Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Integrating Ai Into Media Analysis Projects: Students’ Insights On Using Chatgpt, Serpil Yalcinalp, Hacer Turkoglu

Journal of Media Literacy Education

This research aims to explore students’ perspectives on their use of ChatGPT during a media analysis project in a media literacy (ML) course. Additionally, it investigates what the assigned media literacy project has contributed to them. Qualitative analysis results from 48 students indicated that they believed their media analysis positively contributed to their media awareness of messages, media genres, social justice, technical aspects, and analytical skills, such as inquiry and creativity. Many students appreciate ChatGPT, noting that it encourages learning across disciplines through deep searches and dialogues with the tool. They especially appreciate its contribution when they compare the results …

Demographic Context Of Media And Information Literacy (Mil) Skills Among Senior High School Students In Ghana, Patience Emefa Dzandza Ocloo, Aurelia Ayisi, Abena Animwaa Yeboah-Banin, Annie Oye

Journal of Media Literacy Education

This paper explores the media and information literacy (MIL) competencies of young Ghanaians in senior high schools. It is premised on the rising spate of misinformation, online security breaches, and the avalanche of content young people must navigate. Together, these factors demand young persons to be new media savvy in order to use the affordances of the current media ecology to their benefit. To advocate for comprehensive MIL education in senior high schools in Ghana, the study adopts a comparative analysis logic to examine demographic differences that attend young people’s media and information literacy. A nationwide survey of 1200 senior …

Fact-Checking In The University: The Experience Of The ‘Verificatón Electoral’ As A Model Of Teaching Innovation, Irene Larraz, Samuel Toledano, Jordi Rodríguez-Virgili, Félix Arias Robles, Ángeles Durán, Marta Pérez-Escolar, Rocío Zamora Medina, Rubén Ramos Antón, Óscar Espíritusanto Nicolás, Miguel Ángel Esteban Navarro, Marcos Bermejo Gil

Journal of Media Literacy Education

This article analyzes the experience of Verificatón, a teaching innovation project based on a live fact-checking hackathon aimed at identifying and combating disinformation in the electoral context. The initiative, developed by the fact-checking media outlet Newtral in collaboration with nine Spanish universities, brought together a hundred journalism students. The results show that this experience facilitates the adoption of the fact-checking methodology in the students' professional practice and contributes to overcoming the competency gap in university journalism education. The case study validates this training proposal, which, framed within an electoral scenario, reinforces students’ learning of the role of critical thinking in …

Content Literacy In The Digital Age: Integrating The Development Of Digital Language Skills Into Civic Education, Cedric Lawida, Ina-Maria Maahs

Journal of Media Literacy Education

The digital transformation creates new demands on reading and writing. This entails the expansion of the goals of content literacy to explicitly include the development of digital reading and writing skills. The study explores how a social media project at a school in Germany supports students in developing digital language competencies. In the civics education project politik.informiert (informed politics), students create and share political content via an Instagram channel. The qualitative case study, based on observations and interviews, finds that the project offers rich opportunities for digital reading and writing, especially in researching information, evaluating sources, and producing audience oriented …

The Role Of Media Literacy In Shaping Campus Student Leaders’ Perceptions Of Media Activism, Online Risks, And Social Support, Srividya Ramasubramanian, Minnie S. Mcmillian, Shumaila J. Bhatti, Shannon Burth, Julius Matthew Riles, Elizabeth Behm-Morawitz, Melody Wilson

Journal of Media Literacy Education

in social movements. Within contemporary contexts, media is an important site through which campus student leaders raise awareness, share relevant information, distribute online petitions, and shape public discourses on various social issues. Media literacy is an essential skill for student leaders to be effective in their activist initiatives and be able to cope with the inevitable pushback through trolling and cyberbullying that such activism would likely bring up. This survey (N = 855) with college student leaders across three universities explores how they rate themselves on media literacy skills, how well they understand the risks involved with media activism, and …

Empowerment Or Oppression? College Students’ Interpretations Of Sex And Relationships In The Popular Media, Nicola Mcclung, Riana Pella

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Scholars have long emphasized the harmful effects of overtly sexist and oppressive media images on young people’s understandings of sex and relationships. Yet, this emphasis on explicit harm leaves a gap in understanding how college students interpret subtle, hidden, and ambiguous media messages. To address this gap, we asked 196 California college students at a large public university to critique a range of mainstream media content— from overtly oppressive, to affirming of nondominant gender identities, to containing mixed messages about empowerment and oppression. Responses were coded using our media literacy scoring guide for assessing students’ ability to critically analyze media …

Automated Media: Challenges And Opportunities For Media Literacy Education, Arnaud Claes, Jerry Jacques, Antonin Descampe, Victor Wiard

Journal of Media Literacy Education

This paper offers a theoretical reflection on the evolving landscape of automated media, focusing on how automation and so-called Artificial Intelligence (AI) are reshaping traditional media-related practices and the competences required for media literacy. It examines how automated media technologies, such as recommendation algorithms and generative AI, might reshape the critical skills necessary to navigate a complex digital ecosystem. By framing AI-driven media practices through a social-action perspective and treating media as human activities, we argue that media literacy models should encompass competences related to the operation of computational automata, particularly through the management of inbound and outbound information flows. …

Ƒ(Enlightenment): A Complex Adaptive Systems Model Of Recursive Causality And Human Meaning-Making, Daniel Lambert

Dissertations and Theses

Conflict Resolution has developed as a richly interdisciplinary field; however, its theoretical architecture remains fragmented across distinct bodies of scholarship. Existing approaches offer valuable but often isolated explanations of conflict behavior, limiting their ability to account for its complexity. This thesis addresses this limitation by advancing systems science as an organizing framework for integrating these perspectives. It introduces the Human-Complex Adaptive Systems (H-CAS) framework, which conceptualizes human behavior as a recursive adaptive process operating across interconnected regulatory domains. Within this model, conflict is not treated as a discrete event or purely deliberative process, but as an emergent property arising from …

Cultural Humility, Reformation Of Power Structures, And Cultural Competence As Seeds And Fruits Of Interculturality, Doug Herbek

Obsculta

This piece examines how interculturality both promotes and is fostered by cultural humility, reformation of power structures, and development of cultural competence. As we pursue interculturality, we incarnate the Gospel. In the process, local church leadership becomes inclusive and integrative, worship becomes more heartfelt, and community and unity are fostered as we celebrate our differences.

An Introduction To The China Land Sales Data Set: The Universe Of Land-Use-Right Transfers In China 2000-2022, Yilin Hou, Lin Li, Qiang Ren

Center for Policy Research

The China Land Sales Data Set (2000-2022) includes the universe of land-use-right sales in China in the first 23 years of the 21st century, a period of the fastest mass urbanization and intense infrastructure construction in China’s history, that accompanied the rapid growth of China’s economy and household income. For this reason, this data set carries substance in many ways for anyone who needs to understand the occurrences in China of that period. The phrase “land sale” refers to the transfer of land-use right from the state as the sole owner of urban land to any individual, firm or entity …

Tiktok Vs. Instagram: How Audiences Engage With James Charles, Kristina M. Hart

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

This study examines how audiences engage with beauty influencer content across social media platforms, with a focus on James Charles on TikTok and Instagram. While existing research highlights the importance of authenticity, content strategy, and influencer characteristics in driving engagement, less attention has been given to how engagement varies across platforms and how users express interaction qualitatively. To address this gap, this study employs qualitative content analysis to examine 100 audience comments, with fifty comments collected from each platform.

Using thematic coding, comments were categorized into four primary forms of engagement: audience participation, product interest, entertainment, and trust/credibility. In addition, …

Launching Growing Your Oer Program: A Marketing And Advocacy Toolkit, Theresa Huff, John M. Jackson, Jessea Young, Karna Younger, Swetta Abeyta

Librarian Publications & Presentations

This presentation is for the launch of Growing Your OER Program: A Marketing and Advocacy Toolkit, a free, openly licensed resource designed to help OER champions build awareness, strengthen advocacy efforts, and support sustainable program growth. Funded by a 2025 Michelson Spark Grant, this toolkit was developed to support busy OER authors, small teams, and under-resourced institutions. We created customizable Canva templates, practical guidance, and ready-to-use promotional materials, the toolkit makes OER marketing easier and sustainable.

Strategic Organizational Growth In Nonprofit Organizations: A Swot-Based Change Management Analysis, Sharika Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nonprofit organizations often face operational and sustainability challenges. This study examined a nonprofit serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities that was experiencing increased service demands, communication challenges, and workforce shortages. The purpose of this generic qualitative study was to develop a sustainable strategic change management approach to strengthen workforce development, financial stability, stakeholder collaboration, and strategic planning. Guided by the research question, "How can the client nonprofit organization implement a sustainable change-management approach that addresses internal communication challenges and resource constraints while maintaining mission alignment?" the study used a SWOT analysis and Kotter’s eight-step change model. Data were collected …

Effectiveness And Ethics Of Biometrics In Homeland Security, Aaron Akintayo Akindiya

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Homeland security agencies increasingly deploy biometric technologies, including facial recognition and fingerprint scanning, to enhance identity verification and threat detection at airports and borders. However, these technologies raise ethical concerns regarding privacy, algorithmic bias, data protection, and civil liberties. Limited research captures the perspectives of frontline professionals who implement these systems. This study explored how homeland security professionals perceive the balance between effectiveness and ethics. Guided by the technological determinism theory, semistructured interviews were conducted with 13 professionals from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Transportation Security Administration, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Thematic analysis revealed four themes: effectiveness in enhancing …

Military Culture And The Student Veteran: A Mixed Methods Study Of Service Members Transition Into Higher Education, Joanna Fagan

Clinical Psychology Dissertations

Military veterans are entering higher education spaces at a steady rate. While their visibility on U.S. campuses is increasing, these veterans face various challenges in entering higher education. This mixed-methods study examined the relationships among military identity, trauma exposure, and psychological functioning in student veterans, with a focus on meaning in life, life satisfaction, and social engagement. Quantitative data was used to assess correlations and associations between meaning making, military identification, satisfaction with life, and college involvement, while qualitative data were used to contextualize and extend statistical findings. Results indicated that military identity was positively associated with meaning making but …

Determinants Of Waste Management Behavior And The Potential Role Of Doorstepping As An Intervention, Nurdiana Darus, Maya Tamimi, Nuraeni Nuraeni, Khairunnisa Syafira Dumbi

Journal of Environmental Science and Sustainable Development

This study aims to evaluate factors associated with community participation in Waste Bank activities and waste management behavior, while exploring the potential role of doorstepping interventions to improve community engagementThis study was conducted in South Jakarta, a densely populated area with a large volume of daily waste. A quantitative approach with a cross-sectional design was used. The study involved guided interviews with 201 respondents who were customers of Gesit Main Waste Bank. Binary logistic regression was used to evaluate the influence of independent variables on waste management behavior as the dependent variable. The results showed that 42.8% of respondents had …

``Is That What It Means?'' Performative Storytelling In Early Childhood Education: Meaning-Making Through Interaction, Fathia Anggriani Pradina, Untung Yuwono, Bernadette Kushartanti

Bahasa dan Seni: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Seni, dan Pengajarannya

Early childhood education is inextricably linked to the role of adults in every aspect of its process. In addition to formal classroom learning, storytelling with a storyteller is another activity that involves adults. The dialogic interaction between storyteller and children fosters the creation of meaning. This study examines how storytelling, as an interactional practice, can dynamically construct meaning together between storyteller and children. Sixty-one kindergarten children participated in this study during a one and half hour storytelling activity. The qualitative and interactional approach used in this study focused on moment-to-moment exchanges during the naturally occurring storytelling event. The findings indicate …

The Undergraduate Students' Rate Of Bisexuality And Its Acceptance In Their Own And Others' Romantic Relationships, Na'ni Machenry Caliste

SMU Journal of Undergraduate Research

This research explores SMU’s undergraduate students in their own identities and romantic relationships in the realm of the bisexuality spectrum using the Kinsey Scale. I developed a 46-item online survey comprised of six component parts, which incorporated previous scales of Kinsey, Consensual Non-Monogamy, Self-Acceptance of Sexuality Inventory, and Experience in Close Relationships scales, to measure respondents’ sense of attraction and preferences as well as attachment scales and assess the participants’ relationship beliefs pertaining to consensual non-monogamy. A total of 312 undergraduate students started the survey, but only 250 consented and completed it. I present descriptive and inferential statistics on participants’ …

Stylometric And Formal Patterns In The Scholarly Impact Of Scientific Literature, Joshua Ange, Eric Godat, Rajani Sudan

SMU Journal of Undergraduate Research

Scientific communication is typically tied to promoting public engagement and interest in science, increasing scientific literacy, and playing an essential role in policymaking. The success of public communication of scientific findings is largely associated with secondary characteristics of research (e.g. the style of writing and presentation), rather than the primary content or research quality. But it is unclear to what extent the success of scientific literature intended for working scientists is influenced by those same secondary characteristics. Does the writing style of scientific articles impact their success in academic spheres? In this study, we explore the stylometric and formal characteristics …

Framing Ecclesiastical Issues As Identity Questions: A Comparative Analysis Of Digital Media In North Macedonia And Montenegro, Martin Protogjer

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article examines how digital media frame ecclesiastical issues as identity questions in North Macedonia and Montenegro. The analysis compares two distinct but structurally related cases: the media reception of the recognition and normalization of the status of the Macedonian Orthodox Church – Ohrid Archbishopric in North Macedonia in 2022, and the media reception of the Law on Freedom of Religion and the church processions associated with the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro in 2020. The study employs qualitative content analysis with a framing approach, based on two purposively selected digital media corpora consisting of 20 media texts from North …

Book Review - Ayodeji Olukoju And Tokunbo A. Ayoola (Eds.), Politics, Economy, And Society In Twentieth Century Nigeria, (Lanham, Md: Lexington Books, 2023), Xvii + 328 Pp. $120.00. Hardback. Isbn: 978-1-66692-996-6., Omon M. Osiki

Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

No abstract provided.

Book Review - Lindsay Pérez Huber And Susana Muñoz, Why They Hate Us: How Racist Rhetoric Impacts Education, (New York, Ny: Teachers College Press, 2021), 240 Pages, Isbn: 0807764981, Olufemi Oyebade

Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

No abstract provided.

Southern History Remixed: Conversation With Dr. Michael Bertrand1 On His Book, Southern History Remixed, (Gainesville, Fl: University Press Of Florida, 2024), 322 Pp., Sheri Bartlett Browne

Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

No abstract provided.

Myth, Spirituality, And Thought Patterns In Two African And Brazilian Ritual Dramas, Dele Layiwola

Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

This essay conceptualizes and historicizes the phenomena of religion, custom, and belief systems by utilizing two celebrated dramatic texts and performances as practical illustrations of the complex roles they play in the social, political, and cultural lives of human beings, irrespective of their geographical locations. The arguments demonstrate that religion or spirituality is a given phenomenon in the personal and public lives of the denizens of various societies. It possesses its own logic and rules, which may not be mutually compatible, nevertheless constitute a constant universal principle. The paper employs dramatized examples to show that in classical or modern times, …

Ikenga: Symbolism, Spirituality, And Sociocultural Importance In Igbo Traditional Belief Systems, Chinyere Ndubuisi

Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

The Ikenga, a noteworthy relic of the Igbo people of southern Nigeria, is examined in this paper as a major art object for a better understanding of African traditional religions and belief systems. Ikenga is a wooden sculpture traditionally made to represent an individual's power, achievements, and spiritual essence among the Igbo. Ikenga is ascribed the embodiment of the relationship between personal action, ancestral respect, and divinity within Igbo mythology. Within the framework of Igbo traditional religion, this paper examines the ontological significance, spiritual purposes, and social consequences of the Ikenga. The symbolic relevance of Ikenga as both a personal …

Language And Culture: Exploring The Links Between Africans And African Americans, Joash J. Gambarage

Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

Due to the generational distance between contemporary African Americans and the earliest generations of enslaved Africans, the deep cultural connection between these two groups has not been sufficiently explored. Moreover, much of the existing literature on African culture in the Americas primarily focuses on retentions related to religion, music, food, and language, often missing other critical aspects of cultural continuity within the African diaspora, such as African American Vernacular English (AAVE) and Niger-Congo linguistic ties, naming practices, and African epistemologies. This exclusion limits our understanding of how the historical movement of Africans and the persistence of African cultural legacies, have …

Situating Everybody Hates Chris (Ehc): The Appeal Of The Show, Elizabeth Johnson, Donald Culverson

Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

"Everybody Hates Chris" (EHC) achieved critical success by employing comedy to address significant social issues, distinguishing itself in early-2000s television. Unlike earlier and contemporary series such as "Moesha," "The Hughleys," and "The Cosby Show," EHC offered a nuanced portrayal of Black family life, engaging an audience often overlooked or misrepresented by mainstream media. This article examines shifts in the television industry from the late 1990s to the early 2000s that facilitated EHC's innovative approach. The series departed from traditional family sitcoms, functioning not merely as entertainment but as a social commentary on the complexities of the family as a societal …

Christian Missions’ Medical Work In The Colonial Ilorin Province, 1900 To 1960, Rasheed Onagun

Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

A scarcity of labor and the pursuit of optimal profit maximization led to the colonial government's collaboration with Christian missions to disseminate and expand Western healthcare to the populace. In Ilorin Province and Nigeria as a whole, missions undertook the majority of colonial medical work and public health initiatives. For the first time in the history of Ilorin Province, missionary endeavors introduced Western medicine as an alternative healthcare source to many, necessitating a historical examination. This paper explores existing literature, oral testimonies, and extensive archival documents to analyze the impacts of missionary medical work on the well-being of the people …

Editors’ Note: Introducing The Inaugural Edition

Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

No abstract provided.

Bloomington Community Brain Health Services Program: The Intersection Of Law Enforcement And Brain Health, Janet Yeats, Luke Campbell, Booker Hodges

Forensic Scholars Today

In 2023, the Bloomington Police Department launched the Bloomington Community Brain Health Services (BCBHS) program in response to increasing mental health crises, provider shortages, long wait times for services, and rising law enforcement involvement in crisis calls. The Bloomington Model integrates licensed therapists and supervised graduate-level interns directly within a police department structure. The program aims to reduce mental health-related calls, stabilize residents experiencing crisis, and eliminate cost barriers by offering up to 15 sessions of free, short-term therapy delivered in homes, schools, virtual settings, and community spaces.

This article outlines the program’s development, implementation, and early outcomes, highlighting key …