Classroom Group Formation Model Based on Socion Theory Considering Communication in Social Networking Services

Abstract

In recent years, Social Networking Services (SNS) have become popular among young people. Unfortunately, as SNS usage has increased, cyberbullying has also increased and has become a social problem. Several previous studies have employed multi-agent simulation, which can be used to analyze human relationships, to identify bullying mechanisms. In this study, we model SNSs in a classroom and apply multi-agent simulation to analyze the influence of SNSs on classroom friendships. We focus on junior high school students as our research object. In the proposed model, which is based on socion theory, an agent can communicate with other agents using two types of networks: a classroom network and SNS networks, via a network which recognized by each individual (in socion theory, people have mental networks that reflect society). Agents communicate face to face (FTF) in the classroom and using SNS in their SNS groups. In addition, agents have social skills and are categorized based on these social skills. In this study, we simulate friendship relations considering SNSs and discuss the influence of SNSs on classroom relationships based on the simulation results. We performed two simulations; one only involved FTF communication and the others involved both FTF and SNS communication. We compare the two simulations and discuss the results. We found that, compared to FTF communication, the average likability rating of agents increased with SNS communication. On the other hand, we also found that specific agents were rejected. We consider that sharing information over SNSs is related to increased bullying. In conclusion, we discuss applying to educational robots from results.