Introduction to the Critical and Ethical Studies of Digital and Social Media Minitrack

2022 | HICSS | Citations: 0

Authors: Gillespie, Tarleton; Gray, Mary L.; Mason, Robert M.

Abstract: This minitrack focuses on two themes: a) studies that critically interrogate how ... Expand

Abstract: This minitrack focuses on two themes: a) studies that critically interrogate how and when digital and social media (DSM) support and/or challenge existing power structures or realign power structures—including power structures internal to organizational cultures—that affect underrepresented or marginalized groups, and b) the ethical issues associated with studying digital and social media content and practices, or associated with the design, engineering, deployment, and use of such technologies. Collapse

Topics: human computer interaction internet technology advertising management usability Tinder

Methods: personal interview mixed method case study design methodology

Online Communities and Dating apps: The effects of social presence, trust, and Covid-19

2021 | Americas Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: O. Diaz, Gabriel; Conrad, Colin

Abstract: The Covid-19 pandemic changed the dynamics of socialization by restricting one ... Expand

Abstract: The Covid-19 pandemic changed the dynamics of socialization by restricting one of its main avenues: inperson gatherings. This pushed people towards digital technology to fulfill their socialization needs. In this paper, we take steps to explore whether features of online communities can contribute to innovative dating app designs, given how dating app business models currently focus on independent one-on-one interactions. We conducted an exploratory survey of 200 participants concerning dating app use habits, perceptions of dating apps, as well as degrees of trust, social presence, and perceived ease of finding dates using three dating methods. We found that social presence and trust consistently predicted the perceived ease of finding dates for each method, and that the perceived ease of finding dates influenced whether participants reported increased use of the method during Covid-19. Together with the growth in online community participation, these results suggest that dating app platforms might benefit from incorporating social features in their designs. Collapse

Topics: online dating online community social presence pandemic affordance

Methods: survey parametric test data transformation simple linear regression paired t-test

Theories: technology acceptance model

Love Unshackled: Identifying the Effect of Mobile App Adoption in Online Dating

2019 | Management Information Systems Quarterly | Citations: 81

Authors: Jung, JaeHwuen; Bapna, Ravi; Ramaprasad, Jui; Umyarov, Akhmed

Abstract: The proliferation of smartphones and other mobile devices has led to numerous co ... Expand

Abstract: The proliferation of smartphones and other mobile devices has led to numerous companies investing significant resources in developing mobile applications, in every imaginable domain. As apps proliferate, understanding the impact of app adoption on key outcomes of interest and linking this understanding to the underlying mechanisms that drive these results is imperative. In this paper, we explore the changes in user behavior induced by adoption of a mobile application, in terms of engagement and matching outcomes in the online dating context. We also identify three mechanisms that are somewhat unique to the mobile environment, but are hitherto unestablished in the literature, that drive this shift in behavior: ubiquity, impulsivity, and disinhibition. Our main identification strategy uses propensity score matching combined with difference-in-differences, coupled with a rigorous falsification test to confirm the validity of our identification strategy. Our results demonstrate that mobile app adoption induces users to become more socially engaged as measured by key engagement metrics such as visiting significantly more profiles, sending significantly more messages, and importantly, achieving more matches. We also discover various mechanisms facilitating this increased engagement: ubiquity of mobile use—users log in more, and login across a wider range of hours in the day. We find that men act more impulsively, in that they are less likely to check the profile of a user who messaged them before replying to them. This effect is not visible for women who continue to be deliberate in their checking before replying even after adoption of the mobile app. Finally, we find that both men and women exhibit disinhibition, in that users initiate actions to a more diverse set of potential partners than they did before on dimensions of race, education, and height. Collapse

Topics: mobile application online dating user behavior website mobile channel

Methods: experimental group propensity score method propensity score matching difference in differences experiment

Phubbing: How Frequent? Who is Phubbed? In Which Situation? And Using Which Apps?

2018 | International Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Al-Saggaf, Yeslam; MacCulloch, Rachel

Abstract: Phubbing is snubbing others during a face-to-face conversation by engaging with ... Expand

Abstract: Phubbing is snubbing others during a face-to-face conversation by engaging with the smartphone instead of paying attention to them. The studies on phubbing focused mainly on the effect on relationships. This study addresses how often do smartphone users look at their smartphones while having a face-to-face conversation with others? Who do they phub the most? In which situations? And using which apps? An online survey of 387 participants revealed that the majority looked at their smartphone while having a conversation with others and that they mostly looked at their smartphones while having a face-to-face conversation with those closely related to them, i.e. partner and close friends. Participants reported they mostly looked at their smartphones while having a face-to-face conversation with others when commuting on public transport, and during work coffee/lunch breaks. Participants reported they mostly used the internet, Facebook and Outlook when they were having a face-to-face conversation with others. Collapse

Topics: smartphone mobile application digital service Facebook Facebook Messenger

Methods: survey Bonferroni correction Mann Whitney U test nonparametric test chi squared test

How Do You Turn a Mobile Device into a Political Tool?

2017 | HICSS | Citations: 0

Authors: Acker, Amelia; Beaton, Brian

Abstract: This paper reports on findings from an ongoing study of recent software applicat ... Expand

Abstract: This paper reports on findings from an ongoing study of recent software applications that attempt to turn mobile ICT’s into political tools. The software in question endeavors to make new types of political behavior expressible for ICT users. Two troubling trends were found. The first involves incommensurability between backend databases and the data traces generated by users. The second involves the production of data and metadata vulnerabilities. As part of discussing these trends, the authors introduce the idea of “minor apps” and argue for their importance within discussions of sociotechnical aspects of digital infrastructure. Collapse

Topics: mobile application mobile system database system smartphone information technology infrastructure

Privacy Risks in Mobile Dating Apps

2015 | Americas Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Choo, Kim-Kwang Raymond; Farnden, Jody; Martini, Ben

Abstract: Dating apps for mobile devices, one popular GeoSocial app category, are growing ... Expand

Abstract: Dating apps for mobile devices, one popular GeoSocial app category, are growing increasingly popular. These apps encourage the sharing of more personal information than conventional social media apps, including continuous location data. However, recent high profile incidents have highlighted the privacy risks inherent in using these apps. In this paper, we present a case study utilizing forensic techniques on nine popular proximity-based dating apps in order to determine the types of data that can be recovered from user devices. We recover a number of data types from these apps that raise concerns about user privacy. For example, we determine that chat messages could be recovered in at least half of the apps examined and, in some cases, the details of any users that had been discovered nearby could also be extracted. Collapse

Topics: mobile application online dating privacy database system Android

Methods: experiment case study survey

Mobile as a Channel: Evidence from Online Dating

2014 | International Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Jung, JaeHwuen; Umyarov, Akhmed; Bapna, Ravi; Ramaprasad, Jui

Abstract: While it has been widely documented that mobile users tend to differ from PC use ... Expand

Abstract: While it has been widely documented that mobile users tend to differ from PC users in their observed behavior, such differences cannot necessarily be attributed to adoption of the mobile app because of endogeneity issues in drawing inferences from observing users who decide to adopt the mobile app. In this paper, we causally explore the changes in user behavior as well as matching outcomes due to adopting a mobile app in the online dating context. We demonstrate that once users have adopted the mobile app, they become more ubiquitous in their use and also become more socially engaged. We also find that female adopters are able to achieve more matches and become more efficient in achieving matches per each message sent. As mobile app adoption becomes widespread, understanding the causal impact on social engagement and outcomes has implications for both end users as well as businesses investing in app development. Collapse

Topics: mobile application online dating website personal computer smartphone

Methods: experimental group causality analysis experiment propensity score matching longitudinal research