Research Details

Abstract

Using large-scale interaction data from a virtual world, we show that people’s propensity to socialize (forming new social connections) varies by hour of the day. We arrive at our results by longitudinally tracking people’s friend-adding activities in a virtual world. Specifically, we find that people are most likely to socialize during the evening, at approximately 8 p.m. and 12 a.m., and are least likely to do so in the morning, at approximately 8 a.m. Such patterns prevail on weekdays and weekends and are robust to variations in individual characteristics and geographical conditions.

Type

Article

Author(s)

Xiaohua Zeng, Ximeng Wang, Yunjie Xu, Yun Huang, Noshir Contractor

Date Published

2015

Citations

Zeng, Xiaohua, Ximeng Wang, Yunjie Xu, Yun Huang, and Noshir Contractor. 2015. Circadian Rhythms in Socializing Propensity. PLOS ONE.(9)