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Abstract
The importance and significance of participation and engagement through interactivity on Web2.0 sites emerge in the literature about Web2.0. In order to gain insight into interactivity on Web2.0 platforms, and thus to assess the impact of Web2.0, we develop an analytical framework. Based on a conceptual analysis of interaction, a phrase omnipresent in the discourse on new communication technologies, the internet and Web2.0 in particular, our framework takes into account the objective, structural features of Web2.0 platforms (expressed in structural affordances) and the functional, subjective perception and usage of these features by the users of these Web2.0 platforms (expressed in functional affordances). In order to test the value and usefulness of this analytical framework, we set up a small, qualitative research design (N = 27). Our goal was to use the developed framework to explore how agency and engagement on Flickr and deviantART, two Web2.0 sites, are reflected in the use of Web2.0 affordances and thus demonstrate the usability and value of the developed framework. We conclude that the analytical framework enables us to describe the interactivity that plays out on Flickr and deviantART as websites ‘through’ which internet users can communicate, as well as sites ‘with’ which internet users can communicate. Flickr and deviantART are spaces where interaction ‘goes beyond’ the mere consultation and selection of content, as they support the (co)creation of content and processes of collective or individual agency. The developed analytical framework thus provides insight into the emancipatory or participatory potential of these websites, showing that our respondents consider Flickr and deviantART to be meeting places for photo- or art-lovers and suggesting that the websites function as virtual ‘third places’.
Acknowledgements
The research leading to this article was supported by IBBT (Interdisciplinary Institute for Technology). We also acknowledge Lieven De Marez and CSS's anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on the earlier versions of the article.