人肉搜索作為資訊行為之探索性研究

Abstract

人肉搜索係伴隨網路發展出現的資訊行為，然過往研究多以法學、傳播學、資訊工程、管理學與社會學等觀點探討人肉搜索之現象，時至今日人肉搜索尚未有明確之定義釐清其內涵。有鑑於現有人肉搜索相關研究之文獻缺口，本研究欲以資訊學角度探究人肉搜索，從人肉搜索參與者之主觀角度理解其所參與之人肉搜索事件情境，及其如何於網路世界眾多資訊中追蹤網路使用者之數位足跡，調查特定個人或事件之資訊，以及過程中其如何與他人互動進行資訊交流。本研究之研究問題包括：一、人肉搜索發生之常見情境為何？二、人肉搜索參與者之資訊尋求策略為何？三、人肉搜索參與者之協作資訊行為特徵為何？ 本研究採用半結構式深度訪談法，透過關鍵事件法方式進行訪談，以PTT為主要招募平台公開招募人肉搜索參與者，共計募得20位研究參與者為本研究之研究對象。本研究從事件發生之情境與歷程、參與者之資訊尋求策略以及協作資訊行為等面向，歸納人肉搜索參與者分享之事件經驗及觀點。 研究結果發現，人肉搜索事件類型中包含與自身無關，透過傳播媒體與社群平台催化之公眾事件，以及與自身相關屬日常社交生活之個人事件類型。參與者角色類型中包含嘗試幫助他人之行動者，以及將查找行為視為私密任務之潛水者。人肉搜索之主要動機為好奇心，其資訊需求範圍包含找尋或確認特定人物之真實身份、事件相關之事實性資訊，乃至特定人物之成長背景、個人言論與思考價值觀皆涵蓋其中。 人肉搜索參與者具備資訊覓食者之特性，以自身網路使用之經驗展開調查，設定資訊目標並評估成本效益，主動選擇特定或多元之資訊覓食地帶，以實際線索交叉比對或以直覺聯想推理追蹤過濾資訊氣味。資訊覓食經驗豐富之人肉搜索參與者，以自身特有之富集行為，發展出最佳化的資訊檢索策略以達成資訊濃縮提煉，減少時間成本花費並提高成功率。人肉搜索之事件情境中，包含未協作事件以及協作事件，未協作原因包含個人資訊隱私保護意識、查找能力受限之自我效能因素、成本效益評估避免查找任務重複之競先效應，以及預期他人會完成查找任務之搭便車效應。本研究以協作膠囊理論C5互動層級歸納協作事件，其中溝通、貢獻、協調、合作以及協作層級皆有案例分布，事件主要分布於貢獻層級，參與者多以單方面提供資訊方式進行交流。協作情況之時空分布方面，主要以異時異地以及同時同地情境居多，其中以異時異地為主，協作歷程中多採用等通訊工具以線上資訊傳遞互動方式進行。本研究根據前述發現，從資訊安全等層面提出相關建議，供相關單位參考。

Human flesh search (HFS) can be viewed as an information behavior that grows along with the development of the Internet. Previous studies have mostly discussed the phenomenon of human flesh search from the perspectives of law, communication, information engineering, management, and sociology. Up until now, human flesh search has not yet been clearly defined and clarified. In view of the literature gap in the existing human-flesh-search-related research, this study intends to explore human flesh search from the perspective of information behavior. The current study aims to: 1. understand the contexts of the human flesh search events from the subjective perspective of human flesh search participants; 2. investigate how human flesh search participants trace information of specific individuals or events among a tremendous amount of information; 3. explore how human flesh search participants interact with one another. The research questions include: 1. What are the common situations of human flesh searches? 2. What are the information-seeking strategies of human flesh search participants? 3. What are the collaborative information behavior patterns of human flesh search participants? Twenty participants were recruited mainly through specific social media forums that attract human flesh search participants. The event experience and opinions shared by the human flesh search participants were categorized based on the situations and processes of the event, participants' information-seeking strategies, and their collaborative information behavior. The research findings identified self-related and -unrelated human-flesh-search events—Self-related events are personal events in social life, and self-unrelated events are public events catalyzed through media and social platforms. Participant roles are identified as actors and lurkers—Actors try to help others while lurkers feel that the act of searching needs to be kept secret. The major motivation of human flesh search participants is curiosity, and their information needs include finding or confirming the true identity of a specific person, factual information related to the events, sometimes as well as life history, personal background, and values of a specific person. Human flesh search participants exhibit characteristics of information foragers. They conduct investigations based on their Internet use experience, set information goals and evaluate cost-effectiveness, actively choose specific or diverse foraging in information patches, cross-comparison with actual clues, or use intuition to associate inferential tracking and filtering information scent. Participants with rich experience in human flesh search show their own unique enrichment behavior. They achieve information concentration and refinement through information retrieval strategies, reducing time costs and increasing success rate. Human flesh search scenarios include non-collaborative mode and collaborative mode. Non-collaborative scenarios typically happened due to personal information privacy protection, limited search capabilities, competitive mentality, and free-rider mentality. In collaborative scenarios, events can be mapped to all levels in the C5 model, including communication, contribution, coordination, cooperation, and collaboration. Nevertheless, most events reached the contribution level. Participants mostly communicate by providing information unilaterally. Most events were asynchronous-remote and synchronous-colocated. In the process of collaboration, human flesh search participants mostly use communication tools for online information sharing and interaction. Suggestions were provided and discussed based on the findings in this work. According to the aforementioned research findings, this study puts forward relevant suggestions from the perspective of information security policy for reference by relevant units.