arXiv subjects

Artur Solomonik

Publications and source records attributed to Artur Solomonik.

2 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Reflecting on 1,000 Social Media Journeys: Generational Patterns in Platform Transition

Social media has billions of users, but we still do not fully understand why users prefer one platform over another. Establishing new platforms among already popular competitors is difficult. Prior research has richly documented people's experiences within individual platforms, yet situating those experiences within the entirety of a user's social media experience remains challenging. What platforms have people used, and why have they transitioned between them? We collected data from a quota-based sample of 1,000 U.S. participants. We introduce the concept of \emph{Social Media Journeys} to study the entirety of their social media experiences systematically. We identify push and pull factors across the social media landscape. We also show how different generations adopted social media platforms based on personal needs. With this work, we advance HCI by moving towards holistic perspectives when discussing social media technology, offering new insights for platform design, governance, and regulation.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2025

Social Media Journeys -- Mapping Platform Migration

As people engage with the social media landscape, popular platforms rise and fall. As current research uncovers the experiences people have on various platforms, rarely do we engage with the sociotechnical migration processes when joining and leaving them. In this paper, we asked 32 visitors of a science communication festival to draw out artifacts that we call Social Media Journey Maps about the social media platforms they frequented, and why. By combining qualitative content analysis with a graph representation of Social Media Journeys, we present how social media migration processes are motivated by the interplay of environmental and platform factors. We find that peer-driven popularity, the timing of feature adoption, and personal perceptions of migration causes - such as security - shape individuals' reasoning for migrating between social media platforms. With this work, we aim to pave the way for future social media platforms that foster meaningful and enriching online experiences for users.

cs.HC↗