Group colocation behavior in technological social networks

TL;DR

This study compares individual and group mobility patterns using large datasets from social networks and telecommunications, revealing distinct behaviors in meeting locations and group dynamics with implications for venue recommendation systems.

Contribution

It provides a comparative analysis of group versus individual location behaviors across two large datasets, highlighting consistent patterns and influencing factors.

Findings

Individuals meet more friends at new places when alone.

Groups prefer familiar locations and places visited by other friends.

Place type significantly influences group meeting likelihood.

Abstract

We analyze two large datasets from technological networks with location and social data: user location records from an online location-based social networking service, and anonymized telecommunications data from a European cellphone operator, in order to investigate the differences between individual and group behavior with respect to physical location. We discover agreements between the two datasets: firstly, that individuals are more likely to meet with one friend at a place they have not visited before, but tend to meet at familiar locations when with a larger group. We also find that groups of individuals are more likely to meet at places that their other friends have visited, and that the type of a place strongly affects the propensity for groups to meet there. These differences between group and solo mobility has potential technological applications, for example, in venue recommendation in location-based social networks.