Information Systems Review (경영정보학연구)

The Korea Society of Management Information Systems (한국경영정보학회)
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The Relationship between Anonymity, Personal and Group Identities, and Discussion Quality in Online Discussion Communities

온라인 토론 커뮤니티에서의 익명성과 개인 및 집단 정체성, 토론의 질 간의 영향 연구

  • Ae Ri Lee (Department of Business Administration, Sangmyung University)
  • Received : 2019.05.07
  • Accepted : 2019.06.25
  • Published : 2019.08.31
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Abstract

As the use of ICT became a part of daily social life, online community has emerged as a new type of social organization. Online community is a virtual space which enables many people to participate and contribute together to collective knowledge. Anonymity in online communities can encourage active social participation by people with various social constraints, however, anonymity can also lead to serious social pathology. As a result, it is necessary to study on what is fundamentally influencing human behavior and how people's behavior is controlled in anonymous online community. This study focuses on human identity and investigate the factors affecting human behavior control in anonymous online environment by examining various aspects of identity in online discussion community. This study empirically verifies the causal relationship between factors, including social & technical anonymities, various identity dimensions, intrinsic motivation to participate in the community, group norm conformity, and quality of discussion. It also analyzes the difference between groups by the level of anonymity, gender, age, community usage period, and discussion topic. Based on the findings, this research provides theoretical and practical implications for online community management strategies and a better culture on Internet discussion.

정보통신기술(ICT) 사용이 사회생활 깊숙이 융화됨에 따라, 온라인 커뮤니티와 같은 새로운 유형의 사회집단형태가 출현하였다. 온라인 커뮤니티는 시공간을 초월한 많은 사람들이 함께 참여하고 공헌함으로써 집합적 지식이 생성되고 분배될 수 있도록 한다. 대게 온라인 커뮤니티에서는 익명성을 제공하는데, 익명성은 여러 가지 사회적 제약을 가지고 있는 사람들의 적극적인 사회적 참여를 가능케 하여 다양한 의사표현과 보다 많은 이들의 참여 활동 증가 등의 긍정적인 역할을 할 수 있다. 그러나 익명성은 개인의 실제 정체성을 파악할 수 없는 상태를 제공하므로, 이를 악용하여 심각한 사회적 병리현상을 초래하기도 한다. 이에 따라 최근 익명성이 제공되는 온라인 커뮤니티에서 사람들의 행위에 근본적으로 영향을 주는 것은 무엇이며, 사람들의 행위가 어떻게 통제되는가에 대한 연구의 필요성이 증가하고 있다. 본 연구는 익명성 환경에서 인간의 행위를 통제하는 주요 요인으로 사람의 정체성에 주목하고, 정체성에 대한 이론을 종합적으로 검토하여 연구 모델을 설정하였다. 본 연구에서는 자아를 형성하는 다양한 측면인 사회적 집단 정체성과 개인 정체성(공적 자아의식, 사적 자아의식)을 전체적으로 살펴봄으로써 익명성이 보장된 온라인 환경에서 인간의 행위 통제에 영향을 주는 요인과 그 결과를 온라인 토론 커뮤니티를 중심으로 분석하였다. 특히 건전한 온라인 커뮤니티 토론 운영을 위해서는, 참여 멤버들이 커뮤니티에서 형성된 집단 규범을 준수하고, 적극적으로 참여하도록 동기가 부여되어, 결과적으로 양질의 토론의 장이 펼쳐질 수 있도록 하는 것이 매우 중요하다. 이에 대해 본 연구는 사회적/기술적 익명성과 다양한 정체성 측면, 내적 참여 동기부여 정도, 집단 규범 준수, 그리고 온라인 토론의 질이 어떠한 인과관계가 있는지 실증적으로 검증하였다. 또한 익명성 수준별, 커뮤니티의 토론 주제별, 남녀별, 연령대별, 커뮤니티 가입기간별 그룹 간 차이점을 분석하였다. 본 연구를 통해, 물리적인 대면 조직이 아닌 가상의 온라인 커뮤니티 상에서 사람들의 행동 통제에 대한 영향 요인과 결과적 현상을 분석함으로써, 온라인 커뮤니티 운영 전략과 양질의 인터넷 토론 문화 정립에 관한 이론적, 실무적 시사점을 제시할 수 있다.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

이 논문은 2017년 대한민국 교육부와 한국연구재단의 지원을 받아 수행된 연구임(NRF-2017S1A5A8019029).

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