Echo chambers may exclude social media users from being exposed to other opinions, therefore, can cause rampant negative effects. Among abundant evidence are the 2016 and 2020 US presidential elections conspiracy theories and polarization, as well as the COVID-19 disinfodemic. To help better detect echo chambers and mitigate its negative effects, this paper explores the mechanisms and attributes of echo chambers in social media. In particular, we first illustrate four primary mechanisms related to three main factors: human psychology, social networks, and automatic systems. We then depict common attributes of echo chambers with a focus on the diffusion of misinformation, spreading of conspiracy theory, creation of social trends, political polarization, and emotional contagion of users. We illustrate each mechanism and attribute in a multi-perspective of sociology, psychology, and social computing with recent case studies. Our analysis suggest an emerging need to detect echo chambers and mitigate their negative effects.
翻译:为了更好地发现回声室并减轻其负面影响,本文探讨了社交媒体回声室的机制和属性。特别是,我们首先说明了与三个主要因素有关的四个主要机制:人类心理学、社交网络和自动系统。然后,我们描述了回声室的共同属性,重点是传播错误信息、传播阴谋理论、创造社会趋势、政治两极化和用户的情感传染。我们用最近的案例研究用社会学、心理学和社会计算等多种视角来说明每个机制及其属性。我们的分析表明,发现回声室并减轻其负面影响的必要性正在出现。