The Role of the Connector in Bridging Borders through Virtual Communities

1. The Role of the Connector in Bridging Borders through Virtual Communities Gildásio Mendes Dos Santos Universidade Católica Dom Bosco and Michael R. Kotowski University of Tennessee

2. Overview • The advent of the Internet, especially the Web 2.0, has created a channel for groups to connect that were otherwise disconnected only a short time ago. • Consequently, this analysis examines how this technology interplays with social network dynamics to impact the ability for groups to bridge borders that were previously impermeable.

3. Background • Historical technological advances and their impact on communication across borders • Printing Press • Radio • Compared to the Internet, however, these technologies are relatively short range and asynchronous inhibiting instantaneous communicate across long range borders.

4. Background • Recognizing the importance of communication technologies, on 12 May in 2002, Pope John Paul II delivered an address on the occasion of the 2002 World Day of Communication focused on how people can utilize the internet’s information and communication revolution to foster the globalization of human development and solidarity. • Just over six years later we find ourselves at this conference taking essentially the same position and examining what is essentially the same question.

5. Virtual Groups • The Internet’s immense potential can be enormously helpful through its ability to serve as an effective and efficient channel for virtual groups. • The Internet surpasses the barriers and distance of isolation, offering the opportunity of connection to those living in remote zones, to the religious and cloistered, to the homebound, to the detained, etc.

6. Virtual Groups • Recognizing this potential, three researchers and artists from the USA, Brazil, and Italy, started a small group called Artists and Fishermen (A & F) in 2003 with the goal to share friendship and diversity among countries, promote art appreciation and sharing of artistic talents, develop art and communication projects through new technologies, and establish communication channels for schools and communities.

7. Virtual Groups • A & F is not unlike many interest groups that have formed during this era of rapidly developing communication technologies where the internet has become tool for individuals with similar interests to form virtual groups quickly. • Even more interestingly, however, is the internet’s ability to allow these virtual groups to communicate with each other across geographical and political borders that have historically inhibited inter-group communication.

8. Connecting Virtual Groups • Just because the technology exists, however, does not mean it will be used to bridge borders. • The substantial relationship between perceived attitude similarity and attraction (r = .51 (AhYun, 2002)) means it is unlikely that every member of a given virtual group will be motivated to connect with members of other virtual groups across borders where perceived attitudinal similarity would be particularly low. • Therefore, effort must be directed towards identifying the people in the network that will capitalize on the communication opportunities that new technologies offer and reach out across borders to connect with members of other groups.

9. Connecting Virtual Groups • Because meta-analytic research has found that in the main people seek others who are perceived as being similar to themselves (AhYun, 2002) groups on the internet will have a tendency to be constructed of people from one side of a border. • Therefore, the question that must be addressed before the Internet can be used as an effective tool to bridge borders is what causes these people to develop interest in communication across borders through virtual groups on the internet?

10. Connector • It is proposed that the answer to this question is the identification of an individual difference personality characteristic referred to as connectedness. • Connectors are people who are motivated to easily form close acquaintances with others. • Furthermore, they are also good at maintaining those acquaintances once formed. • Although connectors do indeed form within group acquaintances, a more important prerequisite for a connector than the number of acquaintances is the number of acquaintances that serve as weak-ties (Granovetter, 1973; 1982), that is, acquaintances from different groups within the larger social network.

11. Connector • Therefore, connectedness is the extent to which people are motivated to form and maintain close acquaintances with others from different groups within the larger social network. • That is, these people overlook or ignore the lack of perceived similarity and seek out the novelty of new people and ideas. • Consequently, connectors within groups on either sides of a border serve a key function in communicating across borders.

12. Finding Connectors • One of the problems identifying connectors, however, arises from the fact that they make up a very small set of the population, approximately 3-5% (Boster, Kotowski, & Andrews, 2006; Kotowski & Boster, 2007). • Consequently, any method of identifying the connector must be valid, reliable, and perhaps most importantly, efficient.

13. Finding Connectors • Several methods of identifying connectors have been proposed (network analysis, leadership self identification, leadership other identification). • These methods are limited because of expense, efficiency, or validity limitations, however. • To address these problems, Boster et al. (2006) and Kotowski & Boster (2007) developed and refined a method of measuring the connector using a set of Likert-type self-report items developed to form a unidimensional instrument measuring the connector construct. • Data from several measurement development studies are consistent with the conclusion that this measure is valid, reliable, and efficient.

14. Finding Connectors • The ability to identify a connector on at least one side of the border would be a particular boon to improving communication between groups because that person could be recruited to make the initial contact with the other group serving as a beacon for connectors on the other side thereby allowing for the development of a connection that will result the effective exchange of culture and information between groups on different sides of a border.

15. Conclusions • Linking technology such as the internet with communication concepts such as the connector opens new doors for cross border communication because it creates a forum for connectors to form ties with groups they otherwise would not have had access to because of traditional boundaries. • As a result, people from various places and backgrounds to more easily work toward the achievement of unified goals of globalized human development and solidarity.

16. Conclusions • A & F members initially used the internet to strengthen their connection locally, amongst each other by using the internet as a tool to expand their artistic, scientific, and cultural projects in their community. • Since forming the group, however, connectors in the group have initiated contact with other groups. • As a result, these connectors have formed cultural bridges using the internet to communicate across borders, exposing members of their representative groups to cultural experiences to which they otherwise would not have been exposed.

17. Conclusions • The role of the connector in bridging borders through virtual communities is an example how borders can be effectively transcended by the partnership of new technology with communication concepts that provide a better understanding of how people are motivated to move beyond culturally created codes of communication leading them to communicate and share with others beyond traditionally defined borders.