Song Juyoung, Song Tae Min, Seo Dong-Chul, Jin Dal-Lae, Kim Jung Sun
1 Administration of Justice, Pennsylvania State University , Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania.
2 Research Center on Big Data, Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs , Seoul, South Korea .
Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw. 2017 Jan;20(1):22-29. doi: 10.1089/cyber.2016.0126. Epub 2017 Jan 4.
We investigated online diffusion of information, spread of fear, and perceived risk of infection to Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) as cases of MERS spread rapidly and dozens of fatalities occurred in South Korea in May-June of 2015. This study retrieved 8,671,695 MERS-related online documents from May 20 to June 18, 2015, from 171 Korean online channels and analyzed such documents by using multilevel models and data mining with Apriori algorithm association analysis. We used R software (version 3.2.1) for the association analysis data mining and visualization. Buzz with negative emotions (i.e., anxiety or fear) was more prevalent in online discussion boards, Twitter, and online cafes than news sites and blogs. News buzz (b = 0.21, p < 0.001), but not rumor buzz (b = 0.06, p = 0.308), was associated with positive MERS emotions (i.e., being calm or composed). The mention of eating immunity-boosting food in the news led to a 94 percent chance of a positive MERS emotion and that such a chance of showing a positive emotion was 4.75 times higher than that without such a mention (support of 0.001, confidence of 0.94, and lift of 4.75). Even with the same precautionary messages that were disseminated, they yielded the opposite emotional reactions to people depending on the channel through which the messages were communicated. In the face of a novel and highly contagious disease such as MERS, the government must deploy a response system that includes provision and dissemination of reliable information and inhibits online diffusion of false information.
2015年5月至6月间，中东呼吸综合征（MERS）病例在韩国迅速传播，出现了数十例死亡病例，我们针对MERS相关信息的网络传播、恐慌情绪蔓延以及感染风险认知展开了调查。本研究从171个韩国网络渠道中检索了2015年5月20日至6月18日期间的8671695份与MERS相关的网络文档，并运用多层次模型以及Apriori算法关联分析的数据挖掘方法对这些文档进行分析。我们使用R软件（版本3.2.1）进行关联分析的数据挖掘与可视化处理。带有负面情绪（如焦虑或恐惧）的舆论在在线论坛、推特和网吧中比在新闻网站和博客中更为普遍。新闻舆论（b = 0.21，p < 0.001），而非谣言舆论（b = 0.06，p = 0.308），与积极的MERS情绪（如冷静或沉着）相关。新闻中提及食用增强免疫力的食物会带来94%的可能性产生积极的MERS情绪，且出现积极情绪的可能性比未提及这种食物时高出4.75倍（支持度为0.001，置信度为0.94，提升度为4.75）。即便传播的是相同的预防信息，根据信息传播的渠道不同，人们产生的情绪反应却截然相反。面对像MERS这样新型且具有高度传染性的疾病，政府必须部署一个应对系统，包括提供和传播可靠信息，并抑制虚假信息在网络上的传播。
