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Title: Modeling the Factors of User Success in Online Debate
Debate is a process that gives individuals the opportunity to express, and to be exposed to, diverging viewpoints on controversial issues; and the existence of online debating platforms makes it easier for individuals to participate in debates and obtain feedback on their debating skills. But understanding the factors that contribute to a user’s success in debate is complicated: while success depends, in part, on the characteristics of the language they employ, it is also important to account for the degree to which their beliefs and personal traits are compatible with that of the audience. Friendships and previous interactions among users on the platform may further influence success. In this work, we aim to better understand the mechanisms behind success in online debates. In particular, we study the relative effects of debaters’ language, their prior beliefs and personal traits, and their social interactions with other users. We find, perhaps surprisingly, that characteristics of users’ social interactions play the most important role in determining their success in debates although the best predictive performance is achieved by combining social interaction features with features  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1741441 1815455
PAR ID:
10113367
Author(s) / Creator(s):
;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
The World Wide Web Conference
Page Range / eLocation ID:
2701 to 2707
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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