Group colocation behavior in technological social networks

PLoS One. 2014 Aug 22;9(8):e105816. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0105816. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

We analyze two large datasets from technological networks with location and social data: user location records from an online location-based social networking service, and anonymized telecommunications data from a European cellphone operator, in order to investigate the differences between individual and group behavior with respect to physical location. We discover agreements between the two datasets: firstly, that individuals are more likely to meet with one friend at a place they have not visited before, but tend to meet at familiar locations when with a larger group. We also find that groups of individuals are more likely to meet at places that their other friends have visited, and that the type of a place strongly affects the propensity for groups to meet there. These differences between group and solo mobility has potential technological applications, for example, in venue recommendation in location-based social networks.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Cell Phone
  • Databases, Factual
  • Friends*
  • Humans
  • Interpersonal Relations
  • New York
  • Portugal
  • Recreation
  • Social Media*
  • Social Networking*
  • Travel
  • Universities

Grants and funding

Chloë Brown is a recipient of the Google Europe Fellowship in Mobile Computing, and this research is supported in part by this Google Fellowship. We acknowledge the support of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council through grants GALE (EP/K019392) and UBHAVE (EP/I032673/1). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.