will help inform population-focused HIV prevention and treatment interventions.

  11. Video diaries on social media: Creating online communities for geoscience research and education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tong, V.

    2013-12-01

    Making video clips is an engaging way to learn and teach geoscience. As smartphones become increasingly common, it is relatively straightforward for students to produce ';video diaries' by recording their research and learning experience over the course of a science module. Instead of keeping the video diaries for themselves, students may use the social media such as Facebook for sharing their experience and thoughts. There are some potential benefits to link video diaries and social media in pedagogical contexts. For example, online comments on video clips offer useful feedback and learning materials to the students. Students also have the opportunity to engage in geoscience outreach by producing authentic scientific contents at the same time. A video diary project was conducted to test the pedagogical potential of using video diaries on social media in the context of geoscience outreach, undergraduate research and teaching. This project formed part of a problem-based learning module in field geophysics at an archaeological site in the UK. The project involved i) the students posting video clips about their research and problem-based learning in the field on a daily basis; and ii) the lecturer building an online outreach community with partner institutions. In this contribution, I will discuss the implementation of the project and critically evaluate the pedagogical potential of video diaries on social media. My discussion will focus on the following: 1) Effectiveness of video diaries on social media; 2) Student-centered approach of producing geoscience video diaries as part of their research and problem-based learning; 3) Learning, teaching and assessment based on video clips and related commentaries posted on Facebook; and 4) Challenges in creating and promoting online communities for geoscience outreach through the use of video diaries. I will compare the outcomes from this study with those from other pedagogical projects with video clips on geoscience, and

  12. The Role of Auditory Features Within Slot-Themed Social Casino Games and Online Slot Machine Games.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bramley, Stephanie; Gainsbury, Sally M

    2015-12-01

    Over the last few years playing social casino games has become a popular entertainment activity. Social casino games are offered via social media platforms and mobile apps and resemble gambling activities. However, social casino games are not classified as gambling as they can be played for free, outcomes may not be determined by chance, and players receive no monetary payouts. Social casino games appear to be somewhat similar to online gambling activities in terms of their visual and auditory features, but to date little research has investigated the cross over between these games. This study examines the auditory features of slot-themed social casino games and online slot machine games using a case study design. An example of each game type was played on three separate occasions during which, the auditory features (i.e., music, speech, sound effects, and the absence of sound) within the games were logged. The online slot-themed game was played in demo mode. This is the first study to provide a qualitative account of the role of auditory features within a slot-themed social casino game and an online slot machine game. Our results found many similarities between how sound is utilised within the two games. Therefore the sounds within these games may serve functions including: setting the scene for gaming, creating an image, demarcating space, interacting with visual features, prompting players to act, communicating achievements to players, providing reinforcement, heightening player emotions and the gaming experience. As a result this may reduce the ability of players to make a clear distinction between these two activities, which may facilitate migration between games.

  13. Social media and online self-presentation: Effects on how we see ourselves and our bodies

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    de Vries, D.A.

    2014-01-01

    Social media are becoming more and more popular. Many adolescents and adults present themselves online through a social network site or dating profile. Such widespread engagement in self-presentation on social media may have implications for how we see ourselves and our bodies. These self-views, in

  14. Designing for Learning: Online Social Networks as a Classroom Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Casey, Gail; Evans, Terry

    2011-01-01

    This paper deploys notions of emergence, connections, and designs for learning to conceptualize high school students' interactions when using online social media as a learning environment. It makes links to chaos and complexity theories and to fractal patterns as it reports on a part of the first author's action research study, conducted while she…

  15. Families affected by childhood cancer: an analysis of the provision of social support within online support groups.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coulson, N S; Greenwood, N

    2012-11-01

    With increasing access to the Internet, there are new opportunities available to families to seek information, advice and support about childhood cancer online. A total of 487 messages were retrieved from three childhood cancer online support groups and were analysed using deductive thematic analysis for the presence of support-intended communication using Cutrona and Suhr's social support typology. In addition, the messages were examined for negative experiences or disadvantages. The results revealed the presence of five types of social support: emotional, informational, esteem support and tangible assistance. In addition, some potential limitations of online support were identified, including a lack of responses and difficulties in maintaining relationships outside the online group context. This study suggests that online support groups may offer the potential to support family members of children with cancer. In particular, it may be a useful resource for those seeking emotional and information support. However, there may be limitations associated with the use of online support groups. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  16. Staking out the unclear ethical terrain of online social experiments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cornelius Puschmann

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available In this article, we discuss the ethical issues raised by large-scale online social experiments using the controversy surrounding the so-called Facebook emotional contagion study as our prime example (Kramer, Guillory, & Hancock, 2014. We describe how different parties approach the issues raised by the study and which aspects they highlight, discerning how data science advocates and data science critics use different sets of analogies to strategically support their claims. Through a qualitative and non-representative discourse analysis we find that proponents weigh the arguments for and against online social experiments with each other, while critics question the legitimacy of the implicit assignment of different roles to scientists and subjects in such studies. We conclude that rather than the effects of the research itself, the asymmetrical nature of the relationship between these actors and the present status of data science as a (to the wider public black box is at the heart of the controversy that followed the Facebook study, and that this perceived asymmetry is likely to lead to future conflicts.

  17. CONSUMER OPINIONS TOWARDS ONLINE MARKETING COMMUNICATION AND ADVERTISING ON SOCIAL NETWORKS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    GHEORGHE ORZAN

    2012-05-01

    Full Text Available On the Internet, a medium that has already proven its effectiveness in marketing activities, changes take place with astonishing speed. The recent explosion of social networking applications and their number of users has captured the marketers’ attention. Companies have started to rethink their relationships with consumers and adapt to the new online world. In this virtual world of social networks the public is the key element. Consumers perceive the social network as a personal space where they control the content. They decide on their own what they want to see and share with others. Thus, in order to manage marketing communications effectively, marketers must know the consumers’ opinions towards their presence in social networks.

  18. Online and social networking interventions for the treatment of depression in young people: a systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rice, Simon M; Goodall, Joanne; Hetrick, Sarah E; Parker, Alexandra G; Gilbertson, Tamsyn; Amminger, G Paul; Davey, Christopher G; McGorry, Patrick D; Gleeson, John; Alvarez-Jimenez, Mario

    2014-09-16

    Major depression accounts for the greatest burden of all diseases globally. The peak onset of depression occurs between adolescence and young adulthood, and for many individuals, depression displays a relapse-remitting and increasingly severe course. Given this, the development of cost-effective, acceptable, and population-focused interventions for depression is critical. A number of online interventions (both prevention and acute phase) have been tested in young people with promising results. As these interventions differ in content, clinician input, and modality, it is important to identify key features (or unhelpful functions) associated with treatment outcomes. A systematic review of the research literature was undertaken. The review was designed to focus on two aspects of online intervention: (1) standard approaches evaluating online intervention content in randomized controlled designs (Section 1), and (2) second-generation online interventions and services using social networking (eg, social networking sites and online support groups) in any type of research design (Section 2). Two specific literature searches were undertaken. There was no date range specified. The Section 1 search, which focused on randomized controlled trials, included only young people (12-25 years) and yielded 101 study abstracts, of which 15 met the review inclusion criteria. The Section 2 search, which included all study design types and was not restricted in terms of age, yielded 358 abstracts, of which 22 studies met the inclusion criteria. Information about the studies and their findings were extracted and tabulated for review. The 15 studies identified in Section 1 described 10 trials testing eight different online interventions, all of which were based on a cognitive behavioral framework. All but one of the eight identified studies reported positive results; however, only five of the 15 studies used blinded interviewer administered outcomes with most trials using self-report data

  19. Fra onlinefællesskaber til onlinenetværk: Facebook som augmentering af den sociale virkelighed [From online communities to online networks: Facebook as an augmentation of social reality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jakob Linaa Jensen

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available This article discusses the Facebook phenomenon, using it as an example of how the most dominant social use of the Internet today is network-based rather than community-based. In the early years of the Internet, online communities were popular fora for meeting new people with related interests or opinions. Today, the dominant social use is to create and maintain relationships with your existing social network. It is also demonstrated that the success of Facebook, is dependent, among other factors, upon the fulfilment of five social functions for the users: self-presentation, friendship, object sharing, publication, and having a “sixth sense”. Thus, Facebook contributes to an enhancement of existing social relationships offline, what I call an augmentation of social reality.

  20. Online support for transgender people: an analysis of forums and social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cipolletta, Sabrina; Votadoro, Riccardo; Faccio, Elena

    2017-09-01

    Transgender people face a range of personal and social conflicts that strongly influence their well-being. In many cases, the Internet can become the main resource in terms of finding support. The aim of this study was to understand how transgender people give and receive help online. Between 2013 and 2015, 122 online community conversations were collected on Italian forums and Facebook groups involving transgender people, and online interviews were conducted with 16 users of these communities. A qualitative content analysis was conducted by using the software package, NVivo10. The main categories that emerged were: motivations to join an online community, online help, differences between online and offline interactions, status, conflicts and professional help. Results indicate that participation in online communities often derives from the users' need for help. This help can be given by peers who have had similar experiences, and by professionals who participate in the discussions as moderator. The need to test one's own identity, to compare oneself with others and to share one's personal experiences made online communities at risk of exposing users to invalidation and transphobic messages. Administrators and moderators try to ensure the safety of users, and suggest that they ask for professional help offline and/or online when over-specific medical advice was sought. This study confirms that transgender people might find benefit from an online platform of help and support and might minimise distance problems, increase financial convenience and foster disinhibition. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  1. Digital divide 2.0: the role of social networking sites in seeking health information online from a longitudinal perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feng, Yang; Xie, Wenjing

    2015-01-01

    Adopting a longitudinal angle, this study analyzed data from the Pew Internet's Health Tracking Survey in 2006, 2008, and 2010 to identify potential communication inequalities in social networking site use. Results showed that with the growing role of social networking site use in predicting people's likelihood of seeking health information online, the socioeconomic and demographic factors that contributed to the disparities in social networking site use could also lead to disparities in seeking health information online. Also, results indicated that people are more likely to seek heath-related information online if they or their close family or friends have a chronic disease situation.

  2. Effect of online social networking on employee productivity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. Ferreira

    2009-02-01

    Full Text Available The popularity of social networking sites is relatively recent and the effect of online social networking (OSN on employee productivity has not received much scholarly attention. The reason most likely lies in the social nature of social networking sites and OSN, which is assumed to have a negative effect on employee productivity and not bear organisational benefit. This reseach investigated recent Internet developments as seen in the social Web and specifically investigated the effect of OSN on employee productivity and what some of the consequences would be if employees were allowed unrestricted access to these networks. The findings concerning the nature of employees' OSN activities, employees' attitude or perceptions with regard to OSN in the workplace and how OSN can contribute or affect the productivity of employees are discussed in this article. Some of the basic misconceptions regarding OSN are highlighted and it is concluded that this technology can be used to increase collaboration between individuals who share a common interest or goal. Increased collaboration will stimulate knowledge sharing between individuals, with the possible effect of increased productivity. However, the risks associated with OSN should be noted, such as loss of privacy, bandwidth and storage consumption, exposure to malware and lower employee productivity.

  3. Compressive Online Robust Principal Component Analysis with Multiple Prior Information

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Van Luong, Huynh; Deligiannis, Nikos; Seiler, Jürgen

    -rank components. Unlike conventional batch RPCA, which processes all the data directly, our method considers a small set of measurements taken per data vector (frame). Moreover, our method incorporates multiple prior information signals, namely previous reconstructed frames, to improve these paration...... and thereafter, update the prior information for the next frame. Using experiments on synthetic data, we evaluate the separation performance of the proposed algorithm. In addition, we apply the proposed algorithm to online video foreground and background separation from compressive measurements. The results show...

  4. Human comment dynamics in on-line social systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Ye; Zhou, Changsong; Chen, Maoying; Xiao, Jinghua; Kurths, Jürgen

    2010-12-01

    Human comment is studied using data from ‘tianya’ which is one of the most popular on-line social systems in China. We found that the time interval between two consecutive comments on the same topic, called inter-event time, follows a power-law distribution. This result shows that there is no characteristic decay time on a topic. It allows for very long periods without comments that separate bursts of intensive comments. Furthermore, the frequency of a different ID commenting on a topic also follows a power-law distribution. It indicates that there are some “hubs” in the topic who lead the direction of the public opinion. Based on the personal comments habit, a model is introduced to explain these phenomena. The numerical simulations of the model fit well with the empirical results. Our findings are helpful for discovering regular patterns of human behavior in on-line society and the evolution of the public opinion on the virtual as well as real society.

  5. Evaluating the Impact of Social Media Marketing on Online Course Registration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spackman, Jonathan S.; Larsen, Ross

    2017-01-01

    This article validated one possible method, found in the luxury fashion industry, for evaluating the effectiveness of Facebook marketing activities on increasing enrollments in continuing higher education online courses. A survey assessing the qualities of social media marketing, value equity, relationship equity, brand equity, and purchase…

  6. Talking about your health to strangers: understanding the use of online social networks by patients

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colineau, Nathalie; Paris, Cécile

    2010-04-01

    The internet has become a participatory place where everyone can contribute and interact with others. In health in particular, social media have changed traditional patient-physician relationships. Patients are organising themselves in groups, sharing observations and helping each other, although there is still little evidence of the effectiveness of these online communities on people's health. To understand why and how people use health-related sites, we studied these sites and identified three dimensions characterising most of them: informational/supportive; general/focused; and new relationships/existing ones. We conducted an online survey about the use of health-related social networking (SN) sites and learnt that, consistent with previous research, most patients were seeking information about their medical condition online, while, at the same time, still interacting with health professionals to talk about sensitive information and complex issues. We also found that, while people's natural social network played an important role for emotional support, sometimes, people chose to not involve their family, but instead interact with peers online because of their perceived support and ability to understand someone's experience, and also to maintain a comfortable emotional distance. Finally, our results show that people using general SN sites do not necessarily use health-related sites and vice versa.

  7. The Relationship Between Social Anxiety and Online Communication Among Adolescents in the City of Isfahan, Iran

    OpenAIRE

    Esfandiari, Narges; Nouri, Abolghasem; Golparvar, Mohsen; Yarmohammadian, Mohammad H

    2013-01-01

    Background: The internet is a phenomena that changes human, specially the younger generation′s, life in the 21 st century. Online communication is a common way of interacting among adolescents who experience feelings of social anxiety. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between social anxiety and online communication in adolescents. Methods: Three hundred and thirty students aged 13-16 years were selected from eight middle and high schools in Isfahan by multistage cl...

  8. Nationwide online social networking for cardiovascular care in Korea using Facebook.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Changsun; Kang, Bo Seung; Choi, Hyuk Joong; Lee, Young Joo; Kang, Gu Hyun; Choi, Wook Jin; Kwon, In Ho

    2014-01-01

    To examine the use of online social networking for cardiovascular care using Facebook. All posts and comments in a Facebook group between June 2011 and May 2012 were reviewed, and a survey was conducted. A total of 298 members participated. Of the 277 wall posts, 26.7% were question posts requesting rapid replies, and 50.5% were interesting cases shared with other members. The median response time for the question posts was 16 min (IQR 8-47), which tended to decrease as more members joined the group. Many members (37.4%) accessed the group more than once a day, and more than half (64%) monitored the group posts in real time with automatic notifications of new posts. Most members expressed confidence in the content posted. Facebook enables online social networking between physicians in near-real time and appears to be a useful tool for physicians to share clinical experience and request assistance in decision-making.

  9. Using Online Presence to Improve Online Collaborative Learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zoran Jeremic

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available Social software tools have become an integral part of students’ personal lives and their primary communication medium. Likewise, these tools are increasingly entering the enterprise world (within the recent trend known as Enterprise 2.0 and becoming a part of everyday work routines. Aiming to keep the pace with the job requirements and also to position learning as an integral part of students’ life, the field of education is challenged to embrace social software. Personal Learning Environments (PLEs emerged as a concept that makes use of social software to facilitate collaboration, knowledge sharing, group formation around common interests, active participation and reflective thinking in online learning settings. Furthermore, social software allows for establishing and maintaining one’s presence in the online world. By being aware of a student's online presence, a PLE is better able to personalize the learning settings, e.g., through recommendation of content to use or people to collaborate with. Aiming to explore the potentials of online presence for the provision of recommendations in PLEs, in the scope of the OP4L project, we have develop a software solution that is based on a synergy of Semantic Web technologies, online presence and socially-oriented learning theories. In this paper we present the current results of this research work.

  10. The Effects of Social Anxiety and Online Privacy Concern on Individual Differences in Internet-Based Interaction Anxiety and Communication Preferences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shaughnessy, Krystelle; Rocheleau, Jessica N; Kamalou, Somayyeh; Moscovitch, David A

    2017-04-01

    Social anxiety (SA) and online privacy concerns (OPCs) are conceptually distinct fears, but both may be activated by Internet-based social contexts. Whereas SA is focused on being the object of interpersonal evaluation, OPC is focused on preventing others from gaining unauthorized access to private personal information. No research to date has investigated how SA and OPCs may uniquely or interactively predict individual differences in online interaction anxiety or attitudes and preferences about online communication. Participants (N = 374) completed the Social Phobia Inventory and measures of OPCs, online interaction anxiety, and attitudes related to online communication. The results revealed that SA and OPCs were not correlated with one another; however, they each uniquely predicted significant variance in particular outcomes, with no interactive effects. Findings help to illuminate the ways in which online communication preferences may be differentially shaped by people's levels of SA and OPCs, respectively. Theoretical implications and applications are discussed.

  11. Assessing vaccination sentiments with online social media: implications for infectious disease dynamics and control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salathé, Marcel; Khandelwal, Shashank

    2011-10-01

    There is great interest in the dynamics of health behaviors in social networks and how they affect collective public health outcomes, but measuring population health behaviors over time and space requires substantial resources. Here, we use publicly available data from 101,853 users of online social media collected over a time period of almost six months to measure the spatio-temporal sentiment towards a new vaccine. We validated our approach by identifying a strong correlation between sentiments expressed online and CDC-estimated vaccination rates by region. Analysis of the network of opinionated users showed that information flows more often between users who share the same sentiments - and less often between users who do not share the same sentiments - than expected by chance alone. We also found that most communities are dominated by either positive or negative sentiments towards the novel vaccine. Simulations of infectious disease transmission show that if clusters of negative vaccine sentiments lead to clusters of unprotected individuals, the likelihood of disease outbreaks is greatly increased. Online social media provide unprecedented access to data allowing for inexpensive and efficient tools to identify target areas for intervention efforts and to evaluate their effectiveness.

  12. Predicting Social Networking Site Use and Online Communication Practices among Adolescents: The Role of Access and Device Ownership

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Drew P. Cingel

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Given adolescents' heavy social media use, this study examined a number of predictors of adolescent social media use, as well as predictors of online communication practices. Using data collected from a national sample of 467 adolescents between the ages of 13 and 17, results indicate that demographics, technology access, and technology ownership are related to social media use and communication practices. Specifically, females log onto and use more constructive communication practices on Facebook compared to males. Additionally, adolescents who own smartphones engage in more constructive online communication practices than those who share regular cell phones or those who do not have access to a cell phone. Overall, results imply that ownership of mobile technologies, such as smartphones and iPads, may be more predictive of social networking site use and online communication practices than general ownership of technology.

  13. Predicting Social Networking Site Use and Online Communication Practices among Adolescents: The Role of Access and Device Ownership

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Drew P. Cingel

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Given adolescents' heavy social media use, this study examined a number of predictors of adolescent social media use, as well as predictors of online communication practices. Using data collected from a national sample of 467 adolescents between the ages of 13 and 17, results indicate that demographics, technology access, and technology ownership are related to social media use and communication practices. Specifically, females log onto and use more constructive com-munication practices on Facebook compared to males. Additionally, adolescents who own smartphones engage in more constructive online communication practices than those who share regular cell phones or those who do not have access to a cell phone. Overall, results imply that ownership of mobile technologies, such as smartphones and iPads, may be more predictive of social networking site use and online communication practices than general ownership of technology.

  14. A Qualitative Study to Examine Feasibility and Design of an Online Social Networking Intervention to Increase Physical Activity in Teenage Girls.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Kessel, Gisela; Kavanagh, Madeleine; Maher, Carol

    2016-01-01

    Online social networks present wide-reaching and flexible platforms through which to deliver health interventions to targeted populations. This study used a social marketing approach to explore teenage girls' perceptions of physical activity and the potential use of online social networks to receive a physical activity intervention. Six focus groups were conducted with 19 Australian teenage girls (ages 13 to 18 years) with varying levels of physical activity and socioeconomic status. A semi-structured format was used, with groups discussion transcribed verbatim. Content analysis identified emergent themes, with triangulation and memos used to ensure accuracy. Physical activity was most appealing when it emphasised sport, exercise and fitness, along with opportunities for socialisation with friends and self-improvement. Participants were receptive to delivery of a physical activity intervention via online social networks, with Facebook the most widely reported site. Participants commonly accessed online social networks via mobile devices and particularly smartphones. Undesirable features included promotion of physical activity in terms of walking; use of cartoon imagery; use of humour; and promotion of the intervention via schools, each of which were considered "uncool". Participants noted that their parents were likely to be supportive of them using an online social networking physical activity intervention, particularly if not promoted as a weight loss intervention. This study identified key features likely to increase the feasibility and retention of an online social networking physical activity intervention for teenage girls. Guidelines for the design of interventions for teenage girls are provided for future applications.

  15. THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON TURKISH UNIVERSITY STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TOWARD ONLINE ADVERTISING AND THEIR BEHAVIOURAL RESPONSE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ece Armagan

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available This academic study aims to show the impact of social media on Turkish students’attitudes toward online advertising and their behavioural response. Therefore thisstudy will reveal the influence of consumers’ attitudes toward social mediaadvertising and its impact on their advertising clicking and furthermore buyingintention.To create a statistically significant test pool, 400 university students of the AdnanMenderes university, Faculty of Economic and Administrative SciencesinAydın/Turkey were randomly chosen and the data wasanalysed with SPSSversion 18. A proposed model of belief, attitude and behavioural response, in thecontext of social media advertising, was tested along with the PCA (Principlecomponent analysis to support the model.The following four factors, ‘Belief about social media advertising’, ‘Attitudetoward social media advertising, ‘AdClicking’ and ‘OnlineBuying’ were tested.The aim of this study was to reveal that a positivebelief about social mediaadvertising leads to an affirmative attitude towardsocial media advertising whichsignificantly influences consumers’ advertising clicking behaviour which at the same time can have a favorable impact on their buying behaviour from theinternet.The results of this study should be considered important for Turkish companys’marketing strategies which aim to go online to selltheir products or services totheir target customers through social media channels (e.g. facebook, twitter etc..

  16. The Influence of Social Presence on e-Loyalty in Women Online Shoppers: An Application of the Social Identity Approach to Website Design

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coverdale, Tonjia Simmone

    2010-01-01

    The objective of this study is to propose and test the Social Identity Approach to Website Design research model, which extends the traditionally examined interaction between website design and e-Commerce Success by considering the role of Social Identity in the development of e-Loyalty in women online shoppers. The Social Identity Approach is a…

  17. How Is Frustration Related to Online Gamer Loyalty? A Synthesis of Multiple Theories.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Han-Chung; Liao, Gen-Yih; Chiu, Kay-Ling; Teng, Ching-I

    2017-11-01

    Online games can frustrate their gamers, but little was known about how such frustration impacts gamer loyalty. Because novice and experienced gamers may respond differently to frustration, this study investigates how gamers' frustration influences their loyalty and how this influence may differ between novice and experienced gamers. Because of the complexity of this issue, multiple theories were synthesized to develop the theoretical model. This study collected responses from 558 online gamers. Findings indicate that frustration is positively related to novice gamers' participation in task teams, and subsequently their loyalty. However, frustration is negatively related to the self-efficacy of experienced gamers and to their loyalty.

  18. Lithium-Ion Battery Online Rapid State-of-Power Estimation under Multiple Constraints

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shun Xiang

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper aims to realize a rapid online estimation of the state-of-power (SOP with multiple constraints of a lithium-ion battery. Firstly, based on the improved first-order resistance-capacitance (RC model with one-state hysteresis, a linear state-space battery model is built; then, using the dual extended Kalman filtering (DEKF method, the battery parameters and states, including open-circuit voltage (OCV, are estimated. Secondly, by employing the estimated OCV as the observed value to build the second dual Kalman filters, the battery SOC is estimated. Thirdly, a novel rapid-calculating peak power/SOP method with multiple constraints is proposed in which, according to the bisection judgment method, the battery’s peak state is determined; then, one or two instantaneous peak powers are used to determine the peak power during T seconds. In addition, in the battery operating process, the actual constraint that the battery is under is analyzed specifically. Finally, three simplified versions of the Federal Urban Driving Schedule (SFUDS with inserted pulse experiments are conducted to verify the effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed online SOP estimation method.

  19. Redes sociales online y su utilización para mejorar las habilidades sociales en jovenes con discapacidad

    OpenAIRE

    Suriá, Raquel

    2012-01-01

    En los últimos años, las redes sociales online han introducido profundos cambios en nuestro entorno y en los modos de relacionarnos con los demás. Esto, que es frecuente en multitud de jóvenes, puede potenciarse más en los jóvenes con movilidad reducida derivada de una discapacidad. En este trabajo se examina la opinión que tienen los jóvenes con discapacidad motora sobre las relaciones de amistad que mantienen a través de las redes online así como la percepción sobre éstas para mejorar sus h...

  20. The Influences of Online Brand Communities, Social Media and Member Relationship on Purchase Intention for Luxury Goods: Focus on Taiwan Market

    OpenAIRE

    Chen, PAi-Yuan

    2011-01-01

    In the latest decade, Brand Community has been widely discussed and considered as one of the best ways that the business and customers co-create value to enhance the brand loyalty and purchase intention. In recent years, with the development of Internet, the concept of social media and online brand community is thriving. However, while it is a trend for the business to build an online community through social media, luxury brand companies hesitate to embrace social media and online brand c...

  1. Analisis Terhadap Perilaku Bertransaksi Online Pengguna Facebook Commerce

    OpenAIRE

    Sahfitri, Vivi

    2016-01-01

    The concept of electronic commerce is widely used today's society, or better known as e-commerce, information technology was born as globalization in economics. Social networking is one of the media of electronic commerce, which currently has a lot of users. The purpose of this study was to examine factors that influence e-commerce user on social networks, one of which is the facebook for online transactions. Data analysis performed in this study using multiple linear regression techniques to...

  2. Structural and dynamical patterns on online social networks: the Spanish May 15th movement as a case study.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Javier Borge-Holthoefer

    Full Text Available The number of people using online social networks in their everyday life is continuously growing at a pace never saw before. This new kind of communication has an enormous impact on opinions, cultural trends, information spreading and even in the commercial success of new products. More importantly, social online networks have revealed as a fundamental organizing mechanism in recent country-wide social movements. In this paper, we provide a quantitative analysis of the structural and dynamical patterns emerging from the activity of an online social network around the ongoing May 15th (15M movement in Spain. Our network is made up by users that exchanged tweets in a time period of one month, which includes the birth and stabilization of the 15M movement. We characterize in depth the growth of such dynamical network and find that it is scale-free with communities at the mesoscale. We also find that its dynamics exhibits typical features of critical systems such as robustness and power-law distributions for several quantities. Remarkably, we report that the patterns characterizing the spreading dynamics are asymmetric, giving rise to a clear distinction between information sources and sinks. Our study represents a first step towards the use of data from online social media to comprehend modern societal dynamics.

  3. Structural and dynamical patterns on online social networks: the Spanish May 15th movement as a case study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borge-Holthoefer, Javier; Rivero, Alejandro; García, Iñigo; Cauhé, Elisa; Ferrer, Alfredo; Ferrer, Darío; Francos, David; Iñiguez, David; Pérez, María Pilar; Ruiz, Gonzalo; Sanz, Francisco; Serrano, Fermín; Viñas, Cristina; Tarancón, Alfonso; Moreno, Yamir

    2011-01-01

    The number of people using online social networks in their everyday life is continuously growing at a pace never saw before. This new kind of communication has an enormous impact on opinions, cultural trends, information spreading and even in the commercial success of new products. More importantly, social online networks have revealed as a fundamental organizing mechanism in recent country-wide social movements. In this paper, we provide a quantitative analysis of the structural and dynamical patterns emerging from the activity of an online social network around the ongoing May 15th (15M) movement in Spain. Our network is made up by users that exchanged tweets in a time period of one month, which includes the birth and stabilization of the 15M movement. We characterize in depth the growth of such dynamical network and find that it is scale-free with communities at the mesoscale. We also find that its dynamics exhibits typical features of critical systems such as robustness and power-law distributions for several quantities. Remarkably, we report that the patterns characterizing the spreading dynamics are asymmetric, giving rise to a clear distinction between information sources and sinks. Our study represents a first step towards the use of data from online social media to comprehend modern societal dynamics.

  4. To View or Not To View: The Influence of Social Networks and Subjective Norms on Online Pornography Consumption

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wan-Ying Lin

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available This study investigates the influence of social networks and subjective norms on an individual’s online pornography consumption. The empirical survey results of 324 voluntary participants indicated that the individual’s positive outcome evaluation was associated with a higher level of online pornography exposure. Social pressure also plays a significant, but negative, role in one’s viewing decision.

  5. Research on Web Search Behavior: How Online Query Data Inform Social Psychology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lai, Kaisheng; Lee, Yan Xin; Chen, Hao; Yu, Rongjun

    2017-10-01

    The widespread use of web searches in daily life has allowed researchers to study people's online social and psychological behavior. Using web search data has advantages in terms of data objectivity, ecological validity, temporal resolution, and unique application value. This review integrates existing studies on web search data that have explored topics including sexual behavior, suicidal behavior, mental health, social prejudice, social inequality, public responses to policies, and other psychosocial issues. These studies are categorized as descriptive, correlational, inferential, predictive, and policy evaluation research. The integration of theory-based hypothesis testing in future web search research will result in even stronger contributions to social psychology.

  6. Breach of Personal Security through Applicative use of Online Social Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bojan Nikolovski

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available Throughout this article there is an attempt to indicate the threats of potential to breach of personal security through applicative use of internet as well as applicative use of online social networks. In addition to many other ways of privacy protection applicative users of social network’s sites must take into considerations the risk of distributing private data. Through a series of actions and settings users can customize the security settings with the ultimate goal of reducing the risk of attack on their privacy.

  7. Privacy Practices of Health Social Networking Sites: Implications for Privacy and Data Security in Online Cancer Communities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Charbonneau, Deborah H

    2016-08-01

    While online communities for social support continue to grow, little is known about the state of privacy practices of health social networking sites. This article reports on a structured content analysis of privacy policies and disclosure practices for 25 online ovarian cancer communities. All of the health social networking sites in the study sample provided privacy statements to users, yet privacy practices varied considerably across the sites. The majority of sites informed users that personal information was collected about participants and shared with third parties (96%, n = 24). Furthermore, more than half of the sites (56%, n = 14) stated that cookies technology was used to track user behaviors. Despite these disclosures, only 36% (n = 9) offered opt-out choices for sharing data with third parties. In addition, very few of the sites (28%, n = 7) allowed individuals to delete their personal information. Discussions about specific security measures used to protect personal information were largely missing. Implications for privacy, confidentiality, consumer choice, and data safety in online environments are discussed. Overall, nurses and other health professionals can utilize these findings to encourage individuals seeking online support and participating in social networking sites to build awareness of privacy risks to better protect their personal health information in the digital age.

  8. The Online Social Networking of Cyberspace: A Study on the Development of an Online Social Network Project and the Sport Industry's Perception of Its Relative Advantage

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liptrap, Timothy John

    2011-01-01

    This exploratory case study examined online social networking (OSN), and the perceptions of Sport Marketing students and sport industry professional as to the relative advantage of the OSN tools in the marketplace. The conceptual framework for this study was based on Boyer's (1990) concepts of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), and the…

  9. Group dynamics and social interaction in a South Asian online learning forum for faculty development of medical teachers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anshu; Sharma, M; Burdick, W P; Singh, T

    2010-04-01

    Group dynamics of online medical faculty development programs have not been analyzed and reported in literature. Knowledge of the types of content of posted messages will help to understand group dynamics and promote participation in an asynchronous learning environment. This paper assesses group dynamics and social interactivity in an online learning environment for medical teachers in the South Asian context. Participants of a medical education fellowship program conducted by the Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER) Regional Institute at Christian Medical College, Ludhiana (CMCL) in India interact on a listserv called the Mentoring-Learning Web (ML-Web). Monthly topics for online discussion are chosen by fellows through a standard tool called "multi-voting". Fellows volunteer to moderate sessions and direct the pace of the discussion. We analyzed the content and process of the discussion of one particular month. The emails were categorized as those that reflected cognitive presence (dealing with construction and exploration of knowledge), teacher presence (dealing with instructional material and learning resources), and social presence, or were administrative in nature. Social emails were further classified as: affective, cohesive and interactive. Social emails constituted one-third of the total emails. Another one-quarter of the emails dealt with sharing of resources and teacher presence, while cognitive emails comprised 36.2% of the total. More than half of the social emails were affective, while a little less than one-third were cohesive. Social posts are an inevitable part of online learning. These posts promote bonding between learners and contribute to better interaction and collaboration in online learning. Moderators should be aware of their presence and use them as tools to promote interactivity.

  10. How risky are social networking sites? A comparison of places online where youth sexual solicitation and harassment occurs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ybarra, Michele L; Mitchell, Kimberly J

    2008-02-01

    Recently, public attention has focused on the possibility that social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook are being widely used to sexually solicit underage youth, consequently increasing their vulnerability to sexual victimization. Beyond anecdotal accounts, however, whether victimization is more commonly reported in social networking sites is unknown. The Growing up With Media Survey is a national cross-sectional online survey of 1588 youth. Participants were 10- to 15-year-old youth who have used the Internet at least once in the last 6 months. The main outcome measures were unwanted sexual solicitation on the Internet, defined as unwanted requests to talk about sex, provide personal sexual information, and do something sexual, and Internet harassment, defined as rude or mean comments, or spreading of rumors. Fifteen percent of all of the youth reported an unwanted sexual solicitation online in the last year; 4% reported an incident on a social networking site specifically. Thirty-three percent reported an online harassment in the last year; 9% reported an incident on a social networking site specifically. Among targeted youth, solicitations were more commonly reported via instant messaging (43%) and in chat rooms (32%), and harassment was more commonly reported in instant messaging (55%) than through social networking sites (27% and 28%, respectively). Broad claims of victimization risk, at least defined as unwanted sexual solicitation or harassment, associated with social networking sites do not seem justified. Prevention efforts may have a greater impact if they focus on the psychosocial problems of youth instead of a specific Internet application, including funding for online youth outreach programs, school antibullying programs, and online mental health services.

  11. Social Media as a Tool to Promote Health Awareness: Results from an Online Cervical Cancer Prevention Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lyson, Helena C; Le, Gem M; Zhang, Jingwen; Rivadeneira, Natalie; Lyles, Courtney; Radcliffe, Kate; Pasick, Rena J; Sawaya, George; Sarkar, Urmimala; Centola, Damon

    2018-06-11

    Online social media platforms represent a promising opportunity for public health promotion. Research is limited, however, on the effectiveness of social media at improving knowledge and awareness of health topics and motivating healthy behavior change. Therefore, we investigated whether participation in an online social media platform and receipt of brief, tailored messages is effective at increasing knowledge, awareness, and prevention behaviors related to human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer. We conducted an online study in which 782 recruited participants were consecutively assigned to nine-person groups on a social media platform. Participants were shown a unique random set of 20 tailored messages per day over five days. Participants completed a baseline and post survey to assess their knowledge, awareness, and prevention behaviors related to HPV and cervical cancer. There were no statistically significant changes in knowledge and prevention behaviors from the baseline to the post survey among study participants. There was a modest, statistically significant change in response to whether participants had ever heard of HPV, increasing from 90 to 94% (p = 0.003). Our findings suggest that most study participants had substantial knowledge, awareness, and engagement in positive behaviors related to cervical cancer prevention at the start of the study. Nevertheless, we found that HPV awareness can be increased through brief participation in an online social media platform and receipt of tailored health messages. Further investigation that explores how social media can be used to improve knowledge and adoption of healthy behaviors related to cervical cancer is warranted.

  12. Exploring the relationships between different types of Facebook use, perceived online social support and adolescents' depressed mood

    OpenAIRE

    Frison, Eline; Eggermont, Steven

    2016-01-01

    The current study aims to provide a deeper understanding of the relationships between different types of Facebook use, perceived online social support, and boys’ and girls’ depressed mood. To address this aim, the present study (N = 910) developed a comprehensive model which (1) differs between specific types of Facebook use, (2) examines the mediating role of perceived online social support, and (3) takes adolescent users’ gender into account. Structural equation modeling showed that the h...

  13. Development and evaluation of multi-agent models of online social influence based on Cialdini’s principles

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Maanen, P.P. van; Vecht, B. van der

    2014-01-01

    The aim of this study is to better understand social influence in online social media. Therefore, we propose a method in which we implement, validate and improve individual behavior models. The behavior model is based on three fundamental behavioral principles of social influence from the literature

  14. VIRTUAL SOCIAL LIFE AND RELATED MARKETING EFFORTS IN THE WORLD OF ONLINE GAMES

    OpenAIRE

    PANAYIRCI, Cevdet; YILDIRIM, Fazli

    2010-01-01

    As the Internet and the World Wide Web proliferate, a new form of communication and interaction has been made possible. People live increasingly hybrid lives where the physical and the digital, the real and the virtual interact. Massively multiplayer online role - playing games (MMORPGs), i.e. online role playing games, are a special medial and social phenomenon of our time and experienced a massive growth of players. Studies reveal that mmorpg players compose a heterogenic population and spe...

  15. Leadership Qualities Emerging in an Online Social Support Group Intervention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kodatt, Stephanie A; Shenk, Jared E; Williams, Mark L; Horvath, Keith J

    2014-11-01

    Technology-delivered interventions addressing a broad range of problems for which clients present for therapy are proliferating. However, little is known of leadership dynamics that emerge in online group interventions. The purpose of this study was to assess the types of leadership qualities that would emerge in an online social support group intervention to improve medication adherence for men with HIV, and to characterize the demographic and psychosocial profiles of leaders. Written posts ( n =616) from 66 men were coded using an adapted version of the Full Range Model of Leadership. Results showed that 10% ( n =64) of posts reflected one of five leadership types, the most common of which was mentoring/providing feedback (40% of leadership posts). The next most common leadership style were instances in which encouragement was offered (30% of leadership posts). Leaders appeared to have lived with HIV longer and have higher Internet knowledge scores than non-leaders. Results indicate that online group interventions potentially may be useful to supplement traditional face-to-face treatment by providing an additional venue for group members to mentor and provide emotional support to each other. However, additional research is needed to more fully understand leadership qualities and group dynamics in other online group intervention settings.

  16. A Qualitative Study to Examine Feasibility and Design of an Online Social Networking Intervention to Increase Physical Activity in Teenage Girls.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gisela Van Kessel

    Full Text Available Online social networks present wide-reaching and flexible platforms through which to deliver health interventions to targeted populations. This study used a social marketing approach to explore teenage girls' perceptions of physical activity and the potential use of online social networks to receive a physical activity intervention.Six focus groups were conducted with 19 Australian teenage girls (ages 13 to 18 years with varying levels of physical activity and socioeconomic status. A semi-structured format was used, with groups discussion transcribed verbatim. Content analysis identified emergent themes, with triangulation and memos used to ensure accuracy.Physical activity was most appealing when it emphasised sport, exercise and fitness, along with opportunities for socialisation with friends and self-improvement. Participants were receptive to delivery of a physical activity intervention via online social networks, with Facebook the most widely reported site. Participants commonly accessed online social networks via mobile devices and particularly smartphones. Undesirable features included promotion of physical activity in terms of walking; use of cartoon imagery; use of humour; and promotion of the intervention via schools, each of which were considered "uncool". Participants noted that their parents were likely to be supportive of them using an online social networking physical activity intervention, particularly if not promoted as a weight loss intervention.This study identified key features likely to increase the feasibility and retention of an online social networking physical activity intervention for teenage girls. Guidelines for the design of interventions for teenage girls are provided for future applications.

  17. Analysis of Context Dependence in Social Interaction Networks of a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game

    OpenAIRE

    Son, Seokshin; Kang, Ah Reum; Kim, Hyun-chul; Kwon, Taekyoung; Park, Juyong; Kim, Huy Kang

    2012-01-01

    Rapid advances in modern computing and information technology have enabled millions of people to interact online via various social network and gaming services. The widespread adoption of such online services have made possible analysis of large-scale archival data containing detailed human interactions, presenting a very promising opportunity to understand the rich and complex human behavior. In collaboration with a leading global provider of Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (...

  18. "Not the Same Person Anymore": Groupwork, Identity and Social Learning Online

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jaber, Rowaida; Kennedy, Eileen

    2017-01-01

    This paper argues that identity may be key to understanding why social presence has been considered so important to successful learning experiences. A qualitative case study of 10 students and 4 tutors in an online postgraduate education program was conducted. The research applied the work of Goffman to explain the relationship between social…

  19. Unpopular, overweight, and socially inept: reconsidering the stereotype of online gamers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kowert, Rachel; Festl, Ruth; Quandt, Thorsten

    2014-03-01

    Online gaming has become an activity associated with a highly specific, caricatured, and often negative image. This "stereotype" has permeated the collective consciousness, as online gamers have become common caricatures in popular media. A lack of comprehensive demographic inquiries into the online gaming population has made it difficult to dispute these stereotypical characteristics and led to rising concerns about the validity of these stereotypes. The current study aims to clarify the basis of these negative characterizations, and determine whether online video game players display the social, physical, and psychological shortcomings stereotypically attributed them. Sampling and recruiting was conducted using a two-stage approach. First, a representative sample of 50,000 individuals aged 14 and older who were asked about their gaming behavior in an omnibus telephone survey. From this sample, 4,500 video game players were called for a second telephone interview, from which the current data were collected. Only those participants who completed all of the questions relating to video game play were retained for the current analysis (n=2,550). Between- and within-group analyses were enlisted to uncover differences between online, offline, and nongame playing communities across varying degrees of involvement. The results indicate that the stereotype of online gamers is not fully supported empirically. However, a majority of the stereotypical attributes was found to hold a stronger relationship with more involved online players than video game players as a whole, indicating an empirical foundation for the unique stereotypes that have emerged for this particular subgroup of video game players.

  20. Interprofessional Student Perspectives of Online Social Networks in Health and Business Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doyle, Glynda; Jones, Cyri; Currie, Leanne

    2016-01-01

    The education sector is experiencing unprecedented change with the increasing use by students of mobile devices, social networks and e-portfolios as they prepare for future positions in the workforce. The purpose of this study was to examine student's preferences around these technologies. A mixed methods research strategy was used with an initial online survey using 29 Likert scale style questions to students from the School of Health Sciences and the School of Business at the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT). Descriptive statistics and ANOVAs were performed to examine if there were any differences between groups regarding their overall responses to the survey questions. Content analysis was used for qualitative focus group data. Overall, students (n = 260) were enthusiastic about technology but wary of cost, lack of choice, increased workload and faculty involvement in their online social networks. Of note, students see significant value in face-to-face classroom time.

  1. Maternal Knowing and Social Networks: Understanding First-Time Mothers' Search for Information and Support Through Online and Offline Social Networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Price, Sheri Lynn; Aston, Megan; Monaghan, Joelle; Sim, Meaghan; Tomblin Murphy, Gail; Etowa, Josephine; Pickles, Michelle; Hunter, Andrea; Little, Victoria

    2017-12-01

    The postpartum period is an exciting yet stressful time for first-time mothers, and although the experience may vary, all mothers need support during this crucial period. In Canada, there has been a shift for universal postpartum services to be offered predominantly online. However, due to a paucity of literature, it is difficult to determine the degree to which mothers' needs are being effectively addressed. The aim of this study was to examine and understand how first-time mothers accessed support and information (online and offline) during the first 6 months of their postpartum period. Using feminist poststructuralism methodology, data were collected from focus groups and e-interviews, and analyzed using discourse analysis. Findings indicate that peer support is greatly valued, and mothers often use social media to make in-person social connections. Findings highlight how accessing support and information is socially and institutionally constructed and provide direction for health professionals to provide accessible postpartum care.

  2. Exploring How Secondary Pre-Service Teachers' Use Online Social Bookmarking to Envision Literacy in the Disciplines

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colwell, Jamie; Gregory, Kristen

    2016-01-01

    This study considers how pre-service teachers envision disciplinary literacy through an online social bookmarking project. Thirty secondary pre-service teachers participated in the project through an undergraduate literacy course. Online bookmarks and post-project reflections were collected and analyzed using a constant comparative approach to…

  3. Professional conduct among registered nurses in the use of online social networking sites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levati, Sara

    2014-10-01

    To explore the use of Facebook by Registered Nurses (RNs) in Italy and the United Kingdom (UK), focusing on the disclosure of personal and professional information. The use of online social network sites among medical students and doctors is posing new ethical challenges to the profession. To date, little research has explored the use of online social networking sites among nurses. A cross-national survey. Data were assessed on 124 nurses' profile pages, readily available without viewing restrictions. Content analysis and inferential statistics were undertaken to describe usage and identify similarities and differences between the two country-groups of nurses. Data were collected between December 2011-January 2012. Overall, UK and Italian RNs showed a similar use of the online platform, tending to disclose personal pictures, home town and current home location, as well as updates and comments related to personal and work-related activities. A statistically significant higher proportion of nurses in Italy disclosed their sexual orientation. In both groups, a few cases were observed of potentially unprofessional content in relation to the use of alcohol, nudity and material of a salacious nature. Although most of the UK and Italy RNs appear to be aware of the risks posed by their online exposure, their online activity indicates the blurring of their personal and professional lives; this is posing new ethical, legal and professional challenges to members of the nursing profession. Further research and debate is encouraged at national and international level. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  4. Eliciting and receiving online support: using computer-aided content analysis to examine the dynamics of online social support.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yi-Chia; Kraut, Robert E; Levine, John M

    2015-04-20

    Although many people with serious diseases participate in online support communities, little research has investigated how participants elicit and provide social support on these sites. The first goal was to propose and test a model of the dynamic process through which participants in online support communities elicit and provide emotional and informational support. The second was to demonstrate the value of computer coding of conversational data using machine learning techniques (1) by replicating results derived from human-coded data about how people elicit support and (2) by answering questions that are intractable with small samples of human-coded data, namely how exposure to different types of social support predicts continued participation in online support communities. The third was to provide a detailed description of these machine learning techniques to enable other researchers to perform large-scale data analysis in these communities. Communication among approximately 90,000 registered users of an online cancer support community was analyzed. The corpus comprised 1,562,459 messages organized into 68,158 discussion threads. Amazon Mechanical Turk workers coded (1) 1000 thread-starting messages on 5 attributes (positive and negative emotional self-disclosure, positive and negative informational self-disclosure, questions) and (2) 1000 replies on emotional and informational support. Their judgments were used to train machine learning models that automatically estimated the amount of these 7 attributes in the messages. Across attributes, the average Pearson correlation between human-based judgments and computer-based judgments was .65. Part 1 used human-coded data to investigate relationships between (1) 4 kinds of self-disclosure and question asking in thread-starting posts and (2) the amount of emotional and informational support in the first reply. Self-disclosure about negative emotions (beta=.24, Ponline support communities.

  5. Design to Thrive Creating Social Networks and Online Communities that Last

    CERN Document Server

    Howard, Tharon W

    2010-01-01

    Social networks and online communities are reshaping the way people communicate, both in their personal and professional lives. What makes some succeed and others fail? What draws a user in? What makes them join? What keeps them coming back? Entrepreneurs and businesses are turning to user experience practitioners to figure this out. Though they are well-equipped to evaluate and create a variety of interfaces, social networks require a different set of design principles and ways of thinking about the user in order to be successful. .. .. Design to Thrive presents tried and tested design method

  6. Effects of online group exercises for older adults on physical, psychological and social wellbeing: a randomized pilot trial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marcos Baez

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Background Intervention programs to promote physical activity in older adults, either in group or home settings, have shown equivalent health outcomes but different results when considering adherence. Group-based interventions seem to achieve higher participation in the long-term. However, there are many factors that can make of group exercises a challenging setting for older adults. A major one, due to the heterogeneity of this particular population, is the difference in the level of skills. In this paper we report on the physical, psychological and social wellbeing outcomes of a technology-based intervention that enable online group exercises in older adults with different levels of skills. Methods A total of 37 older adults between 65 and 87 years old followed a personalized exercise program based on the OTAGO program for fall prevention, for a period of eight weeks. Participants could join online group exercises using a tablet-based application. Participants were assigned either to the Control group, representing the traditional individual home-based training program, or the Social group, representing the online group exercising. Pre- and post- measurements were taken to analyze the physical, psychological and social wellbeing outcomes. Results After the eight-weeks training program there were improvements in both the Social and Control groups in terms of physical outcomes, given the high level of adherence of both groups. Considering the baseline measures, however, the results suggest that while in the Control group fitter individuals tended to adhere more to the training, this was not the case for the Social group, where the initial level had no effect on adherence. For psychological outcomes there were improvements on both groups, regardless of the application used. There was no significant difference between groups in social wellbeing outcomes, both groups seeing a decrease in loneliness despite the presence of social features in the

  7. Effects of online group exercises for older adults on physical, psychological and social wellbeing: a randomized pilot trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baez, Marcos; Khaghani Far, Iman; Ibarra, Francisco; Ferron, Michela; Didino, Daniele; Casati, Fabio

    2017-01-01

    Intervention programs to promote physical activity in older adults, either in group or home settings, have shown equivalent health outcomes but different results when considering adherence. Group-based interventions seem to achieve higher participation in the long-term. However, there are many factors that can make of group exercises a challenging setting for older adults. A major one, due to the heterogeneity of this particular population, is the difference in the level of skills. In this paper we report on the physical, psychological and social wellbeing outcomes of a technology-based intervention that enable online group exercises in older adults with different levels of skills. A total of 37 older adults between 65 and 87 years old followed a personalized exercise program based on the OTAGO program for fall prevention, for a period of eight weeks. Participants could join online group exercises using a tablet-based application. Participants were assigned either to the Control group, representing the traditional individual home-based training program, or the Social group, representing the online group exercising. Pre- and post- measurements were taken to analyze the physical, psychological and social wellbeing outcomes. After the eight-weeks training program there were improvements in both the Social and Control groups in terms of physical outcomes, given the high level of adherence of both groups. Considering the baseline measures, however, the results suggest that while in the Control group fitter individuals tended to adhere more to the training, this was not the case for the Social group, where the initial level had no effect on adherence. For psychological outcomes there were improvements on both groups, regardless of the application used. There was no significant difference between groups in social wellbeing outcomes, both groups seeing a decrease in loneliness despite the presence of social features in the Social group. However, online social interactions

  8. Applying social network analysis to understand the knowledge sharing behaviour of practitioners in a clinical online discussion forum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stewart, Samuel Alan; Abidi, Syed Sibte Raza

    2012-12-04

    Knowledge Translation (KT) plays a vital role in the modern health care community, facilitating the incorporation of new evidence into practice. Web 2.0 tools provide a useful mechanism for establishing an online KT environment in which health practitioners share their practice-related knowledge and experiences with an online community of practice. We have implemented a Web 2.0 based KT environment--an online discussion forum--for pediatric pain practitioners across seven different hospitals in Thailand. The online discussion forum enabled the pediatric pain practitioners to share and translate their experiential knowledge to help improve the management of pediatric pain in hospitals. The goal of this research is to investigate the knowledge sharing dynamics of a community of practice through an online discussion forum. We evaluated the communication patterns of the community members using statistical and social network analysis methods in order to better understand how the online community engages to share experiential knowledge. Statistical analyses and visualizations provide a broad overview of the communication patterns within the discussion forum. Social network analysis provides the tools to delve deeper into the social network, identifying the most active members of the community, reporting the overall health of the social network, isolating the potential core members of the social network, and exploring the inter-group relationships that exist across institutions and professions. The statistical analyses revealed a network dominated by a single institution and a single profession, and found a varied relationship between reading and posting content to the discussion forum. The social network analysis discovered a healthy network with strong communication patterns, while identifying which users are at the center of the community in terms of facilitating communication. The group-level analysis suggests that there is strong interprofessional and interregional

  9. Followers are not enough: a multifaceted approach to community detection in online social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Darmon, David; Omodei, Elisa; Garland, Joshua

    2015-01-01

    In online social media networks, individuals often have hundreds or even thousands of connections, which link these users not only to friends, associates, and colleagues, but also to news outlets, celebrities, and organizations. In these complex social networks, a 'community' as studied in the social network literature, can have very different meaning depending on the property of the network under study. Taking into account the multifaceted nature of these networks, we claim that community detection in online social networks should also be multifaceted in order to capture all of the different and valuable viewpoints of 'community.' In this paper we focus on three types of communities beyond follower-based structural communities: activity-based, topic-based, and interaction-based. We analyze a Twitter dataset using three different weightings of the structural network meant to highlight these three community types, and then infer the communities associated with these weightings. We show that interesting insights can be obtained about the complex community structure present in social networks by studying when and how these four community types give rise to similar as well as completely distinct community structure.

  10. Investigating social gaze as an action-perception online performance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grynszpan, Ouriel; Simonin, Jérôme; Martin, Jean-Claude; Nadel, Jacqueline

    2012-01-01

    Gaze represents a major non-verbal communication channel in social interactions. In this respect, when facing another person, one's gaze should not be examined as a purely perceptive process but also as an action-perception online performance. However, little is known about processes involved in the real-time self-regulation of social gaze. The present study investigates the impact of a gaze-contingent viewing window on fixation patterns and the awareness of being the agent moving the window. In face-to-face scenarios played by a virtual human character, the task for the 18 adult participants was to interpret an equivocal sentence which could be disambiguated by examining the emotional expressions of the character speaking. The virtual character was embedded in naturalistic backgrounds to enhance realism. Eye-tracking data showed that the viewing window induced changes in gaze behavior, notably longer visual fixations. Notwithstanding, only half of the participants ascribed the window displacements to their eye movements. These participants also spent more time looking at the eyes and mouth regions of the virtual human character. The outcomes of the study highlight the dissociation between non-volitional gaze adaptation and the self-ascription of agency. Such dissociation provides support for a two-step account of the sense of agency composed of pre-noetic monitoring mechanisms and reflexive processes, linked by bottom-up and top-down processes. We comment upon these results, which illustrate the relevance of our method for studying online social cognition, in particular concerning autism spectrum disorders (ASD) where the poor pragmatic understanding of oral speech is considered linked to visual peculiarities that impede facial exploration.

  11. Toward Predicting Social Support Needs in Online Health Social Networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Choi, Min-Je; Kim, Sung-Hee; Lee, Sukwon; Kwon, Bum Chul; Yi, Ji Soo; Choo, Jaegul; Huh, Jina

    2017-08-02

    While online health social networks (OHSNs) serve as an effective platform for patients to fulfill their various social support needs, predicting the needs of users and providing tailored information remains a challenge. The objective of this study was to discriminate important features for identifying users' social support needs based on knowledge gathered from survey data. This study also provides guidelines for a technical framework, which can be used to predict users' social support needs based on raw data collected from OHSNs. We initially conducted a Web-based survey with 184 OHSN users. From this survey data, we extracted 34 features based on 5 categories: (1) demographics, (2) reading behavior, (3) posting behavior, (4) perceived roles in OHSNs, and (5) values sought in OHSNs. Features from the first 4 categories were used as variables for binary classification. For the prediction outcomes, we used features from the last category: the needs for emotional support, experience-based information, unconventional information, and medical facts. We compared 5 binary classifier algorithms: gradient boosting tree, random forest, decision tree, support vector machines, and logistic regression. We then calculated the scores of the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) to understand the comparative effectiveness of the used features. The best performance was AUC scores of 0.89 for predicting users seeking emotional support, 0.86 for experience-based information, 0.80 for unconventional information, and 0.83 for medical facts. With the gradient boosting tree as our best performing model, we analyzed the strength of individual features in predicting one's social support need. Among other discoveries, we found that users seeking emotional support tend to post more in OHSNs compared with others. We developed an initial framework for automatically predicting social support needs in OHSNs using survey data. Future work should involve nonsurvey

  12. Human sensorimotor communication: a theory of signaling in online social interactions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pezzulo, Giovanni; Donnarumma, Francesco; Dindo, Haris

    2013-01-01

    Although the importance of communication is recognized in several disciplines, it is rarely studied in the context of online social interactions and joint actions. During online joint actions, language and gesture are often insufficient and humans typically use non-verbal, sensorimotor forms of communication to send coordination signals. For example, when playing volleyball, an athlete can exaggerate her movements to signal her intentions to her teammates (say, a pass to the right) or to feint an adversary. Similarly, a person who is transporting a table together with a co-actor can push the table in a certain direction to signal where and when he intends to place it. Other examples of "signaling" are over-articulating in noisy environments and over-emphasizing vowels in child-directed speech. In all these examples, humans intentionally modify their action kinematics to make their goals easier to disambiguate. At the moment no formal theory exists of these forms of sensorimotor communication and signaling. We present one such theory that describes signaling as a combination of a pragmatic and a communicative action, and explains how it simplifies coordination in online social interactions. We cast signaling within a "joint action optimization" framework in which co-actors optimize the success of their interaction and joint goals rather than only their part of the joint action. The decision of whether and how much to signal requires solving a trade-off between the costs of modifying one's behavior and the benefits in terms of interaction success. Signaling is thus an intentional strategy that supports social interactions; it acts in concert with automatic mechanisms of resonance, prediction, and imitation, especially when the context makes actions and intentions ambiguous and difficult to read. Our theory suggests that communication dynamics should be studied within theories of coordination and interaction rather than only in terms of the maximization of information

  13. Human sensorimotor communication: a theory of signaling in online social interactions.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Giovanni Pezzulo

    Full Text Available Although the importance of communication is recognized in several disciplines, it is rarely studied in the context of online social interactions and joint actions. During online joint actions, language and gesture are often insufficient and humans typically use non-verbal, sensorimotor forms of communication to send coordination signals. For example, when playing volleyball, an athlete can exaggerate her movements to signal her intentions to her teammates (say, a pass to the right or to feint an adversary. Similarly, a person who is transporting a table together with a co-actor can push the table in a certain direction to signal where and when he intends to place it. Other examples of "signaling" are over-articulating in noisy environments and over-emphasizing vowels in child-directed speech. In all these examples, humans intentionally modify their action kinematics to make their goals easier to disambiguate. At the moment no formal theory exists of these forms of sensorimotor communication and signaling. We present one such theory that describes signaling as a combination of a pragmatic and a communicative action, and explains how it simplifies coordination in online social interactions. We cast signaling within a "joint action optimization" framework in which co-actors optimize the success of their interaction and joint goals rather than only their part of the joint action. The decision of whether and how much to signal requires solving a trade-off between the costs of modifying one's behavior and the benefits in terms of interaction success. Signaling is thus an intentional strategy that supports social interactions; it acts in concert with automatic mechanisms of resonance, prediction, and imitation, especially when the context makes actions and intentions ambiguous and difficult to read. Our theory suggests that communication dynamics should be studied within theories of coordination and interaction rather than only in terms of the

  14. An information search model for online social Networks - MOBIRSE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miguel Angel Niño Zambrano

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Online Social Networks (OSNs have been gaining great importance among Internet users in recent years.  These are sites where it is possible to meet people, publish, and share content in a way that is both easy and free of charge. As a result, the volume of information contained in these websites has grown exponentially, and web search has consequently become an important tool for users to easily find information relevant to their social networking objectives. Making use of ontologies and user profiles can make these searches more effective. This article presents a model for Information Retrieval in OSNs (MOBIRSE based on user profile and ontologies which aims to improve the relevance of retrieved information on these websites. The social network Facebook was chosen for a case study and as the instance for the proposed model. The model was validated using measures such as At-k Precision and Kappa statistics, to assess its efficiency.

  15. Between the Social and the Selfish: Learner Autonomy in Online Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lewis, Tim

    2013-01-01

    This paper explores what it means to be an autonomous learner in an online social context. Using distinctions originally drawn by Jürgen Habermas, it argues that classic accounts of learner autonomy as teleological action are inadequate to explain learner activity in group settings. It points out that learners in such settings display attitudes…

  16. Beyond Social Presence: Facelessness and the Ethics of Asynchronous Online Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rose, Ellen

    2017-01-01

    In this position paper, I argue that a focus on achieving and increasing social presence in online courses tends to derail a consideration of the ethical implications and dimensions of the essential facelessness of asynchronous education. Drawing upon the work of Emmanuel Levinas and Nel Noddings, who contended that the face is the basis of…

  17. From Subjective Trust to Objective Trustworthiness in On-line Social Networks: Overview and Challenges

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Zejda

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available Nowadays dozens of people share their content in the current Web 2.0 space, talk with friends in social networking sites such as Facebook and live on the Net in many other ways. They do all this quite naturally, forgetting the healthy cautiousness sometimes. In real life we rely on trusted people. Do we know how to reflect real-world trust mechanisms into on-line social software? In the article we focused to bring overview on state of the art in main ideas behind a trust processing in online social networking systems. What are common sources of subjective trust, how the trust emerges and what are the sources of trust dynamics? How can be trust captured into the systems, how can be explicit trust processed to infer indirect trust, the trust between users who do not know each other? And what are the ways to infer objective metrics of trust, the reputation or trustworthiness? Finally, we point out selected challenges related to the trust in current highly dynamic social networks.

  18. Social media and social work education: understanding and dealing with the new digital world.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fang, Lin; Mishna, Faye; Zhang, Vivian F; Van Wert, Melissa; Bogo, Marion

    2014-10-01

    Accompanying the multiple benefits and innovations of social media are the complex ethical and pedagogical issues that challenge social work educators. Without a clear understanding of the blurred boundaries between public and private, the potentially limitless and unintended audiences, as well as the permanency of the information shared online, social work students who use social media can find themselves in difficult situations in their personal and professional lives. In this article, we present three scenarios that illustrate issues and complexities involving social media use by social work students, followed by a discussion and recommendations for social work educators.

  19. The efficacy of exergames for social relatedness in online physical education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brian J. Kooiman

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Online physical education (OLPE has been viewed as an oxymoron. Physical education curriculum at all levels seeks to help learners grow socially in the way they interact and deal with diverse and challenging fellow students and settings. Students who have no contact with other students while they are at home for various reasons may not be able to learn the proper response to the challenges of social participation or benefits derived from social contact. This study looked at the efficacy of remote exergame participation between students aged 11–18 (N = 124. The results show that exergaming over the Internet can provide students with a social experience that results in increased relatedness between participants versus playing by themselves against a non-player character (NPC. This relatedness can help students access the social standards for physical education when enrolled in OLPE.

  20. Remaining Safe and Avoiding Dangers Online: A Social Media Q&A with Kimberly Mitchell

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prevention Researcher, 2010

    2010-01-01

    The news media is often full of stories about the dangers of social media, including such concerns as cyberbullying and sexting. In this article, Kimberly Mitchell, a researcher noted for her experience on youth internet victimization, answers questions about the risks of social media and how we can keep youth safe online. Questions in this Q&A…

  1. Social Media Use of Cooperative Extension Family Economics Educators: Online Survey Results and Implications

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Neill, Barbara; Zumwalt, Andrew; Bechman, Janet

    2011-01-01

    This article describes results of an online survey conducted by the eXtension Financial Security for All (FSA) Community of Practice (CoP) to determine the social media capacity and activity of its members. The survey was conducted to inform two subsequent FSA CoP programs: an archived webinar on social media programs and impact evaluation methods…

  2. School Communications 2.0: A Social Media Strategy for K-12 Principals and Superintendents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cox, Daniel Dean

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this qualitative, multiple-case study was two-fold: 1) to describe, analyze, and interpret the experiences of school principals and superintendents who use multiple social media tools such as blogs, microblogs, social networking sites, podcasts, and online videos with stakeholders as part of their comprehensive communications…

  3. Interaction, Critical Thinking, and Social Network Analysis (SNA in Online Courses

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joan Thormann

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available This study tried to ascertain a possible relationship between the number of student moderators (1, 2, and 3, online interactions, and critical thinking of K-12 educators enrolled in an online course that was taught from a constructivist approach. The course topic was use of technology in special education. Social network analysis (SNA and measures of critical thinking (Newman, Webb, & Cochrane, 1995 were used to research and assess if there was a difference in interaction and critical thinking between 1, 2, or 3 student moderators who facilitated a forum discussion of an assignment in an online course. The same course was repeated over three years. Each year either 1, 2, or 3 students moderated. The analysis indicated more discussion per non-moderating student with the three student moderated group. Using SNA we found that there was only one noticeable difference among the three groups which was in the value of network centralization. Using critical thinking measures the three student moderator group scored higher in five of the eight critical thinking categories. Variations in instructor presence in the online courses may have influenced these findings.

  4. Usefulness of Social Network Sites for Adolescents' Development of Online Career Skills

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rutten, Mariëlle; Ros, Anje; Kuijpers, Marinka; Kreijns, Karel

    2018-01-01

    Schools have an important role in teaching students how to use Social Network Site (SNS) for career purposes. This involves the opportunity for students to practice online career skills. Different types of digital environments are available for schools. There are SNS designed to enable users to

  5. Study on the impact of marketing through social media, online games and mobile applications on children's behaviour

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lupiáñez-Villanueva, F.; Gaskell, G.; Veltri, G.A.; Theben, A.; Folkvord, F.; Bonatti, L; Bogliacino, F.; Fernández, L.; Codagnone, C.

    2016-01-01

    The European Online Games, Social Media and Mobile Application sector has grown substantially in recent years and children are exposed to increasingly sophisticated marketing techniques online which are often outside the purview of existing regulatory frameworks. This study aims to provide a better

  6. Perspectives from the Patient and the Healthcare Professional in Multiple Sclerosis: Social Media and Participatory Medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kantor, Daniel; Bright, Jeremy R; Burtchell, Jeri

    2018-06-01

    When faced with a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS), patients often turn to the Internet and social media to find support groups, read about the experiences of other people affected by MS and seek their advice, and research their condition and treatment options to discuss with their healthcare professionals (HCPs). Here, we examine the use of social media and the Internet among patients with MS, considering its impact on patient empowerment and patient participation in treatment decision-making and MS research. These themes are exemplified with first-hand experiences of the patient author. We also explore the impact of the Internet and social media on the management of patients from the perspective of HCPs, including new opportunities for HCPs to engage in participatory medicine and to improve communication with and among patients. We consider both the benefits afforded to and the potential pitfalls faced by HCPs when interacting with their patients via these routes, and discuss potential concerns around privacy and confidentiality in the use of the Internet and social media in the clinical context. Communication online is driving the evolution of the patient-HCP relationship, and is empowering patients to participate more actively in the decision-making process relating to the provision of their health care. Funding Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation.

  7. NOAA Ocean Exploration: Science, Education and Ocean Literacy Online and in Social Media

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keener-Chavis, P.

    2012-12-01

    "Engagement" in ocean science initially might seem like a simple concept, however within an agency like NOAA, with a broad mission and a wide variety of stakeholders, the concept of engagement becomes quite complex. Several years ago, a Kellogg Commission Report was submitted to NOAA's Science Advisory Board to assist the Agency with more closely defining-and refining-how it could more effectively engage with the multiple audiences with which it works. For NOAA, engagement is a two-way relationship that unfolds in a commitment of service to society. It is an Enterprise-wide capability represented in NOAA's Next Generation Strategic Plan and carries the same weight across the Agency as science and technology. NOAA's Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER) engages scientists, educators and the public through a variety of online and social media offerings explicitly tied to the exploration science of its expeditions. The principle platform for this engagement is the Ocean Explorer website (http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov). It is the single point of entry for formal and informal educators and the public to chronicled OER expeditions to little known regions of the world ocean. The site also enables access to live streaming video and audio from the United States' first ship solely dedicated to ocean exploration, the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer and the Institute for Exploration's E/V Nautilus. Video includes footage from the remotely operated vehicles, sonar displays, navigation displays, and mapping data displays. Through telepresence technologies and other online communication tools, scientists at remote locations around the world, including Exploration Command Centers, collaborate in deep-sea exploration conducted by the Okeanos Explorer. Those wanting access to the ship's track, oceanographic data, daily updates, web logs, and imagery during an expedition can access the online Okeanos Explorer Digital Atlas. Information on archived expeditions can be accessed

  8. A prosocial online game for social cognition training in adolescents with high-functioning autism: an fMRI study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chung US

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Un-sun Chung,1 Doug Hyun Han,2 Yee Jin Shin,3 Perry F Renshaw4 1Department of Psychiatry, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Republic of Korea; 2Department of Psychiatry, Chung Ang University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea; 3Department of Psychiatry, Yonsei University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea; 4Brain Institute, Utah University, Salt Lake City, UT, USA Abstract: To help patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD improve their social skills, effective interventions and new treatment modalities are necessary. We hypothesized that a prosocial online game would improve social cognition in ASD adolescents, as assessed using metrics of social communication, facial recognition, and emotional words. Ten ASD adolescents underwent cognitive behavior therapy (CBT using a prosocial online game (game-CBT, and ten ASD adolescents participated in an offline-CBT. At baseline and 6 weeks later, social communication quality, correct identification of emotional words and facial emoticons, and brain activity were assessed in both groups. Social communication quality and correct response rate of emotional words and facial emoticons improved in both groups over the course of the intervention, and there were no significant differences between groups. In response to the emotional words, the brain activity within the temporal and parietal cortices increased in the game-CBT group, while the brain activity within cingulate and parietal cortices increased in the offline-CBT group. In addition, ASD adolescents in the game-CBT group showed increased brain activity within the right cingulate gyrus, left medial frontal gyrus, left cerebellum, left fusiform gyrus, left insular cortex, and sublobar area in response to facial emoticons. A prosocial online game designed for CBT was as effective as offline-CBT in ASD adolescents. Participation in the game especially increased social arousal and aided ASD adolescents in recognizing emotion. The therapy also

  9. Automatic visual tracking and social behaviour analysis with multiple mice.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luca Giancardo

    Full Text Available Social interactions are made of complex behavioural actions that might be found in all mammalians, including humans and rodents. Recently, mouse models are increasingly being used in preclinical research to understand the biological basis of social-related pathologies or abnormalities. However, reliable and flexible automatic systems able to precisely quantify social behavioural interactions of multiple mice are still missing. Here, we present a system built on two components. A module able to accurately track the position of multiple interacting mice from videos, regardless of their fur colour or light settings, and a module that automatically characterise social and non-social behaviours. The behavioural analysis is obtained by deriving a new set of specialised spatio-temporal features from the tracker output. These features are further employed by a learning-by-example classifier, which predicts for each frame and for each mouse in the cage one of the behaviours learnt from the examples given by the experimenters. The system is validated on an extensive set of experimental trials involving multiple mice in an open arena. In a first evaluation we compare the classifier output with the independent evaluation of two human graders, obtaining comparable results. Then, we show the applicability of our technique to multiple mice settings, using up to four interacting mice. The system is also compared with a solution recently proposed in the literature that, similarly to us, addresses the problem with a learning-by-examples approach. Finally, we further validated our automatic system to differentiate between C57B/6J (a commonly used reference inbred strain and BTBR T+tf/J (a mouse model for autism spectrum disorders. Overall, these data demonstrate the validity and effectiveness of this new machine learning system in the detection of social and non-social behaviours in multiple (>2 interacting mice, and its versatility to deal with different

  10. Political campaigning 2.0: The influence of online news and social networking sites on attitudes and behavior

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Montathar Faraon

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed to examine differences in influence between online news (e.g., New York Times and social networking sites (e.g., Facebook and Twitter on attitudes in political campaigns. In a web-based experiment, campaign, polls and election between two fictitious candidates were simulated. Participants’ explicit and implicit attitudes as well as voting behavior were assessed using self-report items and the Implicit Association Test (IAT. The results reveal that information emanating from online news had a significant influence on explicit and implicit attitudes while that of social networking sites did not. Overall, negative items had a stronger impact than positive ones, more so in online news compared to social networking sites. Negative information from either type of media was more likely to change participants’ explicit attitudes in a negative direction and as a consequence also change their vote. Practical implications of the findings and limitations of the study are discussed.

  11. A Model to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Collaborative Online Learning Teams – Self-Disclosure and Social Exchange Theory Perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ying-Chieh Liu

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available Collaborative online learning teams (COLTs are teams that are comprised of groups of online students. Accompanying the popularity of online learning, both on campuses and as professional development within many industries, learning in groups has been attracting much attention. However, there is little research constructing intact frameworks to evaluate the effectiveness of COLTs. This study built a framework by incorporating six constructs: self-disclosure, social exchange, trust, cohesion, performance and satisfaction, and validated it by analyzing data from a five-week experiment. The results showed that social exchange had a significant impact on trust, but self-disclosure did not. Trust was significantly related to cohesion and cohesion was significantly related to performance and satisfaction. This study suggests that instructors should incorporate the number of students’ posts into parts of evaluation to facilitate self-disclosure, and to stop “social loafing” behaviors while encouraging social exchange activities.

  12. Open Online Research: Developing Software and Method for Collaborative Interpretation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christian Bröer

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Inspired by the potentials of web-based collaboration, in 2014, a group of social scientists, students and information specialists started tinkering with software and methodology for open online collaborative research. The results of their research led to a gathering of academics at the #ethnography Conference Amsterdam 2014, where new material was collected, shared and collaboratively interpreted. Following the conference, they continued to develop software and methodology. In this contribution, we report on the aims, methodology, inspiring examples, caveats and results from testing several prototypes of open online research software. We conclude that open online collaborative interpretation is both feasible and desirable. Dialogue and reflexivity, we hold, are able to transcend separated perspectives and stimulate agreement on a set of distinct interpretations; they simultaneously respect the multiplicity of understandings of social phenomena whilst bringing order into this diversity. URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs160327

  13. Online, directed journaling in community health advanced practice nursing clinical education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daroszewski, Ellen Beth; Kinser, Anita G; Lloyd, Susan L

    2004-04-01

    The sharing of experiences in advanced practice nursing clinical courses allows for application of core principals to different facets of practice, with the potential to promote discussions beyond the course objectives, create opportunities for mentoring, foster critical thinking, and facilitate change and socialization into advanced practice. A pilot test of online, directed journaling, an innovative sharing and reflection strategy, was incorporated in a two-quarter community health advanced practice nursing clinical course in an attempt to enhance clinical learning. Six female graduate nursing students completed the journaling. A 10-item evaluation measure demonstrated that the online journaling strategy was highly effective and valuable for the students. An assessment of the journaling entries found multiple examples of discussion, mentoring, critical thinking, and socialization. Innovative online strategies should become the standard for sharing in advanced practice nursing education.

  14. Perspectives from the Patient and the Healthcare Professional in Multiple Sclerosis: Social Media and Patient Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kantor, Daniel; Bright, Jeremy R; Burtchell, Jeri

    2018-06-01

    A diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) is life-altering. Because the course of MS is heterogeneous, patients may face uncertainty in terms of long-term physical and cognitive challenges, potential loss of employment, and the risk of social isolation. Patients often turn to the Internet and social media for information about MS and its management, and to seek out fellow patients and support groups. Here, we examine the use of social media and the Internet among patients with MS, considering its impact on patient education. We consider the access that these conduits provide not only to other patients with MS but also to a wealth of disease-related information online. These themes are further illustrated with first-hand experiences of the patient author and her physician. We also explore the impact of the Internet and social media on the education and support of patients with MS from the healthcare professional's (HCP's) perspective, including opportunities for HCPs to promote disease education among their patients, and the advantages that arise from patients being better informed about their disease. The rise of the Internet and social media has changed the patient experience, helping patients to support each other, to educate themselves proactively about their condition, and to participate more actively in decisions relating to disease management than perhaps was the case historically. Funding Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation.

  15. Ability Online: Promoting Social Competence and Computer Literacy in Adolescents with Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lefebvre, Arlette

    1992-01-01

    Ability OnLine is a pilot electronic mail project designed to foster the self-esteem, social integration, and computer literacy of Canadian children and teens with disabilities. It is offered to both disabled and nondisabled students and their families on a Toronto, Ontario, private bulletin board system. (JDD)

  16. A transition process from information systems acceptance to infusion behaviour in online brand communities: A socialization process perspective

    OpenAIRE

    Lim, Jaehoon

    2012-01-01

    This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University. Social media such as Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, and online communities plays an important role for knowledge production and diffusion as well as discussions among people. Among social media, online brand communities (OBCs) have recently received attention from both academics and practitioners due to the practical benefits of OBCs for consumers and companies. For consumers, knowledge sharing ...

  17. Analysis on trust influencing factors and trust model from multiple perspectives of online Auction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Wang

    2017-10-01

    Current reputation models lack the research on online auction trading completely so they cannot entirely reflect the reputation status of users and may cause problems on operability. To evaluate the user trust in online auction correctly, a trust computing model based on multiple influencing factors is established. It aims at overcoming the efficiency of current trust computing methods and the limitations of traditional theoretical trust models. The improved model comprehensively considers the trust degree evaluation factors of three types of participants according to different participation modes of online auctioneers, to improve the accuracy, effectiveness and robustness of the trust degree. The experiments test the efficiency and the performance of our model under different scale of malicious user, under environment like eBay and Sporas model. The experimental results analysis show the model proposed in this paper makes up the deficiency of existing model and it also has better feasibility.

  18. Socializing Young People to Ethics via Play Experience: Browser Games and Parental Concerns for Safety Online

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Divina Meigs

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper considers an online game and its relation to safety and privacy, in order to examine social and ethical issues raised by parental concern over harmful content. To gain real insights on the responsibility of adults, it develops a hands-on approach that takes into account the major stakeholders, especially young people and the related circle of people around them. Therefore the research question that is raised is: how do browser games provide reassurance to parents about their children’s safety and privacy? The issue of safety online is explored in three parts, using an ethnographic research framework: it explores a specific online game, it provides a profile of participants, it analyses their types of actions in relation to safety and privacy, and discusses the results in terms of incidence of risk, peer-monitoring and community control. The findings show that there is a rather strong tendency to self-regulation, but that tendency is partly due to a strong presence of mediating adults and peers. The results are discussed in terms of incidence of risk, peer-monitoring and networked means of control on the one hand, and in terms of scientific contribution to socialization theory on the other hand. They lead to final considerations on the repertoire of ethical strategies set up online and its meaning for the concerns of adults towards online risk as well as the need for policies on regulation and self-regulation. They also lead to extensions on the socialization to norms and the appropriation of ethics by young people.

  19. SMEs Going Global: A Comparison of the Internationalization Strategies of Publishers and Online Social Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bettina Lis

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Up to now, most research has been conducted on the internationalization strategies of large media companies and groups. But tapping new foreign markets is also relevant to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs of all media sectors. This paper therefore focuses on the internationalization strategies of different types of media SMEs. It aims at describing and comparing the motives for becoming an international player as well as the specific market selection, market entry, and market development strategies. Furthermore, it focuses on the main organizational implications. On the basis of a multiple-case design we compare two German regional newspaper publishers with two German special interest publishers and two online social business networks. Results show similarities and differences between these media sectors according to the nature of the media businesses. The cases also highlight the importance of international management skills also in the context of SMEs.

  20. Research on the Factors Influencing Preference for Online Social Interaction%网络社交偏好影响因素研究

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    宋姜; 甘利人; 吴鹏

    2014-01-01

    With the rapid development of online social interactions, the way of people's social communication has been changed. The pur-pose of the current study was to identify potential factors leading to a preference for online social interaction to offline interaction. Based on an online survey (N=233) and a SEM analysis, we found that:compared to those who were good at face-to-face communication, indi-viduals who were not might prefer online social interaction much more;the higher the popularity level of preference for online social inter-action among the crowd around an individual, the more he was likely to show similar preference;compared to those with a limited level of involvement in online social interaction, individuals with a higher level would develop a stronger preference for online social interaction;compared to those with a higher level of satisfaction with their current offline contacts, individuals with a lower level of satisfaction were more likely to prefer online social interaction. The paper contributes to the understanding of the preference for online social interaction and provides references for enterprises to improve their social networking platforms.%网络社交的兴起改变了人们社会交流的方式,旨在研究人们网络社交偏好的影响因素。通过对233个被试的在线问卷调查,使用结构方程分析方法,我们得到:和擅长面对面交流的人相比,不擅长面对面交流的人更偏好于网络社交;周围人群网络社交普及程度越高,人们越偏好于网络社交;和网络社交涉入深度低的人相比,网络社交涉入深度高的人更偏好于网络社交;和对线下交流满意程度高的人相比,对线下社交满意度低的人更偏好于网络社交。本研究能促进对人们网络社交偏好行为的理解以及为改善网络社交平台提供参考。