Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Death Stranding: A New Digital Ecology, Jordan Long

Theses and Dissertations

This essay analyzes Death Stranding, the 2019 release from contemporary game auteur Hideo Kojima. Here, I discuss the unique potentialities of this game world, detailing the ways in which Death Stranding expresses ecological perspectives. Asynchronous multiplayer serves as a unique metagame, helping to prove that play is a process of action which facilitates ecological thinking. The world of Death Stranding is filled with strange objects. The nonhuman entities that the player encounters throughout the game, for example, seem entirely alien. And yet, when these entities are properly understood, we realize that their inclusion is necessary--and natural. Your "job" in the …

The National Basketball Association Communications Strategy For The 2019-20 Season Restart, Trevor Dale Jones

Theses and Dissertations

This paper analyzes the NBA's communications efforts from June 4 to July 30, 2020 as it prepared for an unprecedented season restart in the early days of a global pandemic. While scholars have examined the media's framing of the NBA in this period, there is a gap in the literature when looking at the official NBA communications strategy of the organization itself. As the first study to use risk communication theory in a sports scenario while also employing corporate social advocacy as the second theoretical basis of analysis, this qualitative study is a thematic and textual analysis of 14 NBA …

Art Vs. The Artist: Can It Be Separated?, Simon Awad, Timothy Ramfos, Antonio Popp, Ja'kaurie Kirkland

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Whether people should, or can, separate the personal lives of artists and the arts that they create is a continuous debate in contemporary society. Such questions typically arise when topics within an artist's personal life, perhaps mired in controversy, are juxtaposed with that artists' ability to create significant and even masterful works. This study aims to experimentally test the extent to which people might be able to "separate" their perceptions of artists with their perceptions of their art. A between groups experiment featuring a musical artist was conducted which exposed participants to three (3) manipulations of an artist’s background (negative, …

Comics About Organs: Social Support And Graphic Medicine In The Awkward Yeti, Jacob Gibb

Theses and Dissertations

Comic strips have always been a medium for more than humor. Many comic strips published on social media sites address mental health issues. Despite their popularity, the field of graphic medicine, which examines the intersection of health care and comics, has seen little to no examination of how these comics function on social media. Utilizing the popular comic The Awkward Yeti, this research examines how the rhetorical devices of comics make them an ideal medium for communicating about mental health issues and providing social support to social media users. This study conducts a content analysis of 15 Instagram posts from …

Human-Machine Communication: Complete Volume. Volume 7 Special Issue: Mediatization

Human-Machine Communication

This is the complete volume of HMC Volume 7. Special Issue on Mediatization

Artificial Sociality, Simone Natale, Iliana Depounti

Human-Machine Communication

This article proposes the notion of Artificial Sociality to describe communicative AI technologies that create the impression of social behavior. Existing tools that activate Artificial Sociality include, among others, Large Language Models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT, voice assistants, virtual influencers, socialbots and companion chatbots such as Replika. The article highlights three key issues that are likely to shape present and future debates about these technologies, as well as design practices and regulation efforts: the modelling of human sociality that foregrounds it, the problem of deception and the issue of control from the part of the users. Ethical, social and cultural …

The Perturbing Mediatization Of Voice-Based Virtual Assistants: The Case Of Alexa, Leopoldina Fortunati, Autumn P. Edwards, Chad Edwards

Human-Machine Communication

This study examines the role of voice-based assistants (VBAs), specifically Alexa, in the mediatization paradigm framework. The authors hypothesize that emerging technologies such as chatbots and VBAs intensify the process of online meta-reintermediation of news. Three research questions were investigated through a questionnaire administered to 655 university students in the US and Italy: Do participants try to get news from Alexa? Are participants aware that VBAs represent a case of meta-reintermediation of news? Does Alexa contribute to the potential hybridization of news, information, and knowledge? The analysis of 451 open-ended answers showed that only a fraction of participants searches for …

Communicative Ai And Techno-Semiotic Mediatization: Understanding The Communicative Role Of The Machine, Göran Bolin

Human-Machine Communication

Mediatization discourse has so far mainly been centered on media from institutional or social-constructionist approaches. The technological developments within communications industries coupled with the wider societal process of datafication might, however, beg for dusting off the smaller, although the long-time existing, technological approach to mediatization as a complement to the two other approaches, in order to understand aspects of automation and human-machine communication. This theoretical article explores how existing mediatization approaches can refocus to include lessons learned from human-machine communication. The first section accounts for the main mediatization approaches. The second section discusses debates on communication, artificiality, and meaning-making. The …

A New Family Member Or Just Another Digital Interface? Smart Speakers In The Lives Of Families With Young Children, Giovanna Mascheroni

Human-Machine Communication

Based on longitudinal qualitative research involving twenty families with at least one child aged eight or younger, the article provides an account of how families, as distinctive communicative figurations, adopt, use and make sense of smart speakers through diverse socially situated practices. Findings show that parents and children enter in a communicative relationship with smart speakers based on their attribution of human-like or machine-like traits to the device, and the device response to their expectations. Moreover, engaging in communicative practices through and with smart speakers, family members subvert or reinforce existing power relations. However, smart speakers acquire new agency by …

Mediatization And Human-Machine Communication: Trajectories, Discussions, Perspectives, Andreas Hepp, Göran Bolin, Andrea L. Guzman, Wiebke Loosen

Human-Machine Communication

As research fields, mediatization and Human-Machine Communication (HMC) have distinct historical trajectories. While mediatization research is concerned with the fundamental interrelation between the transformation of media and communications and cultural and societal changes, the much younger field of HMC delves into human meaning-making in interactions with machines. However, the recent wave of “deep mediatization,” characterized by an increasing emphasis on general communicative automation and the rise of communicative AI, highlights a shared interest in technology’s role within human interaction. This introductory article examines the trajectories of both fields, demonstrating how mediatization research “zooms out” from overarching questions of societal and …

Smoothing Out Smart Tech’S Rough Edges: Imperfect Automation And The Human Fix, Christian Katzenbach, Christian Pentzold, Paloma Viejo Otero

Human-Machine Communication

In this article, we take issue with an idea of autonomous and efficient automation that is upheld through the paradoxical conjunction of a flawed vision of the technological fix and the under-acknowledged human work required to fill in the gaps between machines and users. Our argument is based on two case studies that sit at opposite tails of automation processes: the front end of self-service checkouts and the back end of content moderation. This juxtaposition allows us to surface three themes on how the hype around automation is enabled by human interventions: the ad-hoc sociality in situated practices of automation, …

Hong Kong’S Political Landscape From The Media Coverage In The Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement, Kexin Sun

Proceedings of the New York State Communication Association

The study aims to obtain a deeper understanding of the political landscape in Hong Kong by investigating agenda-setting and narratives that are being presented by media from Hong Kong and mainland China during The Anti-ELAB Movement in 2019. News stories about The Anti-ELAB Movement from five media outlets in Hong Kong and mainland China are collected to answer three questions. First, does their agenda-setting differ in the collected news stories? Second, what specific issues do those media navigate differently? Third, what do those news stories reveal about the political landscape?

Hong Kong is a complex blend of Chinese and Western …

The Current - Volume 34 Issue 12, Nova Southeastern University

Student Newspapers

No abstract provided.

Unveiling Mental Health Disparities: An Analysis Of Latino Immigrant Communities In The United States, Ben Higbee, Alex Garces

Student Research Symposium

The problem of mental health in the Anglo-American community is different from the problem of mental health in the Latino immigrant community. In the book The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio, Villavicencio humanizes illegal immigrants through her portrayal of their lives and individual stories and struggles that other inhabitants of the United States don't normally notice. Numerous illegal immigrants come to the United States alone and one of the effects of being alone and far away from their culture is depression or other mental health conditions. Many other immigrants feel this depression and try to deal with its symptoms …

Ai Usage In The Insurance Industry: Future Or Fad, Carrie Stetler

Honors Projects

AI has garnered the attention of professionals from every industry and Insurance is no different. Join me to analyze the many ways AI is affecting this industry and others, as well as to answer the question, “Is AI really the future?”

Foraging Culture In Iceland: Understanding The Transfer Of Plant Knowledge And Personal Views On Foraging, Ella Jane Maurer

Whittier Scholars Program

Foraging is a broad topic, practiced in different locations throughout history. This study looks into the specific practices, values, and views of foraging in Iceland. There is little previous research that has been done, working with Icelanders, and hearing their stories. Through conducting several interviews of local Icelanders with different backgrounds and a brief six-question survey via the Inaturalist application, this study looks into exactly that. By compiling stories from the interview and survey data, themes were highlighted collecting similar and contrasting statements on ways plants are foraged, opinions on Icelandic foraging culture as a whole, and ways knowledge is …

“Everything Is Not What It Seems”: Discovering Public Relations In Business Sectors In Vietnam, Ba-Anh-Tu Truong

LSU Master's Theses

Vietnam is a shining star in emerging markets, with an annual economic growth rate of 6-7%. Its abundant labor supply, stable political climate, and geographic proximity to major global supply chains make it an ideal candidate for manufacturer planning in advanced economies such as the United States, Europe, Australia, Japan, China, and Korea. Investing in public relations and communication management, especially understanding the Vietnamese market, effectively prepares multinational corporations for future business expansion. This mission is difficult for academia and industrial professionals since Vietnam is a “silent country” in public relations research. To fill the gap, this thesis employs the …

Lindenwood Digest, April 10, 2024, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

Narcissism Online: The Impact Of Psychology Misinformation On Social Media, Alana Haupert

Student Research Symposium

a. Instagram and Tiktok have provided a platform for information to be received in bulk quantities. This has produced mixed results as this has affected psychology positively and negatively.

• Climate Change
• Covid Vaccines (Rousseau, 2021)
• Science deniers (Hyperskepticism)

b. In this presentation, I argue that Danish Bashir, an Instagram “Narcissist Abuse Recovery Coach,” uses Aristotelian appeals to establish himself as an expert and then overgeneralizes/overdiagnoses to gain more followers for a disorder that impacts only 6% of population (Stinson et. al, 2008).

c. To do so, I am analyzing Danish Bashir’s Instagram account with 474k followers and his reels for …

Espejismo Oaxaqueño, Shelby Silva

Whittier Scholars Program

No abstract provided.

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald: Big Red By Ai, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Magazine edition of the College Heights Herald for the period March 3 - April 8, 2024.

• Big Red, Is That You?
• Anderson, Alexandria. Letter from the Editor - Artificial Intelligence
• Phelps, Maggie. What is AI? - Artificial Intelligence
• AI’s Impact on Higher Education
• Reed, Bailey. Students Share Opinions on AI
• Abney, Shayla. WKU Faculty Discuss AI in Courses
• Hawkins, Kaylee. AI’s Impact on Blackboard Ultra
• Randolph, Eli. AI Recreates a WKU Tour
• Shaw, Cameron. WKU Department of Political Science Hosts Dead President’s Tour

Healing A Generation; Implementation Of Higher Education Curricula For Venezuelan Journalism Students Living Under Structural Violence To Promote A Transition Into Democracy, José Luis Jiménez-Figarotti Prof.

The SUNY Journal of the Scholarship of Engagement: JoSE

Venezuela's sociopolitical landscape has deteriorated significantly over the past decade, culminating in a profound humanitarian crisis. This ethnography, conducted from 2015 to the present, explores the experiences of a study group comprising 2000 Venezuelan communication college students, aged 17 to 25, who navigate structural violence while striving for quality higher education. The research employed a multifaceted approach, encompassing interviews, focus groups, and observations. Additionally, this qualitative study examines the outcomes of implementing an interdisciplinary journalism curriculum grounded in human rights and media activism, complemented by online sessions and an environmental education component. This educational project aims to foster critical thinking …

Dating Apps As An Outlet To Promote Sexual Autonomy Among Disabled Individuals: An Intersectional Approach To Change, Sarah Marrs

Sexual Ethics

As disabled individuals are forced into the social other and an asexual narrative, dating apps provide an outlet for this demographic to engage in their sexuality in a format that is more easily accessible. In an age of rising technology, the destigmatization and usage of dating apps highlights the self-expressive potential of an underrepresented and misunderstood demographic. This issue is addressed through historical perspectives of “crip sex,” a comparison between the disabled dating experience and the able-bodied dating experience, and a description of the significance of a dating app designed for individuals with disabilities.

Feedback And Focus: Exploring Post-Secondary Students’ Perceptions Of Feedback, Mindfulness, And Stress, Cecilia S, Dong, Erin Isings, Samantha M. Jones, Hugh Samson, Lisa Mccorquodale, Thomas G. W. Telfer, Tracey Ropp, Christine E. Bell

FIMS Publications

Addressing feedback-associated stress as a barrier to learning is increasingly relevant to student success and well-being. Mindfulness practices support stress management for students during the academic feedback process. Even if students receive high-quality feedback, the receiving end of feedback can be stressful, perhaps raising feelings of anxiety, confusion, or inadequacy. Feedback literacy and mindfulness practices complement one another. Mindfulness can potentially support feedback literacy by focusing one’s attention on the tasks needed to address feedback, instead of being distracted by emotions triggered by feedback. This study, comprised of an online survey (n = 237) and focus groups (n …

Ica Newsletter, Spring 2024, Iowa Communication Association.

ICA Newsletter

Contents:

--President's Note
--Relevance
--Westphal Student Paper Call - 2024
--Call for Outstanding Adjunct Teacher Award:
--Call for Outstanding New Teacher Award:
--Congratulations to Dr. Joshua E. Young!
--Going to CSCA! ICA will be there!
--Iowa Journal of Communication Call for Submissions:
--Call for Submissions: AI and Communication Education
--Follow ICA online!
--Our ICA Board
--Once again, Save The Date! Our 2024 conference is Sept. 27-28 at DMACC-Urban in Des Moines!

The Scowl - V. 88 N. 6 - April 4, 2024

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Vol. 88 No. 6 - April 4, 2024. 20 pages.

Lindenwood Digest, April 3, 2024, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

U.S. Government Agency Podcasts, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Presents podcasts from U.S. Government agencies which can be discovered through the U.S. Government Publishing Office's Catalog of Government Publications. Agencies whose podcasts are presented include the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Peace Corps, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Government Accountability Office (GAO), National Park Service, Department of Justice, Federal Reserve System, and U.S. Naval War College.

The Effects Of Social Media Marketing On Consumer Behavior, Katelin Schuiteman

Communication Senior Capstone Projects

Social media has drastically changed consumer behavior, revolutionizing the way businesses engage with their audiences. This paper explores the impact of social media marketing on consumer decision-making processes and the transformation brought about by digital marketing strategies on social media platforms. The literature review considers the significance of personalized advertising, the vulnerability of younger demographics to marketing tactics, and the emergence of influencer marketing as a powerful tool for brand promotion. Looking at insights in communication theory and marketing research, the paper underscores the vital role of engagement, community-building, and content personalization in successful social media marketing campaigns. Comparing the …

The Actions Of A Lonely Woman And The Effects Of Online Incel Communities On Society, Antara Dabral

Richard T. Schellhase Essay Prize in Ethics

In recent years, the resistance to women’s rights movements has started to shift from only being based on gender roles and has started to take root in insecurity and anxiety surrounding a dating life. This phenomenon has been further exacerbated with the advent and growth of the internet, where ideas are allowed to spread across the world rapidly which has created online forums where people known as incels gather.

In this paper, I ascertain that these online forums have a broad incel culture and community founded on victimhood and frustration and how they were formed as a consequence of a …