Echo chamber effects in signed networks

Fuente: arXiv
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Hauptverfasser: Vendeville, Antoine, Diaz-Diaz, Fernando
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2024
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author Vendeville, Antoine
Diaz-Diaz, Fernando
author_facet Vendeville, Antoine
Diaz-Diaz, Fernando
contents Echo chamber effects in social networks are generally attributed to the prevalence of interactions among like-minded peers. However, recent evidence has emphasized the role of hostile interactions between opposite-minded groups. We investigate the role of polarization, identified with structural balance, in the formation of echo chambers in signed networks. To do so, we generalize the Independent Cascade Model and the Linear Threshold Model to describe information propagation in presence of negative edges. Antagonistic connections do not disrupt the flow of information, but instead, alter the way information is framed. Our results show that echo chambers spontaneously emerge in balanced networks, but also in antibalanced ones for specific parameters. This highlights that structural polarization and echo chambers do not necessarily display a one-to-one correspondence, showing instead a complex and often counterintuitive interplay. The robustness of our results is confirmed with a complex contagion model and through simulations in different network topologies, including real-world datasets.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2406_17435
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Echo chamber effects in signed networks
Vendeville, Antoine
Diaz-Diaz, Fernando
Physics and Society
Echo chamber effects in social networks are generally attributed to the prevalence of interactions among like-minded peers. However, recent evidence has emphasized the role of hostile interactions between opposite-minded groups. We investigate the role of polarization, identified with structural balance, in the formation of echo chambers in signed networks. To do so, we generalize the Independent Cascade Model and the Linear Threshold Model to describe information propagation in presence of negative edges. Antagonistic connections do not disrupt the flow of information, but instead, alter the way information is framed. Our results show that echo chambers spontaneously emerge in balanced networks, but also in antibalanced ones for specific parameters. This highlights that structural polarization and echo chambers do not necessarily display a one-to-one correspondence, showing instead a complex and often counterintuitive interplay. The robustness of our results is confirmed with a complex contagion model and through simulations in different network topologies, including real-world datasets.
title Echo chamber effects in signed networks
topic Physics and Society
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2406.17435