Who Networks. The Social Psychology of Virtual Communities

摘要

This thesis explores recent thinking regarding the organizational restructuring of special operations forces (SOF) to optimize their use of advances in information technologies in the global war on terrorism (GWOT). These ideas have implied the need to push decisional authority away from the center and to distribute it among regionally diverse teams based on the proposition that because the new generation of terrorists seems to operate in flat open-ended associations we must mirror their strategy. To do this SOF members must be able among other things to maximize the advantages afforded by information technologies. They must be fully capable (fluent and adept) at operating in through and upon networks. Networkers the 'digerati,' or in the case of the military netwarriors must possess the components of network capital (access to technology computer literacy and social networking ability) a strong tendency to engage in trusting behavior high cognitive ability and some education. These qualities are useful in not only specialized information warriors, but also all across a highly networked military in general. Virtual communities (i.e. societies that form and exist mostly in cyberspace) offer a mosaic of social behaviors and practices that may provide models for virtual organization(s) within the military Computer-mediated communications technologies (CMCTs) provide an inherently neutral but polymorphic forum for human social interaction (cyberspace). Specific emergent social topology (real or virtual) depends on the local social needs of individuals and/or bounded groups (communities). Because differences in topology are emergent topological models have little predictive value. Virtual communities are better understood and predicted through an analysis of their metadata. Virtual communities can best be characterized as open or clandestine, according to their purpose, accessibility, level of trust, and primary mode of connectedness (bonding or bridging ties).