Modeling rumor propagation and refutation with time effect in online social networks

Rumor propagation and refutation form an important issue for spreading dynamics in online social networks (OSNs). In this paper, we introduce a novel two-stage rumor propagation and refutation model with time effect for OSNs. The dynamical mechanism of rumor propagation and refutation with time effect is investigated deeply. Then a two-stage model and the corresponding mean-field equations in both homogeneous and heterogeneous networks are obtained. Monte Carlo simulations are conducted to characterize the dynamics of rumor propagation and refutation in both Watts–Strogatz network and Barabási–Albert network. The results show that heterogeneous networks yield the most effective rumor and anti-rumor spreading. Besides, the sooner authority releases anti-rumor and the more attractive anti-rumor is, the less rumor influence is. What’s more, these findings suggest that individuals’ ability to control themselves and identify rumor accurately should be improved to reduce negative impact of rumor effectively. The results are helpful to understand better the mechanism of rumor propagation and refutation in OSNs.