Digital Commons Network^™

Creating Order Out Of Chaos? Development Of A Measure Of Perceived Effects Of Communication On The Crisis Organizing Process, Ryan Patrick Fuller, Andrew S. Pyle, Laura Riolli, Amy Mickel

Publications

Organizations are important sources of communication during natural-hazard crises. How members of an organization perceive these communications (e.g., creating confusion, causing disorder, providing clarity, and restoring order) influences response and recovery from such a crisis. Using Chaos Theory as a guiding framework, the authors developed a new instrument measuring the perceived effects of an organization’s communication on crisis-organizing processes. Three distinct studies were conducted to assess the reliability and validity of this new instrument: the “Perceived Effects of Communication on the Crisis-organizing Process (PEC-COP)” scale. This one-factor scale can be used by both scholars and practitioners to assess the effects …

Digital Repository Concierge @ Your Service, Anne Marie Casey, Chip Wolfe, Debra Rodensky, Cassandra R. Konz, Jesper M. Jensen

Publications

Libraries often develop and implement new services for the public. Sometimes they succeed; other times they fail. Expecting community members to understand the benefits of a great new idea on their own may not always work. But, taking a concierge approach to the implementation and maintenance of an innovative service may make all the difference to its success. Using a case study from the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) library as a backdrop, this presentation will highlight the effectiveness of taking a concierge approach to implementing a new service in any type of library. In 2013, ERAU launched Scholarly Commons to …

It Is All About Location: Smartphones And Tracking The Spread Of Covid-19, Jordan Frith, Michael Saker

Publications

Mobile phone location data have become tied to understandings of and responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Data visualizations have used mobile phone data to inform people about how mobility practices may be linked to the spread of the virus, and governments have explored contact tracing that relies upon mobile phone data. This article examines how these uses of location data implicate three particular issues that have been present in the growing body of locative media research: (1) anonymized data are often not anonymous, (2) location data are not always representative and can exacerbate inequality, and (3) location data are a …

Coextensive Space: Virtual Reality And The Developing Relationship Between The Body, The Digital And Physical Space, Michael Saker, Jordan Frith

Publications

Virtual Reality (VR) has traditionally required external sensors placed around a designated play space. In contrast, more recent wired and wireless systems, such as the Oculus Rift S (released in March 2019) and the Oculus Quest (released in May 2019) use cameras located on the outside of these devices to monitor their physical position. Users can now mark out a physical space that is then digitally tracked within their display. Once a play space has been established, users are alerted if they come close to breaching this boundary by the visual inclusion of a grid. Should this threshold be breached, …

Supporting Safety Culture In Academia: Safety Communication Barriers, Emily Faulconer, Chelsea Lenoble

Publications

In the last decade, we have heard of multiple disturbing academic laboratory accidents resulting in significant injury and property damage. When these hit headlines, it can spur self-reflection across academic institutions. The unfortunate truth is that safety in academia tends to be problematic. Accidents happen regularly even if they do not make headlines, with post-accident analyses typically revealing systematic safety failures. As a result, the concept of safety culture has come into the spotlight.

Project Management Leadership And Interpersonal Skills: The Past, Present, And Future, Valerie Denney, Gordon Haley, Edward Rivera, Daryl V. Watkins

Publications

The purpose of this research is to examine how interpersonal competencies have evolved in the project management profession and describe which additional skills will be needed in the future. Using an applied thematic analysis, the authors examined the past, present, and future of interpersonal skills in peer reviewed academic literature and project management textbooks. A gap analysis was used to compare the reviewed material vs. interpersonal competencies. This research concluded that project management interpersonal transferrable skills are the ones that will be most highly sought after into the future. The future of interpersonal skills will need to concentrate on those …

Locative-Media Ethics: A Call For Protocols To Guide Interactions Of People, Place, And Technologies, Andrea Zeffiro, Julia M. Hildebrand, Jordan Frith, Larissa Hjorth, Caitlin Mcgrane, Amy Schmitz Weiss, Gerard Goggin

Publications

No abstract provided.

Deindividuation In Anonymous Social Media: Does Anonymous Social Media Lead To An Increase In Non-Normative Behavior?, Shayn S. Davidson, Amy Bradshaw Hoppock, Rebecca A. Rohmeyer, Joseph Keebler, Christina M. Frederick

Publications

This research presents several aspects of anonymous social media postings using an anonymous social media application (i.e., Yik Yak) that is GPS-linked to college campuses. Anonymous social media been widely criticized for postings containing threats/harassment, vulgarity and suicidal intentions. However, little research has empirically examined the content of anonymous social media postings, and whether they contain a large quantity of negative social content. To best understand this phenomenon an analysis of the content of anonymous social media posts was conducted in accordance with Deindividuation Theory (Reicher, Spears, & Postmes, 1995). Deindividuation Theory predicts group behavior is congruent with group norms. …

Examining The Qualities Of Online And Offline Friendships: A Comparison Between Groups, Christina M. Frederick, Tianxin Zhang

Publications

Online social technologies are now used by a majority of individuals in the U.S. (Pew, 2018a). Sending emails, texting, posting on social media sites, and connecting with others through online gaming open up our social networks to a wider range of individuals. As a result, it is not uncommon to develop friendships with others that are conducted primarily in an online environment. However, we know little about the qualities of online friendships and how they may, or may not, differ from traditional face to face friendships. The present study focused on exploring friendship quality in online and offline domains using …

Iran, Diane M. Zorri

Publications

Internet access in Iran is characterized by strong censorship, limited access, surveillance, and widespread state-sanctioned propaganda. The regime in Tehran views internet freedom as a critical threat to its national security (Henry, Pettyjohn, and York 2014). Using an index of variables such as obstacles to access, limits on content, and violations of user rights, the nongovernmental organization Freedom House rates Iran’s internet access as “not free” (Freedom House 2018). On a scale of zero to one hundred, where zero is “free” and one hundred is “not free,” Freedom House scores Iran at an eighty-five, making it the least free nation …

Supporting Safety Culture In Academia: Giving A Voice To Faculty, Emily K. Faulconer, Chelsea A. Lenoble

Publications

In the words of Sir Winston Churchill, “The difference between mere management and true leadership is communication.” Department leaders have a vital role to play at all institutional levels when it comes to achieving an optimal safety culture that promotes safety voice behavior.

At the university level, this role is to help the university develop a solid foundation that will support a strong safety culture. At this level, it can be a challenge to mobilize and sustain the necessary resources to effectively develop and communicate a clear, consistent message that is aligned with implicit and explicit reward structures.