Social Networks, Online Communities, and Social Media

Understanding the risks, impacts, motivators, and benefits of online information sharing.

Research Projects

Mitigating online COVID misinformation costs: From individual to field interventions
Principal Investigator(s): Giovanni Luca Ciampaglia
Funder: Social Science Research Council Other
Research Areas: Data Science, Analytics, and Visualization > Social Networks, Online Communities, and Social Media
This project will conduct one of the most systematic tests to date of the welfare effects of altering information environments by decreasing exposure to untrustworthy sources. Researchers will encourage social media users to change the composition of the accounts they follow and measure the effect of this intervention on real-world behavior. This design will provide a building block for future research on the effects of online information exposure on offline behavior.
Crowdsourced Data: Accuracy, Accessibility, Authority (CDAAA)
Principal Investigator(s): Victoria Van Hyning
Funder: Institute of Museum and Library Services
Research Areas: Accessibility and Inclusive Design > Digital Humanities > Information Justice, Human Rights, and Technology Ethics > Library and Information Science > Social Networks, Online Communities, and Social Media
CDAAA explores the sociotechnical barriers libraries, archives, and museums face in integrating crowdsourced transcriptions to discovery systems. Using data from surveys, semi-structured interviews, data integration demonstrations, and user testing with people who use screen readers, we will produce individualized LAM Partner Reports, a summative white paper, and open-access journal articles.
Inverting Colonial Archival Structures: Increasing Discovery and Access for Indigenous Communities through SNAC
Principal Investigator(s): Diana E. Marsh
Funder: Institute of Museum and Library Services Other
Research Areas: Accessibility and Inclusive Design > Archival Science > Digital Humanities > Library and Information Science > Social Networks, Online Communities, and Social Media
Inverting Colonial Archival Structures: Increasing Discovery and Access for Indigenous Communities through SNAC (Indigenize SNAC) aims to test discovery and access of archival records for indigenous communities through the web platform Social Networks for Archival Contexts (SNAC). The project is funded by the IMLS Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian program.

Recent News

Image of a little girl holding a photo of a nose in front of her own.

AP News: Meta’s Enforcement of Manipulated Media Policies (ft. Jen Golbeck)

INFO Professor Jen Golbeck comments on online misinformation
Photo of the Facebook logo on a computer screen.

Maryland Today: To Like or Not to Like – Facebook at 20 (ft. Cody Buntain)

Facebook changed the world, but not always for good - a UMD expert explains its complicated legacy