ABSTRACT

In this paper, we analyze data on the opinion dynamics of 1,660,927 users of an online social network using formal models of opinion formation. We have observed that moderate users have a tendency to follow the average opinion of their online friends, which we interpret as a presence of bounded confidence. Further, we have discovered that the probability of moving toward the average opinion goes down if the difference between it and the user’s opinion is too large. Another interesting feature uncovered is that if a user’s opinion and the average opinion of their online friends are very similar, the influence also decreases.

中文翻译：

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意见形成的正式模型及其在真实数据中的应用：来自在线社交网络的证据

摘要

在本文中，我们使用正式的意见形成模型分析了在线社交网络的 1,660,927 名用户的意见动态数据。我们观察到，温和的用户倾向于遵循他们在线朋友的平均意见，我们将其解释为存在有限的信心。此外，我们发现，如果平均意见与用户意见之间的差异太大，则趋向平均意见的概率会下降。另一个有趣的发现是，如果用户的意见和他们在线朋友的平均意见非常相似，影响力也会降低。