Quantitative evaluation of the roles of community events and artifacts for social network formation: a multilayer network model of a community of practice

Abstract

Participation in community events such as local festivals can provide people with opportunities to collaborate with community members whom they would have never met otherwise. Furthermore, such collaboration through community events is likely to expand interaction even in daily life. In addition, if the physical properties of a public space in which community events are held change, the number and variety of the participants may also change, which could result in additional collaborations in the events. Therefore, the expansion of interaction in daily life is likely to be greater. Through the application of a social network model based on game theory, this study formulates a multilayer network model that expresses interaction in community events and in daily life by using different network layers. The study analyzes the extent to which new interactions in a layer of daily life are expanded through interactions in a layer of community events that are created through participation in the event. In terms of the expansion of networks in daily life, this study quantitatively evaluates the roles of community events and the physical properties of public spaces in which events are held.

Appendices

Appendix 1

The question asking about willingness to pay for Ennichi is as follows.

Suppose the following hypothetical situation:

Due to some reasons, funds for Ennichi in Taisho-suji Shopping Street are insufficient from this year onward, which makes it difficult to hold Ennichi. To solve this problem, you are asked to donate your money to the shopping street association. If you donate, the current Ennichi will be continued.

Up to how much can you donate? Choose the nearest option in Table 3. Note that the amount of money at your disposal is reduced by the amount of money you donate.

If you answer “1. ¥ 0,” choose a reason in Table 4.

Table 3 Willingness to pay for Ennichi

Table 4 Reasons of non-donation

In the survey, we regard responses of subjects who answer “1. ¥ 0” and whose reason is either “3. I disagree with donation, although I feel that a countermeasure is needed,” “4. I cannot imagine the situation well,” or “5. I have difficulty in measuring its monetary value” as “protest responses” (Mitchell and Carson 1989) and remove them from samples. This is because they are assumed not to be indicative of respondents’ true values. In other words, they refuse to pay just because they disagree with the method of payment or cannot imagine the situation well although they gain positive utility from Ennichi in reality.

Appendix 2

The question asking about the number of people playing each exhibitor and visitor with whom a subject interacted in last Ennichi is as follows.

In the last Ennichi, how many people did you interact with, enjoying chatting and greeting?

Choose one of items according to roles of those you interacted with in Table 5. If you choose “more,” write the approximate number if possible.

Table 5 The number of people with whom you interacted in the last Ennichi

A subject’s answer about the number of people playing exhibitor with whom a subject interacted in the last Ennichi is converted to $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ e}}}$ as follows:

• If “0 people,” then $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ e}}}= 0$.

• If “1–5 people,” then $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ e}}} = 3$.

• If “6–10 people,” then $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ e}}} = 8$.

• If “11–15 people,” then $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ e}}} = 13$.

• If “16–20 people,” then $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ e}}} = 18$.

• If “21–25 people,” then $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ e}}} = 23$.

• If “26–30 people,” then $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ e}}} = 28$.

• If “more,” then $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ e}}} = ({\rm{the~number~that~a~subject~writes}})$.

In the same way, a subject’s answer about the number of people playing visitor with whom a subject interacted in the last Ennichi is converted into $\tilde{V}_{r_{\rm{ v}}}$.

Appendix 3

The question asking about the number of physical properties in the shopping street that a subject feels are indispensable for Ennichi is as follows.

In Ennichi, we can see the two spaces, namely the “exhibition space” and the “passage” of the shopping street. The conceptual diagram of each space is depicted in Figure 19. Table 6 shows the properties that you may feel are indispensable for Ennichi in each space.

Choose six items at most that you feel are so.

Fig. 19

Spaces of the shopping street

Table 6 Physical properties in the shopping street

Appendix 4

The question asking about the number of hours that are spent over one year in the preparation and meetings for the activity until the day when the activity is held is as follows.

How long do you spend over one year in the preparation and meetings for Ennichi until the day when the activity is held? Please include the time when you spend them on the day when Ennichi is held. Please write numbers in parentheses in either A or B, whichever you prefer.

A. I spend (   ) days in one year in total and spend approximately (   ) hours per day.

B. I spend approximately (   ) hours in one year in total.

Appendix 5

Let us introduce the heterogeneity $w_i$ for player i with respect to the opportunity for link formation in daily life in the following way.

• Assign the items of X-axis of Fig. 6 to players at random, following the proportion of the items. For example, the proportions of “0 people” and “1–5 people” are 49 and 38% respectively, and thus, assign “0 people” to $49\%$ of players among all players $n = 7965$ and then assign “1–5 people” to $38\%$ of players among the rest. According to the item that each player has, let each player have the following variable $w_i$.

  • If “0 people,” then $w_i = 1$.

  • If “1–5 people,” then $w_i = 3$.

  • If “6–10 people,” then $w_i = 8$.

  • If “11–15 people,” then $w_i = 13$.

  • If “16–20 people,” then $w_i = 18$.

  • If “21–25 people,” then $w_i = 23$.

  • If “more,” then $w_i = 23$.

Following the probability proportional to $w_i$ and $w_j$, one pair of players i and j is identified in every period, who has an opportunity to make a decision with respect to link formation in a layer of daily life.