Optimizing Social Media Data Through Game Theory
Game theory is a mathematical concept that seeks to anticipate the outcomes and solutions to problems involving competing and overlapping interests. To its core, it measures how and why people make the decisions they do. In conflict situations, game theory mathematics is applied to predict outcomes. In today’s data age, it seems like each factor leads to a greater dataset, which is often left to mature for advantageous endeavors whilst others remain futile. But data across different fields could be optimized to resolve conflicts related to social media and patterns of polarization, or even outlooks pertaining to these topics. Data is now being used to settle extremely controversial conflicts between humans.
Social media is a realm in which users actively engage in data collection by not only offering their own but interacting with others too, which could later be mapped out within the study of networks. In a recent study, Odycceus used game theory principles to explore what social media might reveal to us about social dynamics and maybe aid in the early detection of emerging social conflicts. This was mainly done through the analysis of “language, content, and opinions of social media discussions using data tools.” Social media’s power has been challenged, whether it be through activism, politics, or mere mainstream culture, where practiced notions are fed both online and offline. Thus critical analysis could be performed through weighted graphs and Nash equilibrium in which trade-offs and general behaviors are assessed through strategic social networks.
However, the notions fed online and offline result in the polarization of opinions that transgress into the social and political culture. Researchers have created a model that incorporates game theory principles regarding the role of social input on polarization. They have found that polarized group establishments were less about the typical idea of social media bubbles and echoed chambers online and more about how people develop their identity by obtaining acceptance from their peers. Though social media remains accessible to a certain extent, monitoring practices could be based on such models. Pertaining to game theory, the individuals’ incentives are offered, and they choose their behaviors to optimize their anticipated output. Through these analyses, we can gain a deeper understanding of political ideologies or even the newer realm of marketing which feeds into corporate reputations within markets.
Sources:
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-642-30541-2_7
The Beautiful Game Theory – using mathematics to resolve human conflicts