Communication Technology and New Media Commons^™

Analysis Of Bloggers’ Usage Of The Web Space In Kyrgyzstan To Engage Civically And Politically, Bahtiyar Kurambayev

Dissertations

This dissertation work seeks to assess the implications of the internet (blogging) in non-democratic Kyrgyz Republic for engaging civically and politically. Existing literature offers contradictory findings about the role of internet in non-democratic countries and Kyrgyz Republic is one of those non-western countries that have been overlooked. To understand how the internet may relate to engagement civically and politically, the author applies survey approach and in-depth interviews to examine the relationship between the internet and engagement by specifically looking at how Kyrgyz bloggers use the web space.

The sample is drawn from student population. The author collected online 132 responses …

External Organizational Identification, Parasocial Relationships, And Social Media Use, Lindsey Webb Dancy

Dissertations

The pervasive use of the Internet for social purposes has led to organizational and social change, as well as social movements online throughout the world. Of particular interest in this study is commitment to organizations by patrons and stakeholders showcased via social media outlets. This research includes a review of organizational identification, parasocial relationships and social media research followed by a detailed description of the method, which included the creation and testing of a questionnaire examining the organizational identification and parasocial relationships of external publics, and their social media use. A hypothesis is put forth suggesting that there is a …