The Potential of Applying Social Network Analysis to Evaluate Cross-Regional Online Interaction among Russian Youth

Abstract

In a relatively short period of time, social networks have become a unique source of personal data, providing information about the interests, values, and environments of billions of real people. The purpose of this paper is to determine the potential of applying social network analysis techniques to assess the online interactions of Russian youth in the context of regional differences. In the empirical part of the study, we focused on the largest regional groups (284 communities) in the social network VKontakte, where users discuss socio-political topics. The sample size consisted of 4,020,268 people aged 14 to 35 across Russia. Our analysis allowed assessing the proximity of groups to each other within specific regions or federal districts. Additionally, we determined the density (connectedness) of communities for each region. As a result, we demonstrated the potential of network analysis in exploring the connections between subscribers to online communities and the nature of association among these communities across federal districts. We identified some disconnected objects from the overall network of interaction, which could be explained by regional specificities or differences in community topics.