Social Motivations and Online Information Interactions

1. Shared relationships, spaces and online information behaviours A social exchange and capital perspective Presented by Dr Hazel Hall Reader in Social Informatics Centre for Social Informatics Edinburgh Napier University Scotland, UK h.hall@napier.ac.uk @hazelh (Twitter)

2. Research background Project team • Dr Hazel Hall, Edinburgh Napier University, Scotland • Professor Gunilla Widén-Wulff, Åbo Akademi University, Finland • Lorraine Paterson, User Vision, Edinburgh, Scotland • Brian Davison, Edinburgh Napier University, Scotland External funding • Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland

3. Research question To what extent are online information interactions socially motivated?

4. Research questions To what extent are online information interactions socially motivated? How strong a role do hard/explicit rewards serve as incentives for online information sharing? To what extent does a desire to reciprocate prompt individuals to share information in online environments? How do existing social linkages predict interactions in an online information sharing environment? May an online environment develop an ecology that actively encourages online information sharing?

5. Research questions To what extent are online information interactions socially motivated? How strong a role do hard/explicit rewards serve as incentives for online information sharing? Hall, H., & Widén-Wulff, G. (2008). Social exchange, social capital and information sharing in online environments: lessons from three case studies. Social exchange, social capital and information sharing in online environments: lessons from three case studies. Studia Humaniora Ouluensia, 8, 73-86. PDF of manuscript available from: http://www.dcs.napier.ac.uk/~hazelh/esis/hall_widen_wulff_2008.pdf To what extent does a desire to reciprocate prompt individuals to share information in online environments? How do existing social linkages predict interactions in an online information sharing environment? May an online environment develop an ecology that actively encourages online information sharing?

6. Possible explanations for online information sharing behaviours Focus here is on one of the non-corporate environments discussed by Hall and Widén-Wulff (2008) • Edinburgh Napier University • Data from two cohorts (2007 and 2008) • Full paper to position the findings with growing literature base that ties online information sharing with social exchange theory, within a broader context of social capital

9. Exchange theory From economics • Economic resources are bought and sold • Deals are subject to contractual obligations • Resources are exchanged for currency • Purchaser choices are made from a range of options • Best value for lowest cost

10. Social exchange theory “Flavour” of exchange theory • “Resources” “bought” and “sold”, but mutual obligations are ill-defined • “Deals” not necessarily subject to contractual obligations • “Resources” not necessarily exchanged for currency • “Resources” exchanged may be valued more highly than market cost

11. Social exchange theory “Flavour” of exchange theory • “Resources” “bought” and “sold”, but mutual obligations are ill-defined • “Deals” not necessarily subject to contractual obligations • “Resources” not necessarily exchanged for currency • “Resources” exchanged may be valued more highly than market cost Actors share social bonds, and high levels of trust, in long-term dependent relationships

12. Applications of social exchange theory

13. Level 3 Information Delivery module Module content focused on organisational information delivery challenges • Information overload • Islands of automation • Audience Placement experience proxy for 3rd year undergraduates Mixed cohort • High proportion of international students: 46% non-native English speakers in 2008 • Full range of Computing programmes represented (e.g. Information Systems, Internet Computing, Multimedia, Networking, Human Computer Systems, Software Engineering), plus Customised

14. Evolution of the learning environment Move into the public space to widen opportunities for collective reflective learning through speaking out (blogging), listening (reading) and discussing (commenting).

15. 70% course assessed mark allocated to blogs and comments Main entries should • Be relevant to the week’s module content • Make links between theory and practice • Demonstrate understanding or highlight areas of difficulty • Justify points made, e.g. through reasoned argument, by referring to reading material, personal experience, etc. Comments should • Extend the line of argument of the original blog postings • Offer alternative views

19. Comments on blog entries Response to blog entry on course work mark Reflection on blogger’s observation about the week’s lab activity Discussion of football score

20. Data

22. Possible influences on online information exchanges

23. Possible influences on online information exchanges Which dominate(s)? Could social exchange theory explain information sharing practice in this online environment?

24. Relationships and reciprocation in “agreed” pairs F(62) A(29) S(63) Key

25. Relationships and reciprocation in “agreed” pairs Little reciprocation overall. Most reciprocation between “friend” pairs. Least reciprocation between “stranger” pairs. F(62) A(29) S(63) Key

26. Comparison of “friend” and “stranger” pairs The best hope for “stranger” pairs in this environment is for a little reciprocation. None Little Some Much Key

27. Strong evidence: influence of existing relationships on commenting practice ...it is so much easier to comment on my friends’ blogs since I understand their thinking better. The only comments I have received are from people that I know and I think it is the same for other students. I do the same as well. The majority of the time, my comments gravitated towards the logs of my friends if only because I was armed with the knowledge that they knew me and would not take anything I wrote the wrong way. In the first week I posted comments only to [my friends’] blogs to get comments from them on my own blog.

28. Strong evidence: influence of proximity on commenting practice - 2008 8 pairs demonstrated much reciprocation • 5 pairs: students shared the same degree programme • 2 pairs: students did not share the same degree programme, but did attend the same lab session • 1 pair: no obvious class contact

29. Strong evidence: influence of proximity on commenting practice - 2007 10 pairs demonstrated much reciprocation • All pair members shared the same degree programme • All pair members attended the same lab session • In some cases the pairs were also located in the same course work teams

30. Proximity: importance of shared degree programme The majority of pairs that demonstrated high levels of reciprocation comprised members who shared the same degree programme.

31. Friendship Socially motivated exchange Proximity

32. Evidence: influence of “soft” social reward of fame/status We were all aware that everyone was meant to comment on another two blog entries. Therefore you didn’t want to be seen as the one who had been left out , or less popular... ...comments can be very useful to motivate the blog’s author. Without comments a blog’s author can have the impression that his work is useless because it interests nobody. Receiving a comment almost acted as a seal of approval. It was rewarding to know that the blog had actually been read by someone [and] the time and effort to write the blog entries had been worthwhile. I don’t like not getting any comments – makes me feel like my blog wasn’t good enough to comment on.

33. Social rewards are in the gift of the blogging/commenting community? Main blog entries highlighted by tutor in 2008 • Public acknowledgement by tutor in class appeared to have no pronounced effect on that week’s commenting practice • Social reward from peers more valuable? However... • The work of almost half the students was highlighted • Mention for a variety of reasons, including humour and playfulness • Mentions limited to weeks 2 and 3 • Difficult to judge the potential impact of more explicit tutor intervention

34. Some evidence: influence of “hard” reward of marks Three levels of participation for the grade • Students conscious of the mark, yet still making an effort: information exchange in the online environment worth more than the mark alone - majority. • Reluctant participation: participation with an eye on the level of the mark to be achieved - some. • Minimal effort: sole purpose of participation is to gain a mark - few. I definitely don’t think that I would have created the blogs and posted comments had it not been part of the course work specification. What motivated me... to be perfectly honest, the fact that I’d fail if I did not do the commenting.

35. Evidence: influence of gift economy, and its development One thing I do feel when someone comments on my blog I feel obliged... to comment on theirs. [I am] a bit disappointed with the turn-out of comments on my blog site as I tried to harass people to post comments but I guess it didn’t work... If I posted more on other people’s blogs, perhaps I would have gotten more comments. ...as I went on, I started to comment on people who had commented on my posts...

36. Evidence: influence of the ecology of the online environment as developing social space I had read a blog or two, started to comment then changed my mind as I was being rather mean... Now I wish I had continued writing the comments, maybe softening the blows slightly... It could have helped them. I am not sure that [the requirement to debate] was made clear to us early on... that disagreeing with someone and having a healthy argument would be acceptable... [I thought] that causing friction would be looked on in a negative way with grades being cut off.

37. Context: social space for learning Blogosphere as scaffold of social infrastructure (Hall & Davison, 2007) • Support for discussion, feedback, learning • Safe environment to challenge and reflect on “realities” of the subjects studied • Community After reading this blog I think I will get some extra help from someone with experience [of the library portal] to avoid any problems that may arise. [Other students’] blogs about the topic help me understand the concepts. Your blog is a prime example of this. Thanks.

38. Influences on online information exchanges

39. Desire to maintain safe environment Social rewards Friendship Socially motivated exchange Proximity Gift economy Desire to reciprocate (Hard rewards)

40. Social exchange theory as an explanatory factor of information sharing online: implications Proximity • To what extent can dialogues be engineered across broad range of contacts where opportunities for physical co-location are minimal? • What kind of proxies can be provided for co-location where this is not possible? Rewards • Social rewards as strong motivators of participation in online information sharing environments Time • Participant familiarity with the environment and degree of risk

41. References Hall, H. (2001). Input-friendliness: motivating knowledge sharing across intranets. Journal of Information Science 27(3) 139-146 (DOI 10.1177/016555150102700303). PDF of full text available from http://www.knowledgeboard.com/lib/3259 Hall, H. & Davison, B. (2007). Social software as support in hybrid learning environments: the value of the blog as a tool for reflective learning and peer support. Library and Information Science Research, 29(2), 163-187. (DOI 10.1016/j.lisr.2007.04.007.) [Full-text available through ScienceDirect.] PDF of manuscript available from http://www.dcs.napier.ac.uk/~hazelh/esis/hall_davison_blogs_draft.pdf Hall, H., & Widén-Wulff, G. (2008). Social exchange, social capital and information sharing in online environments: lessons from three case studies. Social exchange, social capital and information sharing in online environments: lessons from three case studies. Studia Humaniora Ouluensia, 8, 73-86. PDF of manuscript available from: http://www.dcs.napier.ac.uk/~hazelh/esis/hall_widen_wulff_2008.pdf

42. Shared relationships, spaces and online information behaviours A social exchange and capital perspective Presented by Dr Hazel Hall Reader in Social Informatics Centre for Social Informatics Edinburgh Napier University Scotland, UK h.hall@napier.ac.uk @hazelh (Twitter)