We present an automated approach for studying fine-grained details of social interactions and relationships. Specifically, we analyze the conversational characteristics of a group of 24 individuals over a six-month period, explore the relationship between conversational dynamics and network position, and identify behavioral correlates of tie strengths within a network. The ability to study conversational dynamics and social networks over long time scales, and to investigate their interplay with rigor, objectivity, and transparency will complement the traditional methods for scientific inquiry into social dynamics.

Wyatt, Danny, Choudhury, Tanzeem, Bilmes, Jeff, and James A. Kitts. “Towards the Automated Social Analysis of Situated Speech Data“ Proceedings of the International Conference on Ubiquitous Computing, September 2008.