A qualitative study of stakeholders' perspectives on the social network service environment

Over two billion people are using the Internet at present, assisted by the mediating activities of software agents which deal with the diversity and complexity of information. There are, however, ethical issues due to the monitoring-and-surveillance, data mining and autonomous nature of software agents. Considering the context, this study aims to comprehend stakeholders' perspectives on the social network service environment in order to identify the main considerations for the design of software agents in social network services in the near future. Twenty-one stakeholders, belonging to three key stakeholder groups, were recruited using a purposive sampling strategy for unstandardised semi-structured e-mail interviews. The interview data were analysed using a qualitative content analysis method. It was possible to identify three main considerations for the design of software agents in social network services, which were classified into the following categories: comprehensive understanding of users' perception of privacy, user type recognition algorithms for software agent development and existing software agents enhancement

Evolution of Ego-networks in Social Media with Link Recommendations

Ego-networks are fundamental structures in social graphs, yet the process of their evolution is still widely unexplored. In an online context, a key question is how link recommender systems may skew the growth of these networks, possibly restraining diversity. To shed light on this matter, we analyze the complete temporal evolution of 170M ego-networks extracted from Flickr and Tumblr, comparing links that are created spontaneously with those that have been algorithmically recommended. We find that the evolution of ego-networks is bursty, community-driven, and characterized by subsequent phases of explosive diameter increase, slight shrinking, and stabilization. Recommendations favor popular and well-connected nodes, limiting the diameter expansion. With a matching experiment aimed at detecting causal relationships from observational data, we find that the bias introduced by the recommendations fosters global diversity in the process of neighbor selection. Last, with two link prediction experiments, we show how insights from our analysis can be used to improve the effectiveness of social recommender systems.Comment: Proceedings of the 10th ACM International Conference on Web Search and Data Mining (WSDM 2017), Cambridge, UK. 10 pages, 16 figures, 1 tabl

Social Intelligence Design in Ambient Intelligence

This Special Issue of AI and Society contains a selection of papers presented at the 6th Social Intelligence Design Workshop held at ITC-irst, Povo (Trento, Italy) in July 2007. Being the 6th in a series means that there now is a well-established and also a growing research area. The interest in this research area is growing because, among other things, current computing technology allows other than the traditional efficiency-oriented applications associated with computer science and interface technology. For example, in Ambient Intelligence (AmI) applications we look at sensor-equipped environments and devices (robots, smart furniture, virtual humans and pets) that support their human inhabitants during their everyday activities. These everyday activities also include computer-mediated communication, collaboration and community activities

Business school techspectations Technology in the daily lives and educational experiences of business students

Business School Techspectations is the second in a series of reports based on research by the DCU Leadership, Innovation and Knowledge Research Centre (LInK) at DCU Business School. With its roots in an Irish business school, it is no surprise that LInK’s mission is to strengthen the competitiveness, productivity, innovation and entrepreneurial capacity of the Irish economy. Ireland’s next generation transformation will be enabled by information and communication technologies (ICT) and digital participation by members of Irish society. As a university research centre we have an important role to play in supporting education, industry and government to accelerate this transformation

Recommendations in Academic Social Media: the shaping of scholarly communication through algorithmic mediation

Scholarly communication is increasingly being mediated by Academic Social Media (ASM) platforms, which combine the functions of a scientifi c repository with social media features such as personal profi les, followers and comments. In ASM, algorithmic mediation is responsible for fi ltering the content and distributing it in personalised individual feeds and recommendations according to inferred relevance to users. However, if communication among researchers is intertwined with these platforms, in what ways may the recommendation algorithms in ASM shape scholarly communication? Scientifi c literature has been investigating how content is mediated in data-driven environments ranging from social media platforms to specifi c apps, whereas algorithmic mediation in scientifi c environments remains neglected. This thesis starts from the premise that ASM platforms are sociocultural artefacts embedded in a mutually shaping relationship with research practices and economic, political and social arrangements. Therefore, implications of algorithmic mediation can be studied through the artefact itself, peoples’ practices and the social/political/ economic arrangements that aff ect and are aff ected by such interactions. Most studies on ASM focus on one of these elements at a time, either examining design elements or the users’ behaviour on and perceptions about such platforms. In this thesis, a multifaceted approach is taken to analyse the artefact as well as the practices and arrangements traversed by algorithmic mediation. Chapter 1 reviews the literature about ASM platforms, and explains the history of algorithmic recommendations, starting from the fi rst Information Retrieval systems to current Recommender Systems, highlighting the use of diff erent data sources and techniques. The chapter also presents the mediation framework and how it applies to ASM platforms, before outlining the thesis. The rest of the thesis is divided in two parts. Part I focuses on how recommender systems in ASM shape what users can see and how users interact with and through the platform. Part II investigates how, in turn, researchers make sense of their online interactions within ASM. The end of Chapter 1 shows the methodological choices for each following chapter. Part I presents a case study of one of the most popular ASM platforms in which a walkthrough method was conducted in four steps (interface analysis, web code inspection, patent analysis and company inquiry using the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)). In Chapter 2 it is shown that almost all the content in ASM platforms are algorithmically mediated through mechanisms of profi ling, information selection and commodifi cation. It is also discussed how the company avoids explaining the workings of recommender systems and the mutually shaping characteristic of ASM platforms. Chapter 3 explores the distortions and biases that ASM platforms can uphold. Results show how profi ling, datafi cation and prioritization have the potential to foster homogeneity bias, discrimination, the Matthew eff ect of cumulative advantage in science and other distortions. Part II consists of two empirical studies involving participants from diff erent countries in interviews (n=11) and a research game (n=13). Chapter 4 presents the interviews combined with the show and tell technique. The results show the participant’s perceptions on ASM aff ordances, that revolve around six main themes: (1) getting access to relevant content; (2) reaching out to other scholars; (3) algorithmic impact on exposure to content; (4) to see and to be seen; (5) blurred boundaries of potential ethical or legal infringements, and (6) the more I give, the more I get. We argue that algorithmic mediation not only constructs a narration of the self, but also a narration of the relevant other in ASM platforms, confi guring an image of the relevant other that is both participatory and productive. Chapter 5 presents the design process of a research game and the results of the empirical sessions, where participants were observed while playing the game. There are two outcomes for the study. First, the human values researchers relate to algorithmic features in ASM, the most prominent being stimulation, universalism and self-direction. Second, the role of the researcher’s approach (collaborative, competitive or ambivalent) in academic tasks, showing the consequential choices people make regarding algo- rithmic features and the motivations behind those choices. The results led to four archetypal profi les: (1) the collaborative reader; (2) the competitive writer; (3) the collaborative disseminator; and (4) the ambivalent evaluator. The fi nal chapter summarises the ways in which ASM platforms forges people’s perceptions and the strategies people employ to use the systems in benefi t of their careers, answering each research question. Chapter 6 discusses the implications of algorithmic mediation for scholarly communication and science in general. The dissertation ends with refl ections on human agency in data-driven environments, the role of algorithmic inferences in science and the challenge of reconciling individual user’s needs with broader goals of the scientifi c community. By doing so, the contribution of this thesis is twofold, (1) providing in-depth knowledge about the ASM artefact, and (2) unfolding diff erent aspects of the human perspective in dealing with algorithmic mediation in ASM. Both perspectives are discussed in light of social arrangements that are mutually shaped by artefact and practices.A comunicação acadêmica é cada vez mais mediada por plataformas de Mídia Social Acadêmica (MSA), que combinam as funções de um repositório científi co com recursos de mídia social, como perfi s pessoais, seguidores e comentários. Nas MSA, a mediação algorítmica é responsável por fi ltrar o conteúdo e distribuí-lo em feeds e recomendações individuais personalizados de acordo com a relevância inferida para os usuários. No entanto, se a comunicação entre pesquisadores está entrelaçada com essas plataformas, de que forma os algoritmos de recomendação nas MSA podem moldar a comunicação acadêmica? A literatura científi ca vem investigando como o conteúdo é mediado em ambientes orientados por dados, desde plataformas de mídia social até aplicativos específi cos, enquanto a mediação algorítmica em ambientes científi cos permanece negligenciada. Esta tese parte da premissa de que as plataformas de MSA são artefatos socioculturais inseridos em uma relação mutuamente modeladora com práticas de pesquisa e arranjos econômicos, políticos e sociais. Portanto, as implicações da mediação algorítmica podem ser estudadas através do próprio artefato, das práticas humanas e dos arranjos sociais/políticos/ econômicos que afetam e são afetados por tais interações. A maioria dos estudos sobre MSA se concentra em um desses elementos de cada vez, seja examinando elementos de design ou o comportamento e percepções dos usuários sobre essas plataformas. Nesta tese, uma abordagem multifacetada é feita para analisar o artefato, bem como as práticas e arranjos atravessados pela mediação algorítmica. O Capítulo 1 revisa a literatura sobre plataformas de MSA e explica a história das recomendações algorítmicas, desde os primeiros sistemas de Recuperação de Informação até os atuais Sistemas de Recomendação, destacando o uso de diferentes fontes de dados e técnicas. O capítulo também apresenta o quadro teórico (mediation framework) e como ele se aplica às plataformas MSA, antes de delinear a estrutura da tese. O restante da tese está dividido em duas partes. A Parte I se concentra em como os sistemas de recomendação nas MSA moldam o que os usuários podem ver e como os usuários interagem com e na plataforma. A Parte II, por sua vez, investiga como os pesquisadores dão sentido às suas interações online dentro das MSA. O fi nal do Capítulo 1 mostra as opções metodológicas para cada capítulo seguinte. A Parte I apresenta um estudo de caso de uma das plataformas de MSA mais populares em que o walkthrough method foi realizado em quatro etapas (análise de interface, inspeção de código web, análise de patente e consulta à empresa usando o General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)). No Capítulo 2 é mostrado que quase todo o conteúdo das plataformas ASM é mediado por algoritmos por meio de mecanismos de perfi - lamento, seleção de informações e mercantilização. Também é discutido como a empresa evita explicar o funcionamento dos sistemas de recomendação e a característica de modelagem mútua das plataformas de MSA. O Capítulo 3 explora as distorções e vieses que as plataformas de MSA podem sustentar. Os resultados mostram como o perfi lamento, a datifi cação e a priorização de conteúdo têm o potencial de promover viés de homogeneidade, discriminação o efeito Mateus de vantagem cumulativa na ciência e outras distorções. A Parte II consiste em dois estudos empíricos envolvendo participantes de diferentes países em entrevistas (n=11) e um jogo de pesquisa (n=13). O capítulo 4 apresenta as entrevistas combinadas com a técnica show and tell. Os resultados mostram as percepções dos participantes sobre as aff ordances das MSA, que giram em torno de seis temas principais: (1) ter acesso a conteúdos relevantes; (2) acesso a outros pesquisadores; (3) impacto algorítmico na exposição ao conteúdo; (4) ver e ser visto; (5) limites difusos de potenciais infrações éticas ou legais e (6) quanto mais eu dou, mais eu recebo. Argumentamos que a mediação algorítmica não apenas constrói uma narração do eu, mas também uma narração do outro nas plataformas de MSA, confi gurando uma imagem do outro ao mesmo tempo participativa e produtiva. O capítulo 5 apresenta o processo de design de um jogo de pesquisa e os resultados das sessões empíricas, onde os participantes foram observados enquanto jogavam o jogo. Há dois resultados para o estudo. Primeiro, quais valores humanos os pesquisadores relacionam com recursos algorítmicos nas MSA, sendo os mais proeminentes o estímulo, o universalismo e o autodirecionamento. Em segundo lugar, o papel da abordagem do pesquisador (colaborativa, competitiva ou ambivalente) em tarefas acadêmicas, mostrando as escolhas consequentes que as pessoas fazem em relação aos recursos algorítmicos e as motivações por trás dessas escolhas. Os resultados levaram a quatro perfi s arquetípicos: (1) o leitor colaborativo; (2) o escritor competitivo; (3) o divulgador colaborativo; e (4) o avaliador ambivalente. O capítulo fi nal (Capítulo 6) resume as maneiras pelas quais as plataformas de MSA forjam as percepções das pessoas e as estratégias que as pessoas empregam para usar os sistemas em benefício de suas carreiras, respondendo a cada questão de pesquisa. O capítulo discute ainda as implicações da mediação algorítmica para a comunicação acadêmica e a ciência em geral. A dissertação termina com refl exões sobre a agência humana em ambientes orientados por dados, o papel das inferências algorítmicas na ciência e o desafi o de conciliar as necessidades individuais do usuário com os objetivos mais amplos da comunidade científi ca. Ao fazê-lo, a contribuição desta tese é dupla, (1) fornecendo conhecimento aprofundado sobre o artefato plataformas de MSA, e (2) desdobrando diferentes aspectos da perspectiva humana ao lidar com mediação algorítmica em ASM. Ambas as perspectivas são discutidas à luz de arranjos sociais que são mutuamente moldados por artefatos e práticas

Web 2.0 technologies for learning: the current landscape – opportunities, challenges and tensions: supplementary materials

These supplementary materials accompany the report ‘Web 2.0 technologies for learning: the current landscape – opportunities, challenges and tensions’, which is the first report from research commissioned by Becta into Web 2.0 technologies for learning at Key Stages 3 and 4. This report describes findings from the commissioned literature review of the then current landscape concerning learner use of Web 2.0 technologies and the implications for teachers, schools, local authorities and policy makers