People talk. Their interactions become habits, habits become routines, and routines become rules. Sociologists call this emergent behavior, and sometimes it happens so slowly we don’t even notice it until we look back and think “where did that come from?” Emergent behavior can be quirky and fun (think of Taco Friday at the office or “on Wednesdays we wear pink“), but sometimes it can also be far more serious or more troubling.
The challenge is that new technology makes these interactions happen much faster, on a much larger scale, and with less editing—often with odd results. Check out this TED talk—The Nightmare Videos of Children’s YouTube— for a good illustration of the dark side of emergent behavior when algorithms accelerate and exploit social interactions online.
Evan Stewart is an assistant professor of sociology at University of Massachusetts Boston. You can follow him on Twitter.
Comments 3
MutualMoney — August 1, 2018
Children's content on YouTube is a big problem seriously, parents need to carefully monitor what their child watches and how it develops, but often the various videos in question serve only as an excuse for parents to free themselves more personal time.
Nancey M. Stephen — October 16, 2021
This video describes the theoretical considerations and tools needed to study emergent behavior in manmade systems. Modern society is driven by information technology. It is hard to disagree with Evan Stewart's explanation of these societies. Well, now I would like to know is edubirdie legal for the academic purpose because I want to get my essay written.
Jenny — December 23, 2021
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