Transcript The Role of the Connector in Bridging Borders through Virtual

The Role of the Connector
in Bridging Borders through
Virtual Communities
Gildásio Mendes Dos Santos
Universidade Católica Dom Bosco
and
Michael R. Kotowski
University of Tennessee
Overview
The advent of the Internet, especially the
Web 2.0, has created a channel for groups
to connect that were otherwise
disconnected only a short time ago.
 Consequently, this analysis examines how
this technology interplays with social
network dynamics to impact the ability for
groups to bridge borders that were
previously impermeable.
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Background
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Historical technological advances and their
impact on communication across borders
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Printing Press
Radio
Compared to the Internet, however, these
technologies are relatively short range and
asynchronous inhibiting instantaneous
communicate across long range borders.
Background
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Recognizing the importance of communication
technologies, on 12 May in 2002, Pope John Paul
II delivered an address on the occasion of the
2002 World Day of Communication focused on
how people can utilize the internet’s information
and communication revolution to foster the
globalization of human development and
solidarity.
Just over six years later we find ourselves at this
conference taking essentially the same position
and examining what is essentially the same
question.
Virtual Groups
The Internet’s immense potential can be
enormously helpful through its ability to
serve as an effective and efficient channel
for virtual groups.
 The Internet surpasses the barriers and
distance of isolation, offering the
opportunity of connection to those living in
remote zones, to the religious and
cloistered, to the homebound, to the
detained, etc.
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Virtual Groups
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Recognizing this potential, three
researchers and artists from the USA,
Brazil, and Italy, started a small group
called Artists and Fishermen (A & F) in
2003 with the goal to share friendship and
diversity among countries, promote art
appreciation and sharing of artistic talents,
develop art and communication projects
through new technologies, and establish
communication channels for schools and
communities.
Virtual Groups
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A & F is not unlike many interest groups that
have formed during this era of rapidly developing
communication technologies where the internet
has become tool for individuals with similar
interests to form virtual groups quickly.
Even more interestingly, however, is the
internet’s ability to allow these virtual groups to
communicate with each other across geographical
and political borders that have historically
inhibited inter-group communication.
Connecting Virtual Groups
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Just because the technology exists, however, does not
mean it will be used to bridge borders.
The substantial relationship between perceived attitude
similarity and attraction (r = .51 (AhYun, 2002)) means it is
unlikely that every member of a given virtual group will be
motivated to connect with members of other virtual groups
across borders where perceived attitudinal similarity would
be particularly low.
Therefore, effort must be directed towards identifying the
people in the network that will capitalize on the
communication opportunities that new technologies offer
and reach out across borders to connect with members of
other groups.
Connecting Virtual Groups
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Because meta-analytic research has found that in
the main people seek others who are perceived
as being similar to themselves (AhYun, 2002)
groups on the internet will have a tendency to be
constructed of people from one side of a border.
Therefore, the question that must be addressed
before the Internet can be used as an effective
tool to bridge borders is what causes these
people to develop interest in communication
across borders through virtual groups on the
internet?
Connector
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It is proposed that the answer to this question is the
identification of an individual difference personality
characteristic referred to as connectedness.
Connectors are people who are motivated to easily form
close acquaintances with others.
Furthermore, they are also good at maintaining those
acquaintances once formed.
Although connectors do indeed form within group
acquaintances, a more important prerequisite for a
connector than the number of acquaintances is the number
of acquaintances that serve as weak-ties (Granovetter,
1973; 1982), that is, acquaintances from different groups
within the larger social network.
Connector
Therefore, connectedness is the extent to
which people are motivated to form and
maintain close acquaintances with others
from different groups within the larger
social network.
 That is, these people overlook or ignore
the lack of perceived similarity and seek
out the novelty of new people and ideas.
 Consequently, connectors within groups on
either sides of a border serve a key
function in communicating across borders.
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Finding Connectors
One of the problems identifying
connectors, however, arises from the fact
that they make up a very small set of the
population, approximately 3-5% (Boster,
Kotowski, & Andrews, 2006; Kotowski &
Boster, 2007).
 Consequently, any method of identifying
the connector must be valid, reliable, and
perhaps most importantly, efficient.
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Finding Connectors
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Several methods of identifying connectors have
been proposed (network analysis, leadership self
identification, leadership other identification).
These methods are limited because of expense,
efficiency, or validity limitations, however.
To address these problems, Boster et al. (2006)
and Kotowski & Boster (2007) developed and
refined a method of measuring the connector
using a set of Likert-type self-report items
developed to form a unidimensional instrument
measuring the connector construct.
Data from several measurement development
studies are consistent with the conclusion that
this measure is valid, reliable, and efficient.
Finding Connectors
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The ability to identify a connector on at least one
side of the border would be a particular boon to
improving communication between groups
because that person could be recruited to make
the initial contact with the other group serving as
a beacon for connectors on the other side
thereby allowing for the development of a
connection that will result the effective exchange
of culture and information between groups on
different sides of a border.
Conclusions
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Linking technology such as the internet with
communication concepts such as the connector
opens new doors for cross border communication
because it creates a forum for connectors to form
ties with groups they otherwise would not have
had access to because of traditional boundaries.
As a result, people from various places and
backgrounds to more easily work toward the
achievement of unified goals of globalized human
development and solidarity.
Conclusions
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A & F members initially used the internet to
strengthen their connection locally, amongst each
other by using the internet as a tool to expand
their artistic, scientific, and cultural projects in
their community.
Since forming the group, however, connectors in
the group have initiated contact with other
groups.
As a result, these connectors have formed
cultural bridges using the internet to
communicate across borders, exposing members
of their representative groups to cultural
experiences to which they otherwise would not
have been exposed.
Conclusions
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The role of the connector in bridging
borders through virtual communities is an
example how borders can be effectively
transcended by the partnership of new
technology with communication concepts
that provide a better understanding of
how people are motivated to move beyond
culturally created codes of communication
leading them to communicate and share
with others beyond traditionally defined
borders.