Important links

• Paper (preprint)
• New Media & Society link
• [Medium Blog that summarizes this paper]https://medium.com/@shagunjhaver/do-users-want-platform-moderation-or-individual-control-1e430ef09d2b)

Abstract

This study examines social media users’ preferences for the use of platform-wide moderation in comparison to user-controlled, personalized moderation tools to regulate three categories of norm-violating content – hate speech, sexually explicit content, and violent content. Via a nationally representative survey of 984 US adults, we explore the influence of third-person effects and support for freedom of expression on this choice. We find that perceived negative effects on others negatively predict while free speech support positively predicts a preference for having personal moderation settings over platform-directed moderation for regulating each speech category. Our findings show that platform governance initiatives need to account for both actual and perceived media effects of norm-violating speech categories to increase user satisfaction. Our analysis also suggests that users do not view personal moderation tools as an infringement on others’ free speech but as a means to assert greater agency over their social media feeds.

BibTeX citation

@article{jhaver-2023-platform-personal,
    author = {Jhaver, Shagun and Zhang, Amy X.}, 
    title = {Do Users Want Platform Moderation or Individual Control? Examining the Role of Third-Person Effects and Free Speech Support in Shaping Moderation Preferences}, 
    year = {2023}, 
    journal = {New Media & Society}, 
    numpages = {21}, 
    }