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Large-scale analysis of self-disclosure patterns among online social networks users: a Russian context

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Abstract

Online social network services (SNS) provide an unprecedented rich source of information about millions of users worldwide. However, most existing studies of this emerging phenomenon are limited to relatively small data samples, with an emphasis on mostly “western” online communities (such as Facebook and MySpace users in Western countries). To understand the cultural characteristics of users of online social networks, this paper explores the behavioral patterns of more than 16 million users of a popular social network in the Russian segment of the Internet, namely, My.Mail.Ru (also known as “My World” or “Moj Mir” in Russian). Our main goal is to study the self-disclosure patterns of the site users as a function of their age and gender. We compare the findings of our analysis to the previous studies on Western users of SNS and discuss the culturally distinctive aspects. Our study highlights some important cultural differences in usage patterns among Russian users, which call for further studies in SNS in various cultural contexts.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Konstanz, Universitaets Strasse 10, Box 78, 78457, Konstanz, Germany

    Slava Kisilevich

  2. School of Engineering and Digital Arts, University of Kent, Kent, UK

    Chee Siang Ang

  3. Department of Information Systems Engineering, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel

    Mark Last

Authors
  1. Slava Kisilevich
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  2. Chee Siang Ang
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  3. Mark Last
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Correspondence to Slava Kisilevich.

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Kisilevich, S., Ang, C.S. & Last, M. Large-scale analysis of self-disclosure patterns among online social networks users: a Russian context. Knowl Inf Syst 32, 609–628 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10115-011-0443-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10115-011-0443-z

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