Beaulieu Anne
The form and the feel: combining approaches for the study of networks on the Internet
Abstract
The study of networks supported and constituted by the Internet has been an important focus in Internet studies. Two approaches seem to prevail: substantial analysis on a case by case basis on the one hand, and formal network analysis on the other. Networks have therefore been studied in terms of their substance. The common cultures of individuals who socialise through the Internet have been explored. New forms of expression have also been identified. Another stream of research has addressed the more formal aspects of networks; often using automated tools that render these networks quantitatively.
Given this distinction between formal and substantive approaches, Internet studies seem to be reproducing some of the distinctions between qualitative and quantitative styles that have been deplored in the social sciences.
This split may be especially unfortunate for the study of the Internet. The use of the Internet produces a multitude of traces that are eminently countable, therefore making it seem amenable to formal approaches. But we may not yet know enough about the Internet to understand what is particular about the kinds of networks it supports. On the other hand, the Internet also seems to make traceable, because of its mediating function, interactions that were previously ephemeral (like chatting and gossiping). It may also provide new means of expression and interaction. To know whether and where these phenomena make a difference, there may be the need to consider them both in terms of structure and substance.
The careful entwinement of approaches that give insight into both formal and informal aspect of networks on the Internet seems therefore desirable. Can methods to study networks in other fields be applied to the Internet? Can the novel interactions and relations carried by digital and electronic media be recognised as new, influential patterns across the Internet? As we see it, the goal is not methodological purity, but coherent interdisciplinarity.
This session is an attempt to reflect on the relation between formal studies of networks and issues of content/substance of these networks in Internet studies. Each paper focuses on a topic in Internet studies, and considers theoretically and empirically the combination of these approaches. The session seeks to make a contribution to the development of an integrated approach, either by suggesting combination of methods or by considering the conceptual implications of integrating perspectives from other fields.