Business
For 5 Years, LinkedIn Ran Social Experiments On Over 20 Million Users
(CTN News) _ Over five years, LinkedIn tested more than 20 million users, which may have adversely affected some people’s livelihoods, according to a new study.
During a series of experiments from 2015 to 2019, LinkedIn varied the proportion of weak and strong contacts suggested by its “People You May Know” algorithm.
This month, researchers from LinkedIn, MIT, Stanford University, and Harvard Business School published a study in the journal Science.
Due to its lack of notification, algorithmic experiments may come as a surprise to millions of users.
It’s not unusual for tech giants like, the world’s biggest professional network, to run large-scale experiments on different people, testing out different versions of app features, web designs, and algorithms.
Through premium membership fees or advertising, these companies make money by improving consumers’ experiences and keeping them engaged.
LinkedIn’s changes are an example of how social engineering experiments can be used to tweak widely used algorithms.
According to Michael Zimmer, associate professor of computer science and director of the Center for Data, Ethics and Society at Marquette University, some users had better access to job opportunities or a meaningful difference.
“When we think about the ethics of engaging in big data research, we need to consider these long-term consequences.”
Science looked at a sociology theory called “the strength of weak ties,” which says people are more likely to get jobs and other opportunities through arms-length acquaintances than through close friends.
Researchers looked at how algorithmic changes affected job mobility. On LinkedIn, weak social ties worked twice as well as stronger ones at securing jobs.
According to LinkedIn, the company acted in accordance with its user agreement, privacy policy, and member settings during the study.
According to LinkedIn’s privacy policy, they use members’ data for research.
“Without any experimentation on members,” the company said it used the latest, “non-invasive” social science techniques.
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