Researches On Informal Academic Information Communication Based On WeChat Group

Since Menzel put forward the theory of formal communication process and informal communication process,paper publications,such books and periodicals as the main body,have formally established its dominant position in the academic information communication system.Since the 1980 s,the popularization of digital network technology has provided a new opportunity for the revival of informal communication.As a form of informal academic information communication in the digital and networking environment,social media platforms greatly facilitate the instant communication of academic information among researchers,in which WeChat group is an important channel for informal communication favored by researchers.So,taking 16 acadmic groups in colleges as the research object,in which the teachers and their students joined the WeChat to communicate the informal academic information,this study has collected their communicative text in some time windows.The grounded theory has been used to code these communicative text to identify their concepts,and the process model of informal academic information communication based on WeChat group was constructed.Using statistical method,the coding results were analyzed from the frequency,carriers,processes,and actors in informal academic information communication to reveal the characteristics of informal academic information communication within WeChat group.Based on relevant research works,the efficiency evaluation indicators of informal academic information communication based on WeChat group is constructed from the perspective of input and output,and the SBM was used to evaluate the efficiency.According to the efficiency evaluation results,a contribution model was constructed drawn from information ecology,and the Levins formula measuring niche width was introduced to calculate the efficiency contribution for the informal academic information communication.Based on the above processes,the results of this study are as follows:(1)Constructing process model of informal academic information communication based on WeChat group.4508 records were extracted in the 16 WeChat groups,and Grounded theory was used to anlyze these records.15 open coding,6 axial coding(information questions,information sharing,information forwarding,light reply,moderate reply and deep reply" and 3 choose encoding(information delivery,information forwarding and information reply)are extracted,and then the process model were constructed for informal academic information communication in WeChat group.In a certain information environment,with the surpport of information technologies,the interaction among information producers,information transmitters and information consumers made the commucative system to maintain dynamic balance through information delivery,information forwarding and information reply.(2)Revealing the characteristics of informal academic information communication based on WeChat group.(1)The more active WeChat group is,the better the informal academic information communication atmosphere is.There is no difference in the frequency of informal academic information communication among different disciplines.(2)In the processes of informal academic information communication based on WeChat group,text is the main kinds of informal academic communication,following the linkages and files,and voice and video are the least used.There are significant differences in communicative carriers among different disciplines,and the frequency in linkages is quite different.Among them,the WeChat group in management,art and medical science prefers to use more linkages than that in science and engineering science.(3)The information reply in WeChat group is the most important way to communicate academic information,following the information delivery,and information forwarding is the least.There are great differences among different disciplines.The WeChat group in science and engineering tends to use information reply,but less information forwarding,while the WeChat group in management,art and medicine prefer more information forwarding tendency.(4)Members with higher positions or grades are more likely to be active users of informal academic information communication in WeChat group.(3)Measuring the efficiency of informal academic information communication based on WeChat group.The average of the overall efficiency of informal academic information communication in WeChat group is 0.475,which is not effective in DEA.In terms of the disciplines involved in communication,the efficiency in science and engineering is better than that in management science and art science.Furthermore,the general reason that failed to reach DEA efficiency in art science is the big gap between the actual size and the optimal one to cause the low efficiency.(4)Calculating the efficiency contribution of informal academic information communication based on WeChat group.The niche width of the information actors was calculated by the Levins formula,and the significance was as follows: Tutors > Doctor students > Postgraduate students.Therefore,tutors make the largest efficiency contribution to the informal academic information communication,and they are the leader users in the group,followed by doctoral students,and postgraduate students make the least contribution,and they are the ordinary users in the group.