Download 3b (English) Elearning Networks_IBICT_2009

Supporting Distributed Relationships:
A study of relations and media use over time
Caroline Haythornthwaite
Graduate School of Library and Information Science
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
[email protected]
IBICT, June 2009
In-Depth Study of
Two Distributed E-Learning Classes
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Who talks to whom, about what, and via which
media?
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How does the configuration of work requirements and
media use affect who talks to whom, about what, and
via which media?
How does this configuration affect interactions among
members of such groups?
Distributed Environment
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Distance Program
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Master’s program for online learners
Initial face-to-face 2-week “boot camp”
All other courses completed at a distance
Students at a distance from campus and each other
Internet-based instruction and interaction
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Lectures: Real-Audio and Chat
Homework & Assignments: Discussion Boards, Web
Pages, Email
Group-wide communication: Discussion Boards, Chat
Person-to-person communication: Chat whispers,
Email, Phone
Data Collection
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Each month for three months, members of two classes
were asked:
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How often, over the last month, did you
1.
2.
3.
4.
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With each other member of the class and via each of the
available media
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Chat, Webboard, Email, Phone
At end of semester, also collected data on friendship
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Collaborate on class work
Exchange information or advice about class work
Socialize
Exchange emotional support
Friend (Close Friend, Friend) or Non-Friend (someone they
worked with only, or just another member of the class)
Data were collected by phone. A student research assistant
called each person and asked them the questions.
Different Class Structures
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Class F97
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Live lecture with Chat weekly
Bulletin board postings required weekly
Grading based on Group projects
14 members (13 participants)
Class F98
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Live lecture with Chat weekly
Bulletin board -- used early but abandoned
Weekly exercises with different pairs of students
responsible for discussion each week
Grading based on Individual projects
19 members (15 participants)
Social Networks Basics
Actors
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Nodes in the network
Interact and maintain
relations with each other
Relations
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Lines in the network
Connect actors in specific
kinds of interaction
Ties
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Lines between actors
Ties exist between actors
who are connected by one
or more relations
Networks
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Whole configuration of ties
and actors
Configurations of discussion board
conversations in two online classes
2001 and 2002
The Social Informatics of Elearning
Analysis
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Social network analysis used to examine:
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The size of the personal networks in these classes
 How many people a class member reports interacting
with overall, and about each kind of relation
How media were used to maintain social network ties
How friendship affected media use
Changes over time
Friendship effects
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Friends talk to each other more frequently, about more
types of things (relations), and via more media
Regression analysis shows frequency of communication
(log) is positively associated with the number of relations
maintained and the number of media used in both
classes.
N Frequency Relations Media
F97
Non-Friends
95
41.1
3.03
2.36
Friends
49
77.1
3.45
2.82
---------------------------------------------------F98
Non-Friends
184
20.0
3.27
1.59
Friends
19
92.2
3.95
2.95
(N is the number of pairs)
(Frequency of 60 is approximately once a day over the semester)
Average number of people students report talking to
(their personal network size) and
Mean frequency of communication by relation.
Note: Friends communicate more about everything.
The Social Informatics of Elearning
12
10
40
4
4
35
4
30
3
8
25
7
3
7
6
7
3
20
6
2
15
4
4
10
4
3
2
1
5
1
0
0
CW
EI
SO
F97
ES
CW
EI
SO
ES
F98
Yellow & Diamond=Non-Friends; White & Square=Friends
Average personal network size and
Mean frequency of communication by medium
Note: High email use by friends
70
14
1
The Social Informatics of Elearning
12
60
12
8
1
3
10
1
9
9
7
6
4
1
4
10
50
40
30
2
20
6
3
2
10
1
0
0
IRC
Webbrd
Email
F97
Phone
IRC
Webbrd
Email
Phone
F98
Bottom & Diamond=Non-Friends; Top & Square=Friends
Differentiation between
Weak and Strong Ties
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Number of relations maintained and number of
media used increases with increasing frequency of
communication
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“Media multiplexity”
Media use conforms to a unidimensional scale
(Guttman scaling)
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(1) Chat + (2) Discussion + (3) Email + (4) Phone
Weaker ties (low frequency of communication)
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Use only the media required for class: Chat and
Discussion Boards
Stronger ties (high frequencey of communication)
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Use class media + optional media: Email, Phone
Changes Over Time: Relations
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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In the first month, those who work together are those
who socialize together
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From the first to the second month, network sizes and
range of relations increased
From the second to the third month, network sizes and
range of relations decreased
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This suggests socializing as pre-requisite or co-requisite for
work relations
This suggests a wider circulation of ideas, information, etc.
during the second month
Over time, individuals engaged with fewer people
with whom they maintained more relations, i.e., with
stronger ties
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F97: narrow to strong work relations
F98: narrow to those with whom they socialize
Dual Pattern of Media Use
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Unidimensional scale showed that
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This shows
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Required media connect weak ties
Optional media were added by those with stronger
work or social ties
(1) the type of medium selected by the instructor as
the required class medium has an effect on who talks
to whom via which media
(2) the type of tasks selected by the instructor as the
required class tasks has an effect on who maintains
strong ties with whom, and thus also who talks to
whom via which media
Let’s look at some pictures …
F97: Collaborative work via IRC and Email by Time
Chat
Month 1
Month 2
Month 3
Email
Group projects; Webboard also used for discussion, connected all to all.
F98: All communications, IRC and Email by Time
Chat
Month 1
Month 2
Month 3
Email
No group project; Rotating pairs for presentations; Webboard use started but
abandoned in this class; it connected very few after abandonment
Differences due to Class Structures
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Class F97
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Semester-long projects created a focus on work-oriented
relationships and thus increased the importance of work ties
Interactions, including socializing, became highly organized
around project team members
Class F98
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Changing pairs of presenters did not provide an enduring
basis for work-oriented relationships and individuals fell back
on social ties
Relationships become those associated with socializing,
built on non-work ties
Conclusions
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Different organizational mandates lead to the formation of
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Two patterns of interaction for groups …
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Different bases for relationships (e.g., work or social)
Different social structures
Different media use
Class-wide exchange of information
Task-focused work completion
And two patterns of media use
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Low frequency, group-wide exchanges with the class as a
whole, supported through group-mandated media
Higher frequency, close-tie exchanges with team members
and friends, supported through group media plus optional
media
The Social Informatics of Elearning
Recommendations
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Awareness of dual demands for support of weak and
strong tie exchanges
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Recognition of the impact of group-mandated means of
communication on group structures
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weak tie contact for exposure to new information, and new
others with whom stronger relationships may be built
strong tie contact for completion of tasks, help in a crisis,
interpersonal support
creates a latent tie infrastructure through which weak ties
can be initiated
forms group media use structures
Recognition of the impact of group-mandated forms of
interaction on group structures
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organizational decisions also lay the groundwork for latent
and weak tie formation
The Social Informatics of Elearning
Recommendations
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Provide
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a variety of means and opportunities for
communication, including means for
 group-wide, public communication
 person-to-person, private communication
technical, social and organizational interventions
that promote
 group-wide sharing of information and resources
 the growth of weak ties into stronger, selfsustaining ties
References
The Social Informatics of Elearning
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Haythornthwaite, C. (2003). Supporting distributed
relationships: Social networks of relations and
media use over time. Electronic Journal of
Communication, 13(1).
http://www.cios.org/getfile/haythorn_v13n1
Haythornthwaite, C. (2001). Exploring multiplexity:
Social network structures in a computer-supported
distance learning class. The Information Society,
17(3), 211-226.
Haythornthwaite, C. (2000). Online personal
networks: Size, composition and media use among
distance learners. New Media and Society, 2(2),
195-226.