Call for Papers
Special Issue on Analysis and Applications of Complex Social Networks
Complexity (https://www.hindawi.com/journals/complexity/, IF 3.514)Journal

It is our pleasure to invite you to submit your paper to Special Issue on Analysis and Applications of Complex Social Networks. This Special Issue is devoted to analysis of these large–scale social structures. Complex social networks can be analysed either from static or dynamic perspective, making those complex structures even more challenging for investigation. On one hand, we are looking for original contributions to the fundamental research of complex networks (e.g. diffusion, measures and their dynamics, multi-relational aspects). On the other hand, we also seek for business and industrial applications of social network analysis that help to solve real–world problems.
Social networks have been investigated for many years but the scope of the analyses was limited due to the small data samples that could be collected using questionnaires and interviews. Because of that there was no time efficiency requirement that used methods should meet. Nowadays this situation changes as we have at our disposal vast amount of data about people and their interactions. This data comes from technological–based services such as Online Social Networking Sites, telecommunication services, email systems, etc. Also from the sociological perspective much more data can be collected. Simple online surveys enables to easily reach broader audience. From this vast amount of data we are able to extract and analyse the social networks that consist of millions of nodes and connections. Based on this data we are able to build new network models that enable to better capture real–world phenomena (e.g. stochastic block models).
Due to scale, complexity and dynamics, these networks are extremely difficult to analyse in terms of tradi- tional social network analysis methods that are not optimised in terms of performance. In the same time, data about human activities provides new opportunities for new applications.
The area of social network analysis and its applications bring together researchers and practitioners from different fields and the main goal of this special issue is to provide them the opportunity to share their visions, research achievements and solutions as well as to establish worldwide cooperative research and development. At the same time, we want to provide a platform for discussing research topics underlying the concepts of complex social network analysis and its applications by inviting members of different communities that share this common interest of investigating social networks. As the area of social networks is a highly cross–disciplinary one, we aim to foster and develop sustainable collaborations between Computer Science and Informatics, Sociology, Cognitive Science and Psychology, Geographic and Environmental Science, Biology, Health and Social Sciences. This will give the opportunity to push further the discussion upon the potential of social networks and their applications across these communities.
1 Topics of Interest
The scope Special Issue on Analysis and Applications of Complex Social Networks includes, but is not limited to the following application areas of social network analysis:
• Data Science of complex social networks
• Information/opinion/knowledge spread and modelling
• Complex social networks modelling approaches
• Multilayer complex social networks
• Complexity methodologies in the context of social network analysis
• Dynamics and predictive modelling of complex social networks
• Dynamic social network and event streams analysis
• Trust and reputation in complex social networks
• Social media
• Business/e-business/e-commerce
• Customer relationship management
• Social networks in health and social care
• Educational applications/e-learning
• Collaborative Information Retrieval
• Crime detection and investigation
• Collaborative environments, including wikis and other sharing systems
• Virtual worlds and online multiplayer games
• Systems for e-society, including e-government
• User analysis in web-based systems
• Applications of spatio-temporal, textual, dynamic and multilayer models.
• Recommender systems and collaborative filtering in complex networks

2 Important Dates
• February 28, 2017: Submission deadline
• June 30, 2017: Notification of the first-round review
• August 31, 2017: Revised submission due
• November 30, 2017: Notification of the second-round review
• January 31, 2018: Final notice of acceptance/reject
• February 28, 2018: Final Reception of the accepted papers
3 Paper Submission
Papers reporting original and unpublished research results pertaining to the above topics are solicited. Please submit your manuscript via http://mts.hindawi.com/submit/journals/pd/.
Guidelines for authors can be found here: https://www.hindawi.com/journals/complexity/guidelines/

4 Special Issue Editors
Piotr Brodka, Department of Computational Intelligence, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Poland
Address: Wybrzeze Wyspianskiego 27, 50–370 Wroclaw, Poland
Email: piotr.brodka@pwr.edu.pl

Katarzyna Musial, Faculty of Science and Technology,
Department of Computing and Informatics, Bournemouth University, United Kingdom
Address: Bournemouth University, Poole House, Talbot Campus, Bournemouth, BH12 5BB, UK
Email: kmusialhgabrys@bournemouth.ac.uk

Pasquale De Meo, Department of Modern and Ancient Civilization, University of Messina, Italy
Address: Dipartimento di Civilt Antiche e Moderne, Universit degli Studi di Messina, Viale Annunziata
- Polo Universitario 98168 , Messina, Italy
Email: pdemeo@unime.it