Röchert Daniel, Cargnino Manuel, Neubaum German
University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg, Germany.
J Comput Soc Sci. 2022;5(2):1159-1205. doi: 10.1007/s42001-022-00161-z. Epub 2022 Apr 26.
Opinion leaders (OLs) are becoming increasingly relevant on social networking sites as their visibility can help to shape their followers' attitudes toward a variety of issues. While earlier research provided initial evidence on the effect of OLs using agent-based modeling, it remains unclear how OLs affect their network environment and, therefore, the opinion climate when: (a) they publicly hold ambivalent attitudes, and (b) they not only express support for their own stance but also discredit or 'debunk' the opposing side. This paper presents an agent-based model that determines the influence of OLs in social networks in relation to ambivalence and discreditation. The model draws on theoretical foundations of OLs as well as attitudinal ambivalence and was implemented using two network topologies. Results indicate that OLs have significant influence on the opinion climate and that an unequal number of OLs of different opinion camps lead to an imbalance in the opinion climate only in certain situations. Furthermore, OLs can dominate the opinion climate and turn their stance into a majority opinion more effectively when discrediting the opposing side. Ambivalent OLs, on the other hand, can contribute to greater balance in the opinion climate. These findings provide a more nuanced analysis of OLs in social networks by pointing to potential amplifications as well as boundaries of their influence. Implications are discussed with a focus on human and artificial key actors in online networks and their efficacy therein.
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s42001-022-00161-z.
意见领袖（OLs）在社交网站上的影响力日益凸显，因为他们的知名度有助于塑造其追随者对各种问题的态度。虽然早期研究通过基于主体的建模提供了关于意见领袖影响力的初步证据，但仍不清楚意见领袖在以下情况下如何影响其网络环境以及舆论氛围：（a）他们公开持有矛盾态度；（b）他们不仅表达对自己立场的支持，还诋毁或“揭穿”对方。本文提出了一个基于主体的模型，用于确定意见领袖在社交网络中与矛盾态度和诋毁行为相关的影响力。该模型借鉴了意见领袖的理论基础以及态度矛盾理论，并使用两种网络拓扑结构进行实现。结果表明，意见领袖对舆论氛围有显著影响，不同意见阵营中意见领袖数量不均仅在某些情况下会导致舆论氛围失衡。此外，意见领袖在诋毁对方时能够更有效地主导舆论氛围并将自己的立场转变为多数意见。另一方面，持有矛盾态度的意见领袖有助于使舆论氛围更加平衡。这些发现通过指出意见领袖影响力的潜在放大效应及其边界，对社交网络中的意见领袖进行了更细致入微的分析。文中讨论了相关影响，重点关注在线网络中的人类和人工关键参与者及其在其中的效力。
在线版本包含可在10.1007/s42001-022-00161-z获取的补充材料。
