The irony of serendipity: disruptions in social information behaviour

Purpose – This paper seeks to propose that the current social media surge gives rise to what can be called social information behaviour. Social information behaviour is characterised, at least partly, by a tension between serendipity and disruption. While serendipity is a promoted feature of social media and social information behaviour, social disruption can be seen as its ironic counterpart. This paper goes on to explore different kinds of social disruption that emerge with the use of social media services.