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1、THE MAGNIFYING GLASS EFFECT.NEGOTIATING INDIVIDUALISM AND COMMUNITY ON THE INTERNET.bySorin Matei-A Dissertation Presented to theFACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOLUNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAin Partial Fulfillment of theRequirements for the DegreeDOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY(COMMUNICATION)May 2001Table of
2、contentsFiguresivIntroduction: Research Overview1Chapter I: The Internet between social effects and social shaping61. Technological determinism and the “social effects” of the Internet72. Social and cultural forces shaping the Internet113. A theoretical and empirical framework for studying the socia
3、l functions of the Internet14Chapter summary20Chapter II: The American socio-cultural context in the Internet age221. Changes in the cultural system232. Individualism and social-institutional changes28a. Changes in the family structure as a sign of individualism.30b. Decline in religious participati
4、on as a sign of individualism.32c. Change in political participation as a sign of individualism.35Chapter summary38Chapter III: Virtual community as an individualist ideology391. “Structure of meaning” as a tool for cultural analysis412. Searching for meaning through open communication453. Themes an
5、d transformations in virtual community ideology48a. Virtual community as network society49b. Virtual community as rational society54c. Virtual community as instrumentalist ideology56d. The expressive implications of instrumentalist individualism594. Virtual community and the dilemmas of modernity62C
6、hapter summary67Chapter IV: Hypotheses and research questions69Chapter V: Datasets and Measures801. Dataset descriptions81a. GSS81b. CBS Marketwatch Internet Poll82c. Metamorphosis Dataset84d. Virtual Community Dataset942. Measures and indices107Chapter VI: Analysis and results1181. Statistical anal
7、ysis methods and strategies1182. Results121a. Association between objective and subjective individualism121Low objective individualism Medium objective individualism High objective individualism123Figure 2. Objective and subjective individualism (GSS)123b. Individualism and the social promises of th
8、e Internet125c. Belonging to real community as predictor for on-line ties129d. On-line ties as resources for belonging to real community137e. Virtual community ideology and individualism142f. Virtual community ideology and social interaction145Chapter VII: Discussion and conclusions149References168A
9、ppendix A190Appendix B195Virtual Community Survey Instrument195Introduction195Instructions196FiguresFigure 1. Metamorphosis study areas85Figure 2. Objective and subjective individualism (GSS)123Figure 3. Likelihood of making friends on-line by residential neighborhood132Figure 4. Relationship betwee
10、n on-line ties and real community belonging by low individualism (marital status) in the whole Metamorphosis sample.141Figure 5. Relationship between on-line ties and real community belonging by low individualism (marital status) in the Caucasian / African-American Metamorphosis sub-sample.142Tables
11、Table 1. Statistical data identified in the selection of phone exchanges for Metamorphosis target communities90Table 2. Virtual Community dataset final breakdown96Table 3. Virtual Community dataset response rates102Table 4. Virtual Community on-line group member locations104Table 5. Objective indivi
12、dualism characteristics by dataset109Table 6. Belonging by residential area132Table 7. Variables predicting likelihood of making a personal friend on-line133Table 8. Beta values for “having made friends on-line” used as predictor of belonging139Table 9. Logistic regression coefficients for variables
13、 predicting number of virtual neighbors148123Introduction: Research OverviewThe American social and cultural environment in which the Internet was born has put a strong imprint on its culture. Visions of community without proximity (Hiltz & Turoff, 1978; Licklider & Taylor, 1968; Poster, 1997; Rhein
14、gold, 1994; Watson, 1997) and of an ever-changing self (Turkle, 1995) are influenced by radical individualism (Lasch, 1991; Myers, 2000; Rothman, 1997) and by the emergence of a new instrumental-expressive American value-system (Bellah, Madsen, Sullivan, Swidler and Tipton, 1996). The main rhetorica
15、l vision (Bormann, 1972) of the Internet sub-culture, though aiming at a more perfect union through technology (Matei, 1998), is often fueled by the very American desire of creating an individualistic order, where the goal is not collective but personal growth (Fernback, 1997; Jones, 1997; Seabrook, 1997; Tocqueville, 1958). Often, as has already happened in numerous instances on the web, virtual communities are transformed into consump
