Discrepancies in Popularity and Research Focus in Online Social Networks
Připravované články
Purpose – As the usage of online social networks increases, so does the volume of research addressing them. The aim of this research study is to explore the relationship between the popularity of online social networks and their prevalence in scientific literature.
Design / methodology / approach – This study conducts a bibliometric analysis, analysing publications related to the fifteen most popular online social networks worldwide, including Douyin, Facebook, Instagram, Kuaishou, Pinterest, QQ, Reddit, Snapchat, Telegram, TikTok, WeChat, Weibo, WhatsApp, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube. The objective is to identify current trends in online social networks research and assess whether these trends align with user engagement levels.
Results – The findings highlight substantial discrepancies with the most notable in case of Twitter, which, despite being only the 12th largest network by monthly active users count, is prominently featured in approximately 40% of publications. In contrast, Facebook, despite its leading user base, is featured in about 30% of studies. The representation of other networks in scholarly discourse shows considerable variation, with some networks scarcely mentioned despite significant public usage.
Originality / value – This research offers a comprehensive analysis of how the popularity of various online social networks correlates with their academic research coverage, highlighting discrepancies and exploring underlying factors. Future research should extend beyond selected platforms to understand the unique social, cultural, economic or political impacts of each online social network. Additionally, there is a critical need for ongoing adaptation in research methodologies in response to the rapid evolution of online social networks to ensure that academic inquiries remain pertinent and responsive to real-world changes.
online social networks; social networks; social media; social media research
Anna Keclíková
Institute of Information Studies and Librarianship, Faculty of Arts, Charles University
Anna Keclíková studied Applied Informatics in Chemistry at UCT Prague. She is currently a PhD student at the Institute of Information Studies and Librarianship at Charles University. As part of her doctoral studies, she focuses on the citation of online social networks. Since 2014, she has been employed at the National Library of Technology, where she primarily focuses on electronic resources.
Alalwan, A., Rana, N., Dwivedi, Y., & Algharabat, R. (2017). Social media in marketing: A review and analysis of the existing literature. Telematics and Informatics, 34(7), 1177-1190. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tele.2017.05.008
BBC. (2023). Elon Musk: Twitter rebrands as X and kills off blue bird logo. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-66284304
Bianchi, T. (2024a). Most popular websites worldwide as of November 2023, by total visits. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1201880/most-visited-websites-worldwide/
Bianchi, T. (2024b). Users worldwide visiting Reddit.com from April 2022 to January 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1310710/redditcom-monthly-users/
X Corp. (2014). Introducing Twitter Data Grants. https://blog.x.com/engineering/en_us/a/2014/introducing-twitter-data-grants
Boyd, D., & Ellison, N. (2007). Social Network Sites: Definition, History, and Scholarship. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13(1), 210-230. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1083-6101.2007.00393.x
Brainard, J. (2023). Fast-growing open-access journals stripped of coveted impact factors. Scienceinsider. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adi0098
Buettner, R., & Buettner, K. (2016). A Systematic Literature Review of Twitter Research from a Socio-Political Revolution Perspective. In 2016 49th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS) (s. 2206-2215). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/HICSS.2016.277
Caers, R., De Feyter, T., De Couck, M., Stough, T., Vigna, C., & Du Bois, C. (2013). Facebook: A literature review. New Media & Society, 15(6), 982-1002. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444813488061
Calma, J. (2023). Twitter just closed the book on academic research. The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2023/5/31/23739084/twitter-elon-musk-api-policy-chilling-academic-research
Ceci, L. (2024). Most popular messenger apps worldwide in January 2024, by monthly downloads. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1263360/most-popular-messenger-apps-worldwide-by-monthly-downloads/
Clegg, N. (2023). New Tools to Support Independent Research. https://about.fb.com/news/2023/11/new-tools-to-support-independent-research/
Dixon, S. J. (2024a). Most popular social networks worldwide as of April 2024, ranked by number of monthly active users. https://www.statista.com/statistics/272014/global-social-networks-ranked-by-number-of-users/
Dixon, S. J. (2024b). Snapchat - Statistics & Facts. https://www.statista.com/topics/2882/snapchat/
Dixon, S. J. (2024c). Number of monthly active Facebook users worldwide as of 4th quarter 2023. https://www.statista.com/statistics/264810/number-of-monthly-active-facebook-users-worldwide/
Dixon, S. J. (2024d). Leading countries based on Snapchat audience size as of January 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/315405/snapchat-user-region-distribution/
Dixon, S. J. (2024e). Most popular global mobile messenger apps as of January 2024, based on number of monthly active users. https://www.statista.com/statistics/258749/most-popular-global-mobile-messenger-apps/
Dixon, S. J. (2024f). Most used social media platforms among internet users in Great Britain (GB) in June 2024, by age group. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1480562/social-media-platforms-used-by-age-group/
Eldridge, A. (2023a). Instagram. https://www.britannica.com/money/Instagram
Eldridge, A. (2023b). Reddit. https://www.britannica.com/money/Reddit
Google. (n.d.). YouTube Data API. https://developers.google.com/youtube/v3
Grevy Gotfredsen, S. (2023) Q&A: What happened to academic research on Twitter?. In Columbia Journalism Review. https://www.cjr.org/tow_center/qa-what-happened-to-academic-research-on-twitter.php
Hosch, W. (2009) YouTube. https://www.britannica.com/topic/YouTube
Jungherr, A. (2015). Twitter use in election campaigns: A systematic literature review. Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 13(1), 72-91. https://doi.org/10.1080/19331681.2015.1132401
Kanthawala, S., Cotter, K., Foyle, K., & DeCook, J. (2022). It’s the Methodology For Me: A Systematic Review of Early Approaches to Studying TikTok: A Systematic Review of Early Approaches to Studying TikTok.
Kapoor, K., Tamilmani, K., Rana, N., Patil, P., Dwivedi, Y., & Nerur, S. (2018). Advances in Social Media Research: Past, Present and Future. Information Systems Frontiers, 20(3), 531-558. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10796-017-9810-y
Karami, A., Lundy, M., Webb, F., & Dwivedi, Y. (2020). Twitter and Research: A Systematic Literature Review Through Text Mining. IEEE Access, 8, 67698-67717. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2020.2983656
Kietzmann, J. H., Hermkens, K., McCarthy, I. P., & Silvestre, B. S. (2011). Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional building blocks of social media. Business Horizons, 54(3), 241-251. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2011.01.005
Kuaishou. (2023). Kuaishou English Website. https://www.kuaishou.com/en
Matthias, M. (2023a). Telegram. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Telegram-software
Matthias, M. (2023b). WeChat. https://www.britannica.com/topic/WeChat
Meta. (n.d.). Data for Good. https://dataforgood.facebook.com/
Meta. (2024a). Meta Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Results; Initiates Quarterly Dividend. https://investor.fb.com/investor-news/press-release-details/2024/Meta-Reports-Fourth-Quarter-and-Full-Year-2023-Results-Initiates-Quarterly-Dividend/default.aspx
Meta. (2024b). Researcher API. https://fort.fb.com/researcher-apis
Meta. (2024c). CrowdTangle. https://transparency.meta.com/en-us/researchtools/other-datasets/crowdtangle/
Noorden, R. V. (2014). Online collaboration: Scientists and the social network: Scientists and the social network. Nature, 512(7513). https://doi.org/10.1038/512126a
Petrosyan, A. (2025). Number of internet and social media users worldwide as of February 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/617136/digital-population-worldwide/
Pinterest. (2024). Company. https://newsroom.pinterest.com/company/
Proferes, N., Jones, N., Gilbert, S., Fiesler, C., & Zimmer, M. (2021). Studying Reddit: A Systematic Overview of Disciplines, Approaches, Methods, and Ethics. Social Media + Society, 7(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051211019004
Quaderi, N. (2023). Supporting integrity of the scholarly record: Our commitment to curation and selectivity in the Web of Science. Academia & Government Blog & Insights. https://clarivate.com/academia-government/blog/supporting-integrity-of-the-scholarly-record-our-commitment-to-curation-and-selectivity-in-the-web-of-science/
Sinnenberg, L., Buttenheim, A., Padrez, K., Mancheno, C., Ungar, L., & Merchant, R. (2017). Twitter as a Tool for Health Research: A Systematic Review. American Journal of Public Health, 107(1), e1-e8. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2016.303512
Statista Research Department. (2025). Number of Facebook users in China from 2017 to 2023. https://www.statista.com/statistics/558221/number-of-facebook-users-in-china/
The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. (2009). X. https://www.britannica.com/money/Twitter
The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. (2023a). TikTok. https://www.britannica.com/topic/TikTok
The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. (2023b). WhatsApp. https://www.britannica.com/topic/WhatsApp
Birkinshaw, J. (2019). WeChat: behind the scenes at China’s most successful app. https://www.london.edu/think/we-chat-behind-the-scenes-at-chinas-most-successful-app
Thomala, L. L. (2024a). Number of monthly active QQ users from 4th quarter 2019 to 4th quarter 2023. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1318070/china-tencent-number-of-monthly-active-accounts-of-qq/
Thomala, L. L. (2024b). Number of monthly active smart device users of Tencent QQ from 2014 to 2023. https://www.statista.com/statistics/227352/number-of-active-tencent-im-user-accounts-in-china/
Thomala, L. L. (2024c). WeChat - statistics & facts. https://www.statista.com/topics/9085/wechat/
Thomala, L. L. (2024d). Number of monthly active WeChat users from 4th quarter 2013 to 4th quarter 2023. https://www.statista.com/statistics/255778/number-of-active-wechat-messenger-accounts/
Thomala, L. L. (2024e). Number of monthly active users of Weibo Corporation from 4th quarter of 2015 to 4th quarter of 2023. https://www.statista.com/statistics/795303/china-mau-of-sina-weibo/
Thomala, L. L. (2025). Social media in China - statistics & facts. https://www.statista.com/topics/1170/social-networks-in-china/
TikTok. (2024). Research API. https://developers.tiktok.com/products/research-api/
Tornes, A. (2021) Enabling the future of academic research with the Twitter API. Twitter Developer Platform. https://developer.twitter.com/en/blog/product-news/2021/enabling-the-future-of-academic-research-with-the-x-api
WhatsApp. (2013). Introducing Voice Messages. https://blog.whatsapp.com/introducing-voice-messages
Wilson, R., Gosling, S., & Graham, L. (2012). A Review of Facebook Research in the Social Sciences. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 7(3), 203-220. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691612442904
YouTube. (n.d.). YouTube Research. https://research.youtube/
Zeng, J., Abidin, C., & Schäfer, M. (2021). Research Perspectives on TikTok & Its Legacy Apps. International Journal of Communication, 2021(15), 3161–3172. https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/14539
Zhang, Y., & Leung, L. (2015). A review of social networking service (SNS) research in communication journals from 2006 to 2011. New Media & Society, 17(7), 1007-1024. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444813520477
Tato práce je licencována pod Mezinárodní licencí Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 .
Copyright © 2025 Anna Keclíková