"Every Home Is Wired":
3 -- The Progressive Rock Community on the Net
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Again, the variety of communication patterns possible on the Net is important: amid the confusing array of possible interactions even within one newsgroup -- one-to-one, few, and many, and similarly many-to-one, few, many, etc. -- newcomers will initially find it hard to establish themselves. As Kollock & Smith note, "generally, the larger the group, the more difficult it may be to affect others' outcomes by one's own actions. Thus, an individual may be discouraged from cooperating if his or her actions do not affect others in a noticeable way" (118). This in turn may lead to feelings of inferiority, and result in a tendency to disrupt (for example through the forms of grandstanding we have seen in the case of yesdick); alternatively, overwhelmed readers may choose to remain lurkers instead of venturing into the open. Also, even where newcomers do participate non-disruptively, they must learn to accept dissenting opinions -- in all, this is a process of generally accepting the newsgroup's ground rules. Since there are no immediate means of punishment, only the grounding of participants in community ideals and norms may restrict disruptive tendencies. Thus, Bit 57
social networks have two important functions: they exercise normative control on the behaviour of the individual, that is, they represent socialising institutions, sanction the behaviour, effect an integration into society or local communities and influence the formation of social identity. The notion of belonging to a group or community increases self-esteem and acts to prevent feelings of loneliness. The second important function of social networks is that they offer the individual social support. (Döring, "Einsam", n. pag.)
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© 1998 Axel Bruns