Epidemike

Epidemike is a term used in information science and digital sociology to describe the rapid and widespread propagation of information, memes, ideas, or behaviors through a population, akin to a biological epidemic. It encompasses online virality on social networks, messaging platforms, and traditional media, as well as offline diffusion through social interaction and cultural uptake.

Origin and usage: The word epidemike is a portmanteau of epidemic and meme; its precise origin is uncertain but it gained use in academic and media discussions in the 2010s to describe information cascades.

Concepts: Key features include contagion, heterogeneity of agents, network structure, thresholds for adoption, and amplification by platforms' algorithms. Models often adapt SIR or Bass diffusion frameworks to capture how exposure leads to adoption or sharing, and how decay in attention affects spread.

Applications and examples: Studying epidemike helps understand misinformation, public health campaigns, marketing, and political influences. Notable cases include viral campaigns that achieve rapid widespread participation or sharing, as well as harmful misinformation that spreads before countermeasures can respond.

Criticism and limitations: The term is contested and sometimes overlaps with existing concepts such as information diffusion or memetics; measurement challenges exist due to data access, platform diversity, and privacy concerns; ethical considerations surround manipulation and surveillance.