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University of Southampton Research Repository Copyright © and Moral Rights for this thesis and, where applicable, any accompanying data are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non- commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis and the accompanying data cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder/s. The content of the thesis and accompanying research data (where applicable) must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holder/s. When referring to this thesis and any accompanying data, full bibliographic details must be given, e.g. Thesis: Blount, T,. (2018) “Modelling Eristic and Rhetorical Argumentation on the Social Web”, University of Southampton, Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences, PhD Thesis, [pagination]. Data: Author (Year) Title. URI [dataset] UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES Electronics and Computer Science Modelling Eristic and Rhetorical Argumentation on the Social Web by Tom Blount Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy September 2018 UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON ABSTRACT FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES Electronics and Computer Science Doctor of Philosophy MODELLING ERISTIC AND RHETORICAL ARGUMENTATION ON THE SOCIAL WEB by Tom Blount Argumentation, debate and discussion are key facets of human communication, shaping the way people form, share and promote ideas, hypotheses and solutions to problems. Argumenta- tion can broadly be broken down into collaborative problem solving or truth-seeking (dialectic argumentation) and quarrelling without hope for a resolution, either aggressively or for the pur- pose of recreation, catharsis or entertainment (eristic argumentation). Techniques used within argumentation can likewise be classified as primarily fact-based (logical), or emotion-based (rhetorical). The social web, consisting of the people, tools and communities that form over the world wide web, is a growing way in which individuals, social groups and even corporations share content, ideas and information, as well as hold discussions and debates. Current models of argumentation often focus on formal argumentation techniques, in which participants are expected to abide by a stringent set of rules or practices. However, on the social web there is no such code of conduct. Antisocial behaviour, which often stems from argumentation, can have a negative impact on online communities, driving away new users and stifling participation. This thesis examines the way in which the use of eristic and rhetorical argumentation impacts the perception and engagement of participants in, and the audience of, arguments on the social web. After a preliminary investigation to determine the effectiveness with which current formal mod- els represent eristic argument, a series of augmentations to these existing models was proposed, dubbed the Argumentation on the Social Web Ontology. This allows for the explicit representa- tion of rhetorical support and attack, and supports the annotation of groups of participants and the viewing audience. These augmentations were further refined through deeper investigation of modelling social argument, and through expert review. This culminated in the creation of a large dataset which was in turn used to drive an experiment into the way in which social media users perceive and engage with different types of eristic argumentation, showing that while rhetorical tactics were often more entertaining and offensive than their logical counterparts, they did not significantly alter the degree of engagement with the discussion. Contents Declaration of Authorship xvii Acknowledgements xix 1 Introduction1 1.1 Problem Space and Motivation..........................1 1.2 Hypothesis and Research Questions.......................3 1.3 Report Structure..................................4 1.4 Contributions...................................6 2 Background7 2.1 Rhetoric and Argumentation...........................7 2.1.1 Modes of Persuasion...........................7 2.1.2 Dialectic and Eristic Argument......................8 2.1.3 Modelling Argument...........................8 2.1.3.1 Toulmin Model........................9 2.1.3.2 Argument Model Ontology and Citation Typing Ontology.. 10 2.1.3.3 Scholarly Ontologies Project................. 11 2.1.3.4 Issue-Based Information Systems............... 12 2.1.3.5 Wigmore’s Charting Method................. 13 2.1.3.6 Dung’s Framework...................... 14 2.1.3.7 The World Wide Argument Web............... 15 2.1.3.8 The Argument Interchange Format.............. 15 2.1.3.9 Speech Act Theory, Inference Anchoring Theory, and the AIF+ 18 2.2 Online Communication and Interaction...................... 19 2.2.1 Social Media and the Social Web.................... 19 2.2.2 Anti-Social Behaviour.......................... 20 2.2.3 Semantically-Interlinked Online Communities............. 22 2.3 Social Aspects of Argumentation......................... 23 2.3.1 Modelling Argumentation on the Social Web.............. 23 2.3.2 Social Argumentation Tools and Platforms............... 24 2.4 Summary..................................... 25 3 Modelling with the Argument Interchange Format 27 3.1 Methodology................................... 27 3.1.1 Combining the AIF and SIOC...................... 27 3.1.2 Data Collection.............................. 28 3.1.3 Data Sampling and Annotation...................... 32 v vi CONTENTS 3.2 Results and Analysis............................... 33 3.3 Summary..................................... 36 4 The Argumentation on the Social Web Ontology 41 4.1 Extending the AIF................................. 42 4.2 Experimental Application............................. 49 4.2.1 Methodology............................... 49 4.2.1.1 Data Collection........................ 49 4.2.1.2 Annotation Method...................... 50 4.2.2 Results and Analysis........................... 51 4.2.2.1 Annotations.......................... 51 4.2.2.2 Argumentation Tactics Over Time.............. 51 4.2.2.3 Argumentation Tactics per User................ 52 4.2.2.4 Correlation Between Argumentation Structure and Post Features 54 4.3 Further Proposals................................. 56 4.3.1 Ad hominem ............................... 58 4.3.2 Appeal to Consensus........................... 61 4.3.3 Association Fallacy............................ 62 4.3.4 Appeal to Humour............................ 63 4.4 Expert Review................................... 65 4.4.1 Methodology............................... 66 4.4.2 Results and Analysis........................... 66 4.4.2.1 Social Argumentation..................... 67 4.4.2.2 Completeness......................... 68 4.4.2.3 Clarity............................. 69 4.4.2.4 Consistency.......................... 69 4.5 Final Proposals.................................. 70 4.6 Summary..................................... 70 5 Case Studies of Argument 73 5.1 Methodology................................... 73 5.1.1 Data Sample............................... 73 5.1.2 Annotation................................ 77 5.2 Data Analysis................................... 78 5.3 Narrative Account................................. 81 5.3.1 Facebook................................. 81 5.3.2 Twitter.................................. 84 5.3.3 Reddit................................... 86 5.4 Summary..................................... 89 6 Perception of Rhetorical Tactics in Individual Comments 93 6.1 Experimental Hypothesis............................. 94 6.2 Methodology................................... 94 6.2.1 Data Sample............................... 94 6.2.2 Participants and Survey.......................... 94 6.3 Data Analysis and Results............................ 97 6.3.1 Raw Data................................. 97 CONTENTS vii 6.3.2 Inter-Rater Reliability.......................... 100 6.3.3 Question Breakdown........................... 105 6.3.4 Logic/Rhetoric.............................. 107 6.3.5 Support/Attack.............................. 109 6.3.6 Rationale................................. 112 6.3.6.1 Coherence........................... 112 6.3.6.2 Credibility........................... 114 6.3.6.3 Persuasion........................... 116 6.3.6.4 Entertainment......................... 118 6.3.6.5 Offence............................ 119 6.3.6.6 Engagement.......................... 119 6.4 Summary..................................... 125 7 Conclusions and Future Work 127 7.1 Summary of Work and Findings......................... 127 7.1.1 Hypothesis and Research Questions................... 128 7.2 Proposals for Future Work............................ 130 7.2.1 Extended Perception Study........................ 131 7.2.2 Social Features and Self-Presentation.................. 131 7.2.3 AI and Reasoning............................. 132 7.2.4 Crowdsourcing.............................. 132 7.3 Final Conclusions................................. 133 A Ethical Approval of Experiments 145 A.1 Expert Review................................... 145 A.1.1 Ethics Application............................ 145 A.1.1.1 Pre-Study........................... 145 A.1.1.2 During the Study........................ 147 A.1.1.3 Post-Study........................... 147 A.1.2 Participant Information.......................... 148 A.2 Perception of Argument Study.........................