Why are there so many extreme opinions online?: An empirical, comparative analysis of Japan, Korea and the USA

PurposeThis study aims to verify the following hypothesis: People with extreme opinions post on social media more than those with moderate opinions.Design/methodology/approachA social media posting model was constructed to estimate the influence of extreme opinions on the number of social media posts in Japan, Korea and the USA. For a quantitative verification, data from 5,095 questionnaire surveys were regressed using a Tobit model.FindingsExtreme opinions were found to increase the number of social media posts in all three countries and for both surveyed topics (constitutional amendment in Japan and increasing number of foreigners in Japan, Korea and the USA). Furthermore, the higher the interest in the topic, the greater the effect. The hypothesis was thus supported.Research limitations/implicationsThe survey was conducted online, and the sample size in Korea and the USA was smaller than in Japan. The topics were limited to two, and only three countries were included.Social implicationsPeople should use social media knowing that there are numerous extreme views online. Companies that provide social media platforms should consider measures to ensure that users are not exclusively exposed to extreme opinions.Originality/valueThis research conducts a quantitative analysis on the effects of opinion extremity on social media posting behavior and the resulting bias in online opinion distribution, a topic on which there is scant prior research.Peer reviewThe peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/OIR-07-2020-0310.