From user comments to on-line conversations

We present an analysis of user conversations in on-line social media and their evolution over time. We propose a dynamic model that predicts the growth dynamics and structural properties of conversation threads. The model reconciles the di↵ering observations that have been reported in existing studies. By separating artificial factors from user behavior, we show that there are actually underlying rules in common for on-line conversations in di↵erent social media websites. Results of our model are supported by empirical measurements throughout a number of di↵erent social media websites. Categories and Subject Descriptors J.4 [Computer Applications]: Social and Behavior Sciences; G.3 [Mathematics of Computing]: Probability and Statistics General Terms Human Factors, Theory, Measurement Keywords conversation dynamics, social networks

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2012
• Where: KDD
• Authors: Chunyan Wang, Mao Ye, Bernardo A. Huberman
• Keywords: Conversation Threads, Data Mining, Empirical Measurements, KDD 2012, Probability And Statistics