Utilizing hybrid method for video image Compression

Developing Social Network Analysis of Self-expression in The Blogosphere Yao-Hsu Tsai, Shuang-Chuan Chen

Developing Social Network Analysis of Self-expression in The Blogosphere 1

1,

Yao-Hsu Tsai, 2Shuang-Chuan Chen Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Lee-Ming Institute of Technology,[email protected] 2, Dong-Yu Academic Center,[email protected]

Abstract Blogs have become a way for people to share knowledge and interact in the fields of education, journalism, and culture. In this research, we will develop a social network analysis to understand the blog world. Through a social network approach analysts can study how information flows through network ties, how people acquire information and resources, and how cleavages and coalitions operate. Blogs have become influential communication tools, and regardless of our perceptions of them, they have indeed changed our lives.

Keywords: Blog, Social Network, Self-expression 1. Introduction The term “blog” is a shortened form of “weblog,” a personal Internet diary [1]which is updated periodically by writers regarding their life experience [2,3]. A computer-mediated communication (CMC) tool among people [4] blogs serve as online homes for different communities, Sincorporating various platforms [1] which are interactive and provide links to information articles, photos, and videos. The major function of a blog is the presentation of everyday life, providing users with an Internet platform to record lifeexperience, share personal information, and be creative[1]. Blog have been widely embraced across the world with their emphasis on sharing personal ideas and stories with others [5]. Many people read news posted on blogs and believe the blog will eventually replace the news report as the future platform [6,7]. Blogs were first designed by Tim Berners-Lee at CERN [8], in 1991. Dave Winer first used the blog format in 1996 [9]. One year later, Jorm Barger came up with a new word weblog [3], which he explained was a way of recording on a webpage. In 1999, Peter Merholz used the term “We Blog,” with “we” representing the call for collective action, in contrast to “blog,” which highlights individuality. Blog, then, are products produced through interactive processes that characterize the rapid development of computer technology and Internet sharing.However, academic research on blogs is rather limited. Previous studies on blogs include [10], who examined the use of blog subjects from 125 randomly selected blogs. Gumbrecht, Nardi and Scheiano[11,3] studies reasons why people use blogs, along with the relationships between writers and readers. In addition Herring et al. (2004) conducted a quantitative analysis on the qualities, reasons for usage, and times of use of 203 randomly selected blogs. Lastly, Lento et al. [12] analyzed activity patterns of blog users. Blogging was designed to be a means for a new specific Internet users to record their life experiences, and that practice gradually carried over to the general public [5]. In 2001, the catastrophic terrorist attack on the World Trade Center shook the world. In the wake of this tragedy, people needed a channel to provide support, show concern for one another, and heal their psychological wounds. Blogs thus served as bridge for people to communicate and share. In 2003, CNN and other media gave heavy coverage to the blog phenomenon. Schools such as Harvard and Stanford provided blog systems for students and faculty members [13]. In the business world, Google saw the future potential in blogs and merged with Pyra Labs. In 2004, presidential candidates Bob Graham, Gen Wesley Clark, George W. Bush, Howard Dean, Joe Lieberman, John Kerry, and others chose blogs to communicate with their supporters [14,15].

International Journal of Digital Content Technology and its Applications(JDCTA) Volume5,Number11,November 2011 doi:10.4156/jdcta.vol5.issue11.29

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Online businesses providing users with blog services have been widely developed and the application of blogs expanded. There have been great increases in the number of blog users, network news coverage of blogs (CNN), and Internet searches of blogs (Google, Yahoo). As result, Internet application services have been attracted to blogs, and it is evident that blogs will be of prime business interest to communication and technology services [3,16.17]. Blogs have become influential communication tools, and regardless of our perceptions of them, they have indeed changed our lives. In addition to examining self-expression motivation, goal-orientation motivation, and sociability motivation, this research will also explore how individual motivation and the social presence affect perceived performance and behavior. In answering the questions why a logical person blogs and why a person reads a blog, the Task-Technology Fit Model (Goodhue and Thompson, 1995) will be used. Basically, the core of this model is a formal construct Task-Technology Fit (TTF), which, according to Goodhue and Thompson [18] is the matching of the capabilities of the technology to the demands of the task; in other words, the ability of IT to support a task. This model has four major constructs: (1) Task Characteristics, (2) Technology Characteristics, which together affect (3) TTF, which in turn affects the outcome variable, either (4) Utilization or Performance. Following the TTF model, IT will be used if, and only if, the functions available to the bloggers fit their activities. In other words, the TTF model suggests that the adoption of technology depends partly on how well the technology fits the requirements of a particular task. A technology will be adopted if it is “… a good fit with the task it supports” (Goodhue & Thompson, 1995, p. 213). The TTF model assumes that IS gives value by being instrumental in some task or collection of tasks and that users will reflect this in their evaluations of the systems. Thus, the strongest link between IS and performance impacts will be due to a correspondence between task needs and system functionality (task-technology fit). As task needs (or the abilities of the users) change, the "best" type of information system will change as well. Thus, task characteristics (and individual characteristics) will "moderate" the strength of the link between specific characteristics of information systems and users' evaluations of those information systems. Moreover, in the TTF framework, rational, experienced bloggers will choose those tools and methods that enable them to complete the task with the greatest net benefit. The TTF model hypothesizes that IT that does not offer sufficient advantage will not be used. Goodhue and Thompson[18] added Individual Abilities in the TTF model. This inclusion is supported by both Work Adjustment Theory from which TTF was originally derived and recent MIS studies in which Experience with particular IT is generally associated with higher Utilization of that IT[19].Tasks have been examined on different levels and in terms of different characteristics, including repetitiveness, structure, ambiguity, complexity of cognitive processes, etc. In organizational and social sciences, tasks are typically assessed according to their complexity (simple versus complex). The management and strategy literature focuses on different functions within the organization, such as management and leadership tasks versus operational and administrative tasks. In recent years, information and knowledge tasks have received particular attention[20]. A common distinction is made between simple and complex tasks. Typically, simple tasks are not discussed further but mentioned almost in passing to distinguish and discuss more complex processes. In this sense, simple tasks are often described as structured, repetitive, and programmable.

2. Statement of the Problem and Goal According to the 2005 report by The Pew Internet and American Life Project more than 8 million Americans have designed their own blogs, and an estimated 32 million people have reported browsing blogs [6]. According to the study conducted by Technorati on the blog, more than 10 billion blogs had been created across the world by 2005, with about 40 to 50 thousand new blogs appearing daily. Bloggers post articles and opinions on other blogs with affect resource. Through messages and links to other blogs, blog communities comprise a dialogue-based social network [7]. Recent research indicates that only 51.2% of blogs include links to other blogs, whereas 48.8% does not link to others [8]. Popular blogs (A-list) possess a large group of readers who share common interests [8]. As most the blogs do not connect to other blogs, and display unevenly distributed links to non-A-list blogs [9]. Herring et al. argue that the asymmetrical numbers of links

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among A-list blogs and non-A-list blogs will emerge as the theme for the study of reciprocal links in the future. However, since A-list blogs may contain few or no links, the questions of arises as to how representative such characterizations are of the blog. Hence, it is worthwhile to examine similarities and differences in social networks structure, between A-list and non-A-list blogs. Blogs represent personal virtualization. Blog writers express their inner world in the form of a diary [5], which allows readers to understand the writers‟ personal qualities and behaviors. Blogs reflect the writers‟ values and thinking behavior through the sharing of personal information [3]. Through this interactive communication, a new communication pattern has been created. Moreover, writers tend to be selective in their words and in the issues they address. Fujimura et al. suggests that the blog is a reflection of writers‟ personal quality and conscience, and therefore the style of articles in blogs is a noteworthy subject of study. Nardi et al. [3] indicates that future research should focus on the issue of how writers attract readers and the issue of self-expression of users in the blog system and in the offline mode. As a result, it is also important to investigate the difference between the shaping of self-expression by writers in the eyes of readers and their performance in the real-life settings. Blog services intended to satisfy the daily needs of the blogger are growing at a rate that will have substantial influence on the larger information infrastructure. However, it is unclear whether the blog will realize its potential in terms of such factors as user‟s utilization, and performance. Paralleling the unprecedented growth in blog presence by business, organizations, and information service providers is the rapid growth of access to and usage of the Internet at home, and elsewhere. The actual number of individual blogs in existence is unknown because blogs are being created at an outstanding rate. No definitive statistic is available for the number of individual blog sites, according to the study conducted by Technorati (2006) on the blog, more than 10 billion blogs had been created across the world by 2007, with about 120 thousand new blogs appearing daily and 150 thousand new articles.This vast and rapidly growing number of new bloggers has led to the provision of a multitude of new possibilities implying a number of new aspects to consider when designing, and designing with, information systems and services. Bloggers‟ profiles may be less homogenous than earlier and therefore their needs are harder to define. Information service providers aiming to build successful blog systems must attract voluntary bloggers to design the ease of usage and performance through blog software. In contrast to the proliferation of blog service worldwide, related IS research is scant. There is little theoretical work in the literature that considers the relationships between the blogosphere and the cognitive, behavioral, and decision measures of bloggers. The blog is now competing with e-commerce and information services by providing an alternative way for individuals to satisfy their needs, whether in work- or non-work activities. A common differentiation strategy among information service providers is to tailor content to serve bloggers‟ needs. This is accomplished by deploying intelligent personalization agents to collect and analyze blog activities and transaction to generate highly adaptive content for bloggers. While there is a lot of hype about delivering personalized services over the Internet, little is known about the effectiveness of individualized blogs, or the relationship between information service provider characteristics and the effects on users. Moreover, researchers suggest that a high level of information adaptation will eliminate disruptive interruptions. The result is a shift of information control to the blogger, allowing them to specify and control their interactions with other bloggers. Moreover, researchers suggest that a high level of information adaptation will eliminate disruptive interruptions. The result is a shift of information control to the blogger, allowing them to specify and control their interactions with other bloggers. Blogs serve as a computer-mediated communication (CMC) tool among people allowing users to overcome some of the barriers of new media for two-way communication. Blog websits afford individuals the opportunity to construct two-way communication using text, symbols, photos, and digital stimuli to represent and express themselves. Bloggers who create individual blogs are engaging in whatcall “authenticating acts,” or “self-referential behaviors that actors feel reveal the „true‟ self” and frequently multiple true selves. The present study intends to analyze blogtopsites.com. In this research, we will develop a social network analysis to understand the blog world. The system can draw a social network graph in an ego-centered or core-periphery network layout and provide information on social network attributes of all users. Through analysis of the social network, we will construct a core-periphery structure [30] to explain this research. The purpose of this study is: a) to explore the social network of blogs and the meaning of writers‟ self-expressions and representations; b) to observe the nature of different social networks formed in A-list and non-A-list blogs; and finally c) to investigate the issue of self-expression

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reflected in the discussion forum between blog writers and readers as well as whether different kinds of self-expression will be displayed by blog writers of A-list and non-A-list blog writers, and the connotations behind self-expressions. The study will also examine whether different A-list and non-A-list and what the connotations are behind self-expressions.

3. Relevance and Significance of the Study The word cyber is derived from Greek “keyber,” meaning navigable space. In 1984, science-fiction writer William Gibson first used the concept of cyber in Neuromancer which indicates an freely accessible digital space formed by computer network.According to Gibson‟s definition, cyberspace is a conceptual space within the technology of information and technology rather than a simple technology.Stonesuggests that the Internet is not only the application of technology but is a major part in the development of communication. Interaction and communication in cyber are manifestations of social space in which different kinds of socially interactive relationships give rise to those manifestations. Morris and Ogan[31]point out that the Internet is a newly developed communication medium. Hence, the traditional category of public communication should not be applied to the Internet. They argue that one of the important concepts of cyberspace is the collective creation and participation of a critical mass. They believes that CMC is a better tool than face-to-face interaction, and thus refers to CMC as hyperpersonal communication. For more than 30 years computer-mediated communication has been recognized as building new social communities formed around interests. Attuned to the significance of these processes, researchers have been calling for more study of the Internet. Further exploration of network cyberspace is needed to understand the relationships and diversity of fast-changing information environments. The patter of blogs resembles that of personal webpage or news platforms in BBS and personal newsletters. Some people refer to the blogs as web diaries [1]. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary chose “blog” as the word of 2004, as it defines a personalized online diary which contains retrospection and commentary response, reflects writers‟ behavior, and provides links to other content. Blood considers that when writers establish a new blog, links to their favorable websites will be added to their personal blogs. In order to satisfy readers, writers update contents on a daily basis, which also helps to build up its reputation[5]. Blogs not only provide links to other blogs, but they also enable readers to freely express personal opinions and communicate with writers. This unique quality operates the same way as the social interface of CMC[5], which Blood believes is the highest manifestation of blogs. Herring, Scheidt, Bonus and Wright point out that blogs correspond more closely than CMC to the dialogue of interpersonal relationships. Herring et al. argue that all popular (A-list) blogs share the quality of possessing [5,6] great numbers of readers and exhibiting high reliability of information shared by writers [12,16]. Most blogs contain links which are used frequently. In addition, A-list blogs provide links to other popular blogs which predominately share the same or similar discussion subjects[13]. Blogs can be updated several times a day and facilitate discussions between writers and readers. Halavais[10]suggests that blogs not only satisfy individuals‟ external performance, but are intellectually stimulating and allow people to understand and observe the world in an unprecedented fashion . Social network researchers have asserted that when a computer network connects people or organizations, it can be fruitfully conceptualized as a social network [17,18]. A social network is a set of people connected by a set of socially-meaningful relationships. Graphs have been widely used in social network analysis (SNA) as a means of formally representing social relations and quantifying important social structural properties. Graph theory has been useful in SNA for many reasons. First, graph theory provides a vocabulary which can be used to label and denote many social structural properties. Second, it gives us mathematical operations and ideas with which many of these properties can be quantified and measured. When we use graphs to display social networks, we rename graphics as “sociograms”.Sociograms have been widely used in social network analysis as a means of formally representing social relations and quantifying important social structural properties.

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In social network analysis, one way of thinking about groups or organizations is in terms of core-periphery structure. This concept continues to be applied in study of areas as divergent as scientific citation networks, world economy, corporate structure, and small groups. Core-periphery structure can be divided into two sets: a core whose members are tightly to each other, and a periphery whose members have a stronger connection to the core than to each other. In cognition conception of the core-periphery structures, the core of the network is a single unit and cannot be divided into subgroups. However, Borgatti and Everett introduced a way of thinking about core-periphery structures as multiple cores, each with its own periphery. They addressed two models of the core-periphery structure: a discrete model and a continuous model. Social network analysts are interested in finding all relationships in the network, digging out the prominent patterns, and observing how information flows between dyads. Through a social network approach analysts can study how information flows through network ties, how people acquire information and resources, and how cleavages and coalitions operate. Social network analysis (SNA) has developed a range of concepts and methods for detecting structural patterns, identifying patterns of how different types of relationship interrelate, and analyzing the implications of structural patterns for the behavior of network members and their social relationships [19,20]. Social network analysts look beyond the specific attributes of individuals to consider relations among social actors. They pointed out four units of analysis: nodes (individuals), ties (relations or lines), multiplexity, and composition. A social network has a set of relations of ties, which can be viewed in two different ways. One approach, the ego-centered network, focuses on one node and puts it at the center of the network. Another approach is core-periphery structure, based on a partition of nodes such that some are the core and the others are the periphery. There are three measures that can calculate the most important ties in a social network. They are degree, closeness, and betweenness and are defined as follows Group degree centrality: (1) Cd=Σgi=1〔Cd（n*）—Cd（ni）〕／〔（g-1）（g-2）〕 Group closeness centrality: (2) Cc=Σgi=1〔Cc（n*）—Cc（ni）〕／〔（g-1）（g-2）〕／〔（2g-3）〕 Group betweenness centrality: (3) Cb=Σgi=1〔Cb（n*）—Cb（ni）〕／（g-1） Despite our efforts towards precision in this study, limitations still exist. First of all, in the sampling of blogs, only blogtopsites.com is selected as the research subject. Secondly, with regard to network blogs, many more A-list blogs are available for research purposes. Also, it is difficult to positively divide the sample betweenA-list and non-A-list. A-list is currently determined by PageRank (PR). The quality of the context is not considered in the PR rating. Moreover, the quality of the context in the new website is very good with the low PR rating will affect the factor for A-list. Lastly, only excerpts have been selected for analysis. Given these limitation, many noteworthy issues remain for future study, such as the responses and opinions from blog readers.

4. Results and Conclusions The wide spread of Internet technology, especially blogs, facilitates individuals to communicate synchronously or asynchronously. When people interact, they build their relations directly at the same time. In addition to these direct communications, when people access the blogs other individuals provide or contribute to, they also relate indirectly. SNA focuses on patterns of relations among people, organizations, and states [19] and discover what effects these relations and networks have on people and organizations. SNA treat the description of relational patterns as interesting in its own right. In this research, we use the frequency of links as the measure of the strength of the relations but we do not distinguish whether these relations are positive or negative. Besides, we ignore the strength of ties when computing some social network attributes, such as centrality, prestige, and strongly connected component (SCC) because of the limitation of these algorithms.

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This study explored social network analysis is a useful structure for examining blogs. The blog of networks contain a core and a periphery.It is useful to explain the behavior and attitudes of blog network members through SNA. The peripheral blogs (non-A-list) want more links and they feel themselves to be involved. The research finds in this study are: The pattern of links exists between the blogs in blogtopsites.com. The feedbackof blog is central and they are interconnected with cliques. A-list blogs are interlinked to non-A-list blogs about 7 percent. The writers‟ self-expression of A-list 83 percent and non-A-list 35 percent reflected to readers. Despite our efforts towards precision in this study, limitations still exist. First of all, in the sampling of blogs, only blogtopsites.com is selected as the research subject. Secondly, with regard to network blogs, many more A-list blogs are available for research purposes. Also, it is difficult to positively divide the sample betweenA-list and non-A-list. A-list is currently determined by PageRank (PR). The quality of the context is not considered in the PR rating. Moreover, the quality of the context in the new website is very good with the low PR rating will affect the factor for A-list. Lastly, only excerpts have been selected for analysis. Given these limitation, many noteworthy issues remain for future study, such as the responses and opinions from blog readers.

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