Content Generation on Social Media: The Role of Negative Peer Feedback

Abstract

In recent years, user-generated content (UGC) on social media platforms has received increased scrutiny for creating a polarizing environment wherein users post extreme opinions and/or receive negative backlash from dissenters. In this paper, we ask how receiving negative peer feedback, in the form of downvotes, affects echo chamber formation and polarization by influencing UGC. We focus on two aspects of UGC: (a) propensity to post (i.e., incidence) and (b) the strength of the opinion expressed in subsequent posts, which we measure with the texts' extremity (i.e., intensity). Using data from Reddit, we find that receiving negative (and positive) peer feedback increases users' subsequent posting activity, relative to no feedback. Additionally, we do not find evidence that negative feedback exacerbates echo chamber formation by driving away users with unpopular opinions. However, receiving negative peer feedback moderates extreme sentiments such that when the initial opinion is extreme, users reduce the intensity of their subsequent opinions upon receiving negative feedback. This suggests that negative peer feedback can serve as the whip that regulates the polarization of opinions by encouraging users to moderate their tone. These effects of negative feedback are consistent with users attempting to maintain their reputation.

Keywords: Social Media, User-Generated Content, Polarization, Customer Retention, Platform Design