Digital Commons Network^™

From Memes To Message To Mario Kart: An Analysis Of The Reach Of Social Media Content Related To Kamala Harris, Yi Luo, Jin-A Choi, Bond Benton

College of Communication and Media Scholarship and Creative Works

A daunting challenge in political engagement lies in connecting with the younger demographics who are the digital natives. Especially, the 18-24 age group has some of the lowest turnout rates amongst eligible voters. After her sudden ascendence to be the presumptive presidential candidate for the Democrat Party, a tidal wave of meme posts, largely from young Americans, playfully associated Kamala Harris with coconut tree. These coconut-themed memes ignited an unprecedented surge of energy and engagement among young voters on social media platforms, which provides an ideal context to examine their reactions toward these memes in light of a high-stake presidential …

Promoter Or Barrier? Assessing How Social Media Predicts Covid-19 Vaccine Acceptance And Hesitancy: A Systematic Review Of Primary Series And Booster Vaccine Investigations, Christopher J. Mckinley, Yam Limbu

College of Communication and Media Scholarship and Creative Works

Abstract

Rationale

Prior research indicates that social media is primarily a negative contributor to Covid-19 vaccine outcomes.

Objective

The current systematic review of Covid-19 primary series and booster vaccine investigations provides a more nuanced and comprehensive assessment of this association by exploring a) how distinct social media judgmentsand actions predict different vaccine-related outcomes - perceptions and intentions/uptake, b) both primary series and booster findings, c) types of social media, and d) comparisons across different populations.

Method

We conducted a systematic reviewof published research examining the link between social media and COVID-19 vaccine outcomes – judgments, intentions, and uptake. …

Ua12/2/84 Sigma Chi, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about Sigma Phi Alpha fraternity and it's forerunner Sigma Chi.

Ua12/2/85 Sigma Gamma Rho, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about Sigma Gamma Rho sorority.

Ua94/6/18 Stephen Flora Student / Alumni Papers, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about Stephen Flora during his years as a student at Western Kentucky University.

Ua1c11/127 Stephen Flora Photo Collection, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Photographs donated by WKU alumnus Stephen Flora, taken for class and College Heights Herald.

A Rhetorical Analysis Of 13 Going On 30, Brynn Olverson

Schultz-Werth Award Papers

The film 13 Going on 30 is an iconic and nostalgic film for many, but more specifically for young women emerging into adulthood. This film is best classified as a coming-of-age film. Thirteen-year-old Jenna goes through the process of turning thirteen years old and emerging into middle school. Jenna craves to be accepted by the cool girls and is blinded by the idea of popularity which in turn ruins her lifelong friendship with her neighbor and best friend Matt. Jenna’s life was turned upside down when she woke up thirty years old, living in her thirty-year-old body, and working her …

External Funding Bulletin, January - June 2024, Uno Office Of Research And Creative Activity

Sponsored Programs Bulletins

No abstract provided.

The Body Positivity Movement: Improving Female College Students Mental Health And Body Appreciation, Emilie Conners, Lucy Matthews, Diane R. Edmondson

Atlantic Marketing Journal

Body image concerns among college-aged women continue to be an immense issue across many college campuses. As technology advances, it has become more common for young girls and women to edit their social media photos and focus more on their flaws. Body image has a significant impact on mental and physical health; therefore, it is vital that these concerns are addressed and fought. One movement recently used as a possible way to combat this concern is the body positivity movement. However, more research is needed to understand the impact of this movement on young women. Survey data was collected via …

Trust Relationships: Tales From The Web, Magdoleen Ierlan

Atlantic Marketing Journal

Trust is an important component of any purchasing situation. In an online setting, trust becomes even more important as buyer and seller are not able to directly interact with one another. Compounding the situation is the fact that the consumer cannot directly experience the product under consideration. Organizations have attempted to address this shortcoming by allowing third parties to offer reviews of the product in question. This paper addresses how consumers process these product reviews.

By rooting this paper in trust and uncertainty reduction theory, a testable model was developed. The model was tested, and in general, more helpful reviews, …

The Impact Of Demographics And Cause Related Marketing Participation In The Black Lives Matter Movement On Company Image, Jerome Christia, Joseph Njuki

Atlantic Marketing Journal

Cause Related Marketing is an impactful marketing strategy for companies concerned about improving or maintaining their company image. This study examines the effect of cause related marketing participation Black Lives Matter movement and demographics of supporters on company image. Questionnaires from 106 respondents were collected, analyzed, and results presented. The paper reviews cause related marketing, the Black Lives Matter movement, and company image. In addition, demographic characteristics are investigated for respondent perspectives on company image. Our research indicates that there is a positive and significant relationship between cause related marketing participation in the Black Lives Matter movement on company image. …

Healthcare Marketing Communication: Media Usage And Psychographic Profiles For Baby Boomer, Gen X, And Millennial Consumers, Terry Damron, Joe Cangelosi, David Kim, Ed Ranelli

Atlantic Marketing Journal

Abstract

Purpose Preventive health care information (PHCI), which functions as a cost-effective or cost-saving means of reducing mortality and improving life quality, also fuels consumer demand for otherwise underutilized preventive medical services, thereby improving profitability for service providers. This study provides healthcare marketing professionals with media usage insights and psychographic profiles useful for developing effective PHCI communication strategies.

Design This research is based on questionnaire responses (n = 813). Analysis of the variance (ANOVA) was used to assess and compare the importance consumers assigned to online PHCI sources. Factor analysis was used to determine whether attitude patterns tended to …

Nbc Peacock North Winter 2024 Newsletter, Peacock North Staff

NBC Peacock North Newsletter

Highlights include: Marilyn's Page -- History of the National Association of Black Journalists -- Al Roker Returns to the Macy's Parade -- Joe Klimovitz Hosts Photo Exhibition -- Martin Fletcher at Sacred Heart University -- Silent Microphones

Mental Health Challenges And Resilience Among International Graduate Students In The United States, Md Rejaul Haque

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This research examines the experiences of international graduate students in the United States. It focuses on the challenges they face that can lead to mental health issues. I conducted in-depth focus group interviews through Zoom. Participants shared their stories, highlighting the stigma around mental health. I transcribed the interviews and analyzed them for themes. The findings show that international students deal with various difficulties, such as cultural differences and homesickness. They often find better support from informal peer networks rather than from institutional resources. The study highlights the importance of community engagement and cultural exchange in helping these students build …

Improving Spiritual Care Competency Among Intensive Care Unit Nurses: Promoting Holistic Patient Care Towards End-Of-Life, Joanne Nguyen, Dana Bagis

Nursing | Senior Theses

Intensive care unit (ICU) nurses play a crucial role in providing physiological stabilizing care in a dynamic and fast-paced environment, often marked by constant changes and variability in complex patients. Despite their specialization, the aspect of spiritual care tends to be overlooked, particularly in the context of end-of-life care. This is significant because previous studies have shown that a lack of spiritual care leads to poorer health outcomes, decreased coping, increased depression, and diminished quality of life for patients. This research proposal aims to investigate the spiritual care competency among ICU nurses who partake in spiritual care-based training, with the …

Nlp Analysis Of Environmental Themes In Phish Lyrics Across Concert Locations And Years, Anna Farzindar, Jason L. Jarvis

Communication Studies Faculty Works

This work studies the application of advanced AI and natural language processing (NLP) techniques, to analyze the lyrics of Phish, a renowned American jam band known for their groundbreaking improvisational live shows and eclectic lyrics. Focusing on environmental themes within their extensive repertoire, this paper aims to uncover latent topics pertaining to environmental discourse, by using the topic modeling and environmental classifier to filter out the list of topics present within their songs. Through meticulous preprocessing, modeling, and interpretation, our findings shed light on the multifaceted portrayal of environmental issues in Phish’s lyrics. In this study, our primary contribution lies …

Language Acquisition, Mental Health, And Acculturation Among Migrants In Canada, Ali Jasemi

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This dissertation examines the integration of first-generation migrants in Canada, focusing on the constructs of acculturation, language proficiency, and mental health. With nearly a quarter of Canada's population comprising migrants (Statistics Canada, 2022), understanding their adjustment is critical. Acculturation, language proficiency, and mental health can all have an impact on the success of migrants in their new country (Balidemaj et al. 2019; Brance et al. 2023; Iversen et al. 2014; Rousseau et al. 2019; Rashtchi et al. 2012; Salami et al. 2019). There are a limited number of studies examining these variables in relation to certain migrant groups, such as …

How Individuals’ Opinions Influence Society’S Resistance To Epidemics: An Agent-Based Model Approach, Geonsik Yu, Michael J. Garee, Mario Ventresca, Yuehwern Yih

Faculty Publications

Background: Protecting public health from infectious diseases often relies on the cooperation of citizens, especially when self-care interventions are the only viable tools for disease mitigation. Accordingly, social aspects related to public opinion have been studied in the context of the recent COVID-19 pandemic. However, a comprehensive understanding of the effects of opinion-related factors on disease spread still requires further exploration. Methods: We propose an agent-based simulation framework incorporating opinion dynamics within an epidemic model based on the assumption that mass media channels play a leading role in opinion dynamics. The model simulates how opinions about preventive interventions change over …

You Shall Know A Forum By The Words They Keep: Analyzing Language Use In Accessibility Forums For Blind Users, Nithiya Venkatraman, Anand Aiyer, Yash Prakash, Vikas Ashok

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Discussion forums are one of the favored platforms for knowledge sharing. Given their popularity, copious research exists on understanding linguistic and behavioral characteristics of forum conversations. However, prior investigations have mainly focused on general forums designed primarily for sighted users, and as such the applicability of their findings to the dedicated accessibility discussion forums frequented by blind individuals remains unanswered. To bridge this knowledge gap, and facilitate the development of better-informed assistive technologies for blind people, we investigated language use and identified the key semantic and cognitive characteristics of online accessibility forums. To aid our investigation, we collected a dataset …

Evaluating Social Media Reach Via Mainstream Media Discourse, Himarsha R. Jayanetti

Computer Science Faculty Publications

This study examines the intersection between social media and mainstream television (TV) news with an aim to understand how social media content amplifies its impact through TV broadcasts. While many studies emphasize social media as a primary platform for information dissemination, they often underestimate its total influence by focusing solely on interactions within the platform. This research examines instances where social media posts gain prominence on TV broadcasts, reaching new audiences and prompting public discourse. By using TV news closed captions, on-screen text recognition, and social media logo detection, we analyze how social media is referenced in TV news. Our …

Caring Cloth Praxis: Ethics Of Loss, Practices Of Remembering, Suzanna James

Textile Society of America: Symposium Proceedings

This research, in continual development as a part of early PhD study, is currently entitled ‘Ethics of Loss, Practices of Remembering’ and locates itself within the field of cultural sustainability. It is foregrounded by my MA thesis entitled ‘Caring Cloth’ and works in response to the words of Louise Bourgeois: ‘the needle is used to repair damage, its claim to forgiveness.’ My own socially and environmentally regenerative textiles practice considers the way in which personal practices of remembering can be developed in response to cultural sustainability.

This textiles practice develops explorative visual textile art and social textile practice research which …

Textile As Cultural Technology: The Evolution Of Robert Rauschenberg’S Jammers, 1975–6, Katya Oicherman

Textile Society of America: Symposium Proceedings

Robert Rauschenberg suggested that any material has a “humanitarian reportage” or a history built into it, that opens art to the “strange and unpredictable” experience only comparable to everyday reality. Developing this idea, I will focus on the Jammers, a series of works with significant textile presence produced in 1975–76, and discuss how Rauschenberg’s relationship to textiles evolved from treating them as “materials” to recognizing them as cultural technologies. In 1975 he was on a fellowship in Ahmedabad, India, a period of intense experimentation.

Textiles were already a significant presence in his art, playing a subservient role of materials …

A Symbolic Interactionism’S Perspective Of The Attack On The U.S. Capitol., Odeli Hernandez

Undergraduate Scholarship

This paper aims to draw the line between Symbolic Interactionism and how it ties into the political world. Symbolic Interactionism states that humans interpret and assign meanings to symbols through social interaction, thus influencing their behaviors and shaping their realities. It is said that symbolic interactionism could only be applied to micro levels of social interactions, and not to something as big and intricate as politics. This paper will focus on a stand-alone event, the insurrection of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Numerous symbols were displayed before, during, and after the attack on the U.S. Capitol, each of …

Knowledge Is Power…To Misinform: Examining How Knowledge Gaps Affect Engagement With Covid-19 Misinformation, Ben Wasike

Communication Faculty Publications

This study examined how the knowledge gap hypothesis (KGH), the belief gap hypothesis (BGH), partisan media use, and interpersonal discussion affected COVID-19 knowledge and social media engagement (SME) with related misinformation. The KGH partially affected knowledge and reduced SME with misinformation regarding income. The BGH increased knowledge and reduced SME with misinformation among Liberals. Right-leaning media use and interpersonal discussion increased SME with misinformation respectively. Overall, knowledge was inversely associated with SME with misinformation.

Communicating Socially Acceptable Risk Judgments: The Role Of Impression Information Insufficiency In The Risk Information Seeking And Processing Model, Timothy K.F. Fung, Po Yan Lai, Robert J. Griffin

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic has created uncertainty and controversy around risk-related issues such as vaccine mandates. People expressing their opinions on these issues to important others, such as employers, may face significant consequences, such as rewards or rejection. Therefore, people may try to find, avoid, or use information in a way that helps them express risk judgments that are socially acceptable in different social situations. This study investigated how people seek, avoid, and process risk information when they are concerned about their impression management. It also introduced the concept of impression information insufficiency (the perceived gap between the information one has …

Young Children And The Creation Of A Digital Identity On Social Networking Sites: Scoping Review, Valeska Berg, Diana Arabiat, Evalotte Morelius, Lisa Kervin, Maggie Zgambo, Suzanne Robinson, Mark Jenkins, Lisa Whitehead

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background:

There is limited understanding of the concept of the digital identity of young children created through engagement on social networking sites.

Objective:

The objective of this scoping review was to identify key characteristics of the concept of digital identity for children from conception to the age of 8 years on social networking sites.

Methods:

This scoping review was conducted using the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews) guidelines. The key databases searched were EBSCO, Web of Science, ProQuest ERIC, and Scopus. Gray literature sources (National Grey Literature Collection, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, …

Public Perceptions Of Peripheral Nerve Surgery On Social Media: A Narrative Review, Nicholas Obias, James Hughes

School of Podiatric Medicine - Student Research

Objective: The intent of this study is to conduct a Narrative review of the Public Perceptions of Peripheral Nerve Surgery on Social Media.

Introduction: Peripheral nerve surgery is an effective therapeutic modality for difficult diagnoses such as peripheral neuropathy, neuromas, and complex regional pain syndrome. This study aims to explore public perceptions of peripheral nerve surgery on Instagram, a popular social media site. Information on posts such as authorship, relevance, accuracy, and purpose were collected. Conclusions from this study may direct efforts to enhance medical advice and improve patient education for extremity nerve surgeons.

Methods: Searches were conducted in September …

“Share The Fear”: Communication Concerns Of Parents With Cancer With Dependents And Coparents: A Qualitative Needs Assessment Study, Cinzia Caparso, Zoe Bowen, Sung Won Choi

Nursing Faculty Research Publications

Background: The estimated 1.6 million adults in the United States with cancer who also have dependents face unique challenges given the profound impact of cancer on their families, such as increased psychological distress, decreased quality of life, and altered family functioning. Unfortunately, little is known about the mutual cancer-related communication concerns for the perspectives of the parents with cancer or the coparents. Coparents care for the patient and dependents until they reach adulthood (e.g., unmarried, divorced, stepparent, and/or same-sex partnerships).

Objective: To understand the mutual cancer-related communication concerns from the perspectives of parents with cancer and the coparents and intervention …

Aligning Eye Care Provider Beliefs With Behaviors: Exploring And Improving Ocular Surface Disease Decision-Making In A Cataract Surgery Clinic, Amy Hellem

Communication (PhD) Dissertations

Millions of cataract surgeries are performed every year in the United States, yet both surgeon reports and patient reports indicate that practices are not utilizing the diagnostic tests and treatments that are advocated in the medical literature to identify and manage ocular surface disease prior to surgery. As a result, patients risk suffering several significant consequences with regard to their vision, comfort and safety. Personal observations from my 25 years of experience working with ophthalmologists and optometrists led to curiosity regarding the root cause of undertreatment of ocular surface disease. Specifically, I had the impression that eye care providers held …

The Study Of Baby Boomers And Generation Z’S Attitudes Towards Generational Mental Health Dynamics, Regina M. Luttrell Ph.D., Hunter Harpin, Emma Grace Reville, Yunxiang Yu, Abagail Sweeney

Real Chemistry Emerging Insights Lab

The purpose of this research is to compare and contrast how different historical events have impacted Generation Z members’ and the Baby Boomers’ attitudes towards mental health and how those attitudes have guided members of these generations to feel about medical experts and the technology that they use to deliver their services in the post-COVID era. Studying these topics allows our group to make recommendations as to how medical experts should go about interacting with members of the Generation Z and Baby Boomer generations respectively, based on how historical events have influenced their attitudes towards mental health topics, their perceived …