Characterizing the behavioral evolution of twitter users and the truth behind the 90-9-1 rule

Online Social Networks (OSNs) represent a fertile field to collect real user data and to explore OSNs user behavior. Recently, two topics are drawing the attention of researchers: the evolution of online social roles and the question of participation inequality. In this work, we bring these two fields together to study and characterize the behavioral evolution of OSNs users according to the quantity and the typology of their social interactions. We found that online participation on the microblogging platform can be categorized into four different activity levels. Furthermore, we empirically verified that the 90-9-1 rule of thumb about participation inequality is not an accurate representation of reality. Findings from our analysis reveal that lurkers are less than expected: they are not 9 out of 10 as suggested by Nielsen, but 3 out of 4. This represents a significant result that can give new insights on how users relate with social media and how their use is evolving towards a more active interaction with the new generation of consumers.