[AISWorld] CFP: JGITM Special Issue - Online Communities and Social Networks – Global and Cultural Perspectives

[Eric Lu]

a) Title: “Special Issue on Online Communities and Social Networks –
Global and Cultural Perspectives”

b) Theme
Recent advances in the Internet and communication technologies have
led to the rapid growth of social networking communities, such as
MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, SecondLife, and YouTube.
According to Nielsen online report (2009), social networking is now
the fourth most popular online activity, and virtual communities are
visited by two-thirds of the global online population.

This phenomenal growth has attracted researchers from a wide range of
disciplines such as mathematics, sociology, computer sciences, and
information systems. However, many of prior studies emphasized on the
network topology and structural properties, such as network ties,
centrality, density, and cliques (Johnson and Faraj). Studies in this
area have also focused on social network analysis and more recently on
social media intelligence and networking data mining (Agarwal et al.
2008; Oinas-Kukkonen et al. 2010). However, current research is not
closely related to culture and organization issues, and they do not
fully capture and understand the social and managerial impact of Web
2.0.

The purpose of this special issue is to help advance this line of
research and bridge the gap. In particular, this special issue will
report the latest research about online communities and social
networks from global culture, organization, and management
perspectives. Given the multidisciplinary and collaborative nature of
inquiries into the interaction between online social network and
technology, the contributions are expected to incorporate diversified
and creative applications of theories and methodologies from various
fields including Information Systems (IS), Economics, Management,
Marketing, Communication, and Information Science (Duan 2009).
Consistent with the focus of JGITM, all submitted papers must
explicitly address key global (i.e., international and  cultural)
issues.

c) Aims and Scope
The objective of this special issue is to attract high quality
manuscripts in the area of online social networks and online
communities, particularly from a global culture and management
perspective.  It is expected to provide a forum for both academic
researchers and practitioners in this area.  Papers of all
methodological approaches are welcomed. Papers that do not have a
clear context on social networks and virtual communities will not be
considered for the special issue. Consistent with the focus of JGITM,
all submitted papers must explicitly address key global (i.e.,
international and  cultural)  issues.

Possible contributions may include, but are not limited to the following:
·         Contextual social network analysis;
·         Influence of social networks on individual, group, or
organizational performance;
·         Social capital and growth of virtual community;
·         Social capital to support virtual teams;
·         Social network and human resource management;
·         Social network and guanxi network;
·         Privacy concerns and social networks, social networking and
computer ethics;
·         Social networking as a driver for e-democracy and e-government;
·         Effectiveness of online recommendation systems;
·         Impacts of organizational networks structure on IT
productivity and performance;
·         Online social networks and IT outsourcing management;
·         Online social networks and digital divide;
·         Online social networks and firm’s external relationship
management (SCM and CRM);
·         Online social networks and e-commerce;
·         Online social networks and business intelligence

All papers will go through a blind-review process.  Each paper will be
reviewed by at least three reviewers and the guest editors.  The guest
editors will make acceptance recommendations to the Editor in Chief,
Dr. Prashant Palvia, who will make the final decision.

The special issue will include the following:
 Editorial preface to be written by the guest editors
3 or 4 referred papers
An interview with a CIO or another senior executive of a company
A book review relevant to the theme of the special issue

d) Important Dates
Deadline for submission:                       January 30, 2011
Initial decision and revisions sent to authors             May 15, 2011
Deadline for revised papers:                        July 30, 2011
Notification of final acceptances:                August 30, 2011
Deadline for final versions:                           October 15, 2011
Tentative Publication Date:                         January, 2012

Submissions: Please submit electronically as MS-Word attachment to
three editors simultaneously at the following addresses. Approximate
size of the paper should be 25 double-spaced pages not including
references, tables, and figures.

Special Issue Editors:

Fujun Lai
The University of Southern Mississippi
College of Business
730 E. Beach Blvd
Long Beach, MS 39560
Phone: 228-214-3446
Email: Fujun.lai at usm.edu

Yong Lu
The Pennsylvania State University
Information Sciences & Technology
76 University Dr.
Hazleton, PA 18202
Phone: 570-450-3024
Email: yul14 at psu.edu

Dan Yang
School of Business Administration
Southwestern University of Finance and Economics
Chengdu, China 610074
Email: yangd at swufe.edu.cn