Cobo, Germán, et al. "Using agglomerative hierarchical clustering to model learner participation profiles in online discussion forums." Proceedings of the 2nd International conference on learning analytics and knowledge. 2012.

The paper proposes a two-stage analysis strategy using an agglomerative hierarchical clustering algorithm to identify and categorize participation profiles of learners in online discussion forums. By analyzing parameters such as post volume, rhythm, thread depth, and cross-replies, the study aims to reveal different learner profiles and assess their behavior and performance in virtual learning environments.