Leadership in local online communities: social stratification analysis

This article discusses aspects of the stratification of network societies, in particular given the existence of the characteristic features of leadership in the local Internet community. The study of the manifestations of various aspects of leadership in virtual groups based on a practical case study, the aim of which was social stratification analysis of local online communities that exist in cyberspace large Russian cities. The summary of theoretical positions and processing of the data, the author concludes that leadership is a factor, on the one hand, ensuring the consolidation of the social structure of the local Internet community, on the other hand, it acts as a catalyst of social mobility and stratification of the dynamics of the system. Abstracts of articles may be used in the implementation of socio-philosophical and sociological analysis of the phenomena caused by the development of the Internet.