TY  - BOOK
AU  - Gonzalez-Bailon,Sandra
TI  - Decoding the social world: data science and the unintended consequences of communication 
T2  - Information policy series
SN  - 9780262037075 (hardcover : alk. paper)
AV  - TK5103.7 .G747 2017
U1  - 303.4833 22
PY  - 2017///
CY  - Cambridge
PB  - The MIT Press
KW  - Digital communications
KW  - Digital media
KW  - Social problems
KW  - Problem solving
N1  - Includes bibliographical references (pages [183]-207) and index
N2  - In this book, the author explains how data science and digital traces help us solve the puzzle of unintended consequences-offering the solution to a social paradox that has intrigued thinkers for centuries. She discusses how the unpredictability of social life relates to communication networks, social influence, and the unintended effects that derive from individual decisions. She describes how communication generates social dynamics in aggregate (leading to episodes of "collective effervescence") and discusses the mechanisms that underlie large-scale diffusion, when information and behavior spread "like wildfire." She applies the theory of networks to illuminate why collective outcomes can differ drastically even when they arise from the same individual actions
ER  -