111 research outputs found
Generalizing the Network Scale-Up Method: A New Estimator for the Size of Hidden Populations
The network scale-up method enables researchers to estimate the size of
hidden populations, such as drug injectors and sex workers, using sampled
social network data. The basic scale-up estimator offers advantages over other
size estimation techniques, but it depends on problematic modeling assumptions.
We propose a new generalized scale-up estimator that can be used in settings
with non-random social mixing and imperfect awareness about membership in the
hidden population. Further, the new estimator can be used when data are
collected via complex sample designs and from incomplete sampling frames.
However, the generalized scale-up estimator also requires data from two
samples: one from the frame population and one from the hidden population. In
some situations these data from the hidden population can be collected by
adding a small number of questions to already planned studies. For other
situations, we develop interpretable adjustment factors that can be applied to
the basic scale-up estimator. We conclude with practical recommendations for
the design and analysis of future studies
The Network Survival Method for Estimating Adult Mortality: Evidence From a Survey Experiment in Rwanda.
Adult death rates are a critical indicator of population health and well-being. Wealthy countries have high-quality vital registration systems, but poor countries lack this infrastructure and must rely on estimates that are often problematic. In this article, we introduce the network survival method, a new approach for estimating adult death rates. We derive the precise conditions under which it produces consistent and unbiased estimates. Further, we develop an analytical framework for sensitivity analysis. To assess the performance of the network survival method in a realistic setting, we conducted a nationally representative survey experiment in Rwanda (n = 4,669). Network survival estimates were similar to estimates from other methods, even though the network survival estimates were made with substantially smaller samples and are based entirely on data from Rwanda, with no need for model life tables or pooling of data from other countries. Our analytic results demonstrate that the network survival method has attractive properties, and our empirical results show that this method can be used in countries where reliable estimates of adult death rates are sorely needed
Wiki surveys: Open and quantifiable social data collection
In the social sciences, there is a longstanding tension between data
collection methods that facilitate quantification and those that are open to
unanticipated information. Advances in technology now enable new, hybrid
methods that combine some of the benefits of both approaches. Drawing
inspiration from online information aggregation systems like Wikipedia and from
traditional survey research, we propose a new class of research instruments
called wiki surveys. Just as Wikipedia evolves over time based on contributions
from participants, we envision an evolving survey driven by contributions from
respondents. We develop three general principles that underlie wiki surveys:
they should be greedy, collaborative, and adaptive. Building on these
principles, we develop methods for data collection and data analysis for one
type of wiki survey, a pairwise wiki survey. Using two proof-of-concept case
studies involving our free and open-source website www.allourideas.org, we show
that pairwise wiki surveys can yield insights that would be difficult to obtain
with other methods.Comment: 24 pages, 8 figures, 1 tabl
Anyone Can Become a Troll: Causes of Trolling Behavior in Online Discussions
In online communities, antisocial behavior such as trolling disrupts
constructive discussion. While prior work suggests that trolling behavior is
confined to a vocal and antisocial minority, we demonstrate that ordinary
people can engage in such behavior as well. We propose two primary trigger
mechanisms: the individual's mood, and the surrounding context of a discussion
(e.g., exposure to prior trolling behavior). Through an experiment simulating
an online discussion, we find that both negative mood and seeing troll posts by
others significantly increases the probability of a user trolling, and together
double this probability. To support and extend these results, we study how
these same mechanisms play out in the wild via a data-driven, longitudinal
analysis of a large online news discussion community. This analysis reveals
temporal mood effects, and explores long range patterns of repeated exposure to
trolling. A predictive model of trolling behavior shows that mood and
discussion context together can explain trolling behavior better than an
individual's history of trolling. These results combine to suggest that
ordinary people can, under the right circumstances, behave like trolls.Comment: Best Paper Award at CSCW 201
The origins of unpredictability in life trajectory prediction tasks
Why are life trajectories difficult to predict? We investigated this question
through in-depth qualitative interviews with 40 families sampled from a
multi-decade longitudinal study. Our sampling and interviewing process were
informed by the earlier efforts of hundreds of researchers to predict life
outcomes for participants in this study. The qualitative evidence we uncovered
in these interviews combined with a well-known mathematical decomposition of
prediction error helps us identify some origins of unpredictability and create
a new conceptual framework. Our specific evidence and our more general
framework suggest that unpredictability should be expected in many life
trajectory prediction tasks, even in the presence of complex algorithms and
large datasets. Our work also provides a foundation for future empirical and
theoretical work on unpredictability in human lives.Comment: 54 pages, 8 figure
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Evolution of entrepreneurs state support system in the national aspect
The network scale-up method is a promising technique that uses sampled social network data to estimate the
sizes of epidemiologically important hidden populations, such as sex workers and people who inject illicit drugs.
Although previous scale-up research has focused exclusively on networks of acquaintances, we show that the
type of personal network about which survey respondents are asked to report is a potentially crucial parameter that
researchers are free to vary. This generalization leads to a method that is more flexible and potentially more accurate.
In 2011, we conducted a large, nationally representative survey experiment in Rwanda that randomized respondents
to report about one of 2 different personal networks. Our results showed that asking respondents for
less information can, somewhat surprisingly, produce more accurate size estimates. We also estimated the sizes
of 4 key populations at risk for human immunodeficiency virus infection in Rwanda. Our estimates were higher than
earlier estimates from Rwanda but lower than international benchmarks. Finally, in this article we develop a new
sensitivity analysis framework and use it to assess the possible biases in our estimates. Our design can be customized
and extended for other settings, enabling researchers to continue to improve the network scale-up method
An Experimental Study of Cryptocurrency Market Dynamics
As cryptocurrencies gain popularity and credibility, marketplaces for
cryptocurrencies are growing in importance. Understanding the dynamics of these
markets can help to assess how viable the cryptocurrnency ecosystem is and how
design choices affect market behavior. One existential threat to
cryptocurrencies is dramatic fluctuations in traders' willingness to buy or
sell. Using a novel experimental methodology, we conducted an online experiment
to study how susceptible traders in these markets are to peer influence from
trading behavior. We created bots that executed over one hundred thousand
trades costing less than a penny each in 217 cryptocurrencies over the course
of six months. We find that individual "buy" actions led to short-term
increases in subsequent buy-side activity hundreds of times the size of our
interventions. From a design perspective, we note that the design choices of
the exchange we study may have promoted this and other peer influence effects,
which highlights the potential social and economic impact of HCI in the design
of digital institutions.Comment: CHI 201
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Assessing Network Scale-up Estimates for Groups Most at Risk of HIV/AIDS: Evidence From a Multiple-Method Study of Heavy Drug Users in Curitiba, Brazil
One of the many challenges hindering the global response to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic is the difficulty of collecting reliable information about the populations most at risk for the disease. Thus, the authors empirically assessed a promising new method for estimating the sizes of most at-risk populations: the network scale-up method. Using 4 different data sources, 2 of which were from other researchers, the authors produced 5 estimates of the number of heavy drug users in Curitiba, Brazil. The authors found that the network scale-up and generalized network scale-up estimators produced estimates 5–10 times higher than estimates made using standard methods (the multiplier method and the direct estimation method using data from 2004 and 2010). Given that equally plausible methods produced such a wide range of results, the authors recommend that additional studies be undertaken to compare estimates based on the scale-up method with those made using other methods. If scale-up-based methods routinely produce higher estimates, this would suggest that scale-up-based methods are inappropriate for populations most at risk of HIV/AIDS or that standard methods may tend to underestimate the sizes of these populations
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