Communication Commons^™

The Effects Of Social Media Use And Social Media Influencers On Body Dissatisfaction And Self-Esteem Of Young Women, Devin Eagan

Psychology | Senior Theses

In 2021, 4.5 billion people worldwide were actively using social media, a 28% growth between 2019 and 2021 (Kemp, 2021). Influencers- social media users with many followers who show their daily lives to followers- have also become increasingly prominent (Chae, 2018). While significant research has been done on the impact of traditional media on body dissatisfaction, less is known about the effects of social media on body image. Previous research has indicated that repeated exposure to traditional media featuring thin women has a negative impact on body image. This study hypothesizes that women who spend more time on social media …

Digital Media Use And Social Inclusion: A Case Study Of East York Older Adults, Anabel Quan-Haase, Molly-Gloria Harper, Alice Hwang

FIMS Publications

Digital media is essential to sustaining communication with various types of social ties. However, older adults (aged 65+) are reported to be the least likely to use digital media. While statistics show that older adults are increasingly using more digital media, evidence shows this is predominately aging long-term users of digital media rather than older adults adopting new digital media. To investigate this “grey divide” and adoption of digital media by older adults, this study qualitatively analyses semi-structured interviews of 41 individuals aged 65 and older from the East York region of Toronto, Canada. Our findings suggest that satisfaction with …

Wechat, Jinman Zhang, Anabel Quan-Haase

FIMS Publications

WeChat is a popular Chinese social media platform that emphasizes mobile internet services rather than PC internet services. What further distinguishes WeChat from other social media sites is its multipurpose platform, which integrates a range of applications and features. With its large and diverse user base, vast amounts of user-generated content, and increasing global reach, WeChat provides unique opportunities for researchers to examine Chinese society relying on new data sources that can enhance or even substitute traditional data collection methods such as surveys. WeChat can also provide insights into new digital phenomena including social movements, online groups, propaganda, and e-governance. …

The Acoustics Of Civil Resistance: Summoning The Spirit Of The Law With A Smartphone, Sharon Sliwinski

Data and Test Instruments

Inspired by Diamond Reynolds’s radical gesture to open a live broadcast in the moments after Philando Castile was shot by police in 2016, this paper explores the ways smartphones have become a critical tool of civil resistance. The paper situates this tool in a historical context, tracking the role of visual testimony in the long struggle for Black liberation, drawing special attention to the acoustic dimension and posing questions about how attending to the sonic environment modifies our understanding of bearing witness as embodied practice and our understanding of civil resistance.

Ua19/16/1/5 Hilltopper Golf 2021-22 Season Statistics, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Statistical analysis of the 2021-22 men's golf team season.

Ua19/16/2 Volleyball Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases, photos and game statistics for WKU volleyball team in 2022.

Ua19/16/2 Soccer Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases, photos and game statistics for WKU soccer team in 2022.

Ua19/16/2 Athletics Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases regarding general activities of the WKU Athletics Department for 2022.

Anti-Abortion Crisis Pregnancy Centers In Central Florida, Isabel Adamus

Honors Program Theses

Anti-abortion pregnancy centers, also known as crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs), are nonprofit organizations that target pregnant women and aim to dissuade them from considering abortion. In the U.S., CPCs are increasing in prevalence, accumulating government/state funding and support, and becoming more medicalized. Medicalization includes offering limited medical services, such as pregnancy testing, limited ultrasounds, and testing for sexually transmitted infections (STIs). CPCs are largely unlicensed and unregulated, frequently advertising in misleading ways and providing inaccurate health information. The goal of this research is to (1) understand how CPCs in Central Florida utilize rhetorical strategies to frame their services and health …

Framing, Advice-Seeking, And Medical Trust In The R/Keto Community: An Analysis Of The Medical Flair On R/Keto, Sabrina Finke

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

First created in 1921, the ketogenic diet was used as a medical intervention for children suffering from severe epilepsy. However, in recent years, this highly restrictive diet has gained mainstream popularity for a number of illness management, wellness, and weight loss uses. Despite its rise in use and popularity, mainstream medical opinion still views the ketogenic diet as a last resort for severe conditions. Using a content analysis of posts tagged with the “medical” flair on the subreddit “r/Keto,” this thesis found commonalities among posts which praised the ketogenic diet and shared positive personal anecdotes were the most likely to …

The Insidious Culture Of Fear In Indian Courts, Nidhi Shrivastava

English Faculty Publications

On 20 March 2020, the four adult convicts of the 2012 Delhi rape case were executed after a long debate regarding the punishment for their crime. The Delhi rape case, unlike others, was also given to the fast track court because of the worldwide outrage India received in its aftermath. Otherwise, most rape survivors rarely speak out and if they do, their lives are often endangered and threatened, depending on the severity of the case itself and the perpetrator's rank in the society. Through the analysis of Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's, 2016 film Pink, and Ajay Bahl's film Section 375 …

Social Media By Providers And Patients In Healthcare, Madison K. Howell, Jirakamon Silapabanleng

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Introduction: Social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter have been used in various industries to create direct-to-consumer interactive opportunities. 74% of the US population were social media active users. Around 40% of adults gather their health information from Facebook, a free social networking site, which has been available on various devices and can help many organizations advertise their services as well as communicate with their patients. Social networks had a powerful influence in making health decisions because it could be used as a means to spread either positive or negative health information.

Purpose of study: The …

Fluchtpunkt Magdeburg: Documentation Of An Integration-Oriented Theater Project From The Perspective Of Theater Pedagogy And Language Didactics, Mona Eikel-Pohen, Sarah Dolbier

Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics - All Scholarship

Based on Dwight Conquergood's key concepts of play, power, process, and poetics/language, this paper documents the theater-pedagogical model project Fluchtpunkt Magdeburg 2015 to2019, in which young people with and without refugee experiences living in Magdeburg, Germany, developed three plays and a film under dance- and theater-pedagogical direction with the pronounced goal of promoting social and linguistic integration. The aim of this documentation is to systematically describe the project and to identify successful elements that make future projects sustainable and feasible for planning and implementation in the long term.

Art As Politics? How Fox News Manufactures Its Hosts’ Performances To Acquire Cable Prestige, Matthew Mcguirk

The Graduate Review

Fox News is the most popular cable news network in the United States, drawing millions of conservative viewers who trust it more than any other outlet. Although many of the network’s claims are subject to controversy or rooted in falsities, these viewers continue watching, offering a never-before-seen devotion to the network. Using Fox’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as insight from Karl Marx and Walter Benjamin, this paper demonstrates how Fox manufactures its hosts’ performances to advance its fetishizing of the commodity of cable prestige.

Emotional Neglect In Childhood And Attachment Anxiety In Adult Relationships As Predictors Of Social Networking Addiction, Latasha N. Mcdowell

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study investigated the relationship between childhood maltreatment and social networking addiction to determine if it was mediated by anxious-avoidant attachment. It was hypothesized that the presence of an anxious-avoidant attachment pattern developed as a result of childhood maltreatment would mediate the correlation between anxious-avoidant attachment and social networking addiction. This would mean that participants who developed an anxious-avoidant attachment style due to childhood maltreatment would use social media in unhealthy ways. To measure childhood maltreatment, the Adverse Childhood Experiences scale (ACE) was used. The Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised scale (ECR-R) was used to measure anxious-avoidant attachment. Finally, social networking …

Social Media Use And The Effects On Wellbeing In Young Adults, Tyler Dietz

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Social media has found its way into almost everyone’s cellphone. Being a primary source for news, connection, and inspiration, it only continues to gain popularity. Social media, however, is not good 100% of the time. The dominant explanation for the effect of social media on wellbeing varies from digital stress, compromised sleep, and body image disturbances. This paper explores the correlation between daily time spent on social media, number of platforms used, and overall sense of wellbeing. Sleepiness is also assessed, and a correlation is explored using the previous variables. Previous research primarily focuses on the amount of time spent …

Social Media Usage For Social Comparison And Its Relationship To Identity Development, Lillie C. Del Real

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Yang and colleagues (2018) found that social media comparison was related to identity distress. The purpose of the current study was to expand on their design, by examining multiple comparison factors (i.e., Ability, Opinion, Popularity, Likeness, Physical Appearance, Academic Status/Achievements, Work Status/Achievements, Relationship Status, Family Status, and Socioeconomic Status) and multiple identity development factors (i.e., Ruminative Exploration, Exploration in Breadth, Exploration in Depth, Commitment Making, and Identification with Commitment) on their ability to predict Identity Distress. College students (N= 407) in psychology courses participated in an anonymous online survey for course credit. The results were consistent with the …

The Effects Of The Communication Techniques Of Concern Elicitation And Mutual Agenda Setting On The Satisfaction, Self-Efficacy, And Understanding Of A Patient After A Provider Encounter, Ajay Bharathan

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The goal of this investigation is to explore the relationship of health provider communication techniques and their impact on patient understanding, satisfaction, and self-efficacy. This investigation looked at the two specific communication techniques of concern elicitation and mutual agenda setting which occur during the beginning of a medical visit. Encounters were recorded with patient knowledge and transcribed to be analyzed. Following a coding manual created from both previous research and original input, the transcripts were organized and read through to process data. Focusing on the two communication techniques—concern elicitation and mutual agenda setting—I looked at the beginning of the encounter …

A New Form Of Catfishing: An Analysis Of The Inauthentic Racial And Ethnic Self-Presentation On Social Media, Britney R. Raymond

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Trends in self-presentation in social media (i.e., Twitter and Instagram) constantly fluctuate as fads come and go, especially when one’s image is being commodified. Specifically, numerous instances of celebrities and social media influencers altering their images to fit popular online trends and “aesthetics” contribute to increased blackfishing, Asianfishing, and Hispanicfishing. Some celebrities and influencers accused of “-fishing” in the presentation of ethnicity include the Kardashians, Ariana Grande, Addison Rae, Iggy Azalea, Selena Gomez, and Gigi Hadid. The present study (N = 685) investigated gender, personality, fame appeal, self-esteem, and need to belong in relation to attitudes towards the “-fishing” culture. …

The Pervert’S Guide To The Museum, Seth Ifor Alt

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation provides a sustained theoretical articulation of core Lacanian psychoanalytic concepts situated within the standing difficulties in the practice and theory of museums. Drawing upon research gathered from site visits, informational interviews, textual analysis, and an extensive engagement with the seminars of Jacques Lacan, I enumerate here a first attempt at what a Lacanian theoretical formation can contribute to museum studies scholarship. Through this research this dissertation shows psychoanalysis to be especially useful for museum studies owing to how the troubles immediately encountered in the everyday material practices of museological work are structurally analogous to the impossibilities experienced on …

Identifying Challenges And Opportunities For Designing Social Media Nudges For Adolescents, Oluwatomisin Obajemu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

With the prevalence of online risks encountered by youth online, strength-based approaches such as nudges have been recommended as a potential solution to subtly guide teens toward safer decisions. However, most nudging interventions to date have not been designed to cater to teens’ unique needs and online safety concerns. To address this gap, this study aimed to better understand adolescents’ perceptions and feedback on online safety nudges to inform the design of more effective online safety interventions. We conducted 12 semi-structured interviews and 3 focus group sessions with 21 teens (13 – 17 years old) to get their feedback on …

D&D&U&G: Uses And Gratifications Theory And Dungeons & Dragons, Ariana Ferrante

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Given the growing popularity of the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, or D&D, this thesis study applied the Uses and Gratifications theory to determine what players of the game get from engagement with this particular, previously overlooked form of entertainment media. Additionally, this research sought to determine whether these discovered gratifications overlapped at all with perceived similar media, specifically massive multiplayer online roleplaying games, MMORPGs, and social media. A series of in-depth, semi-structured interviews designed to elicit relevant responses were conducted with 14 respondents, followed by a thematic analysis to determine gratifications. The qualitative analysis determined a set of …

Tinder Research And The Social Sphere Of Online Dating, Bryanna Bylies-Binger

OUR Journal: ODU Undergraduate Research Journal

With the emergence of new technology, communication is now easier than ever. With popular dating apps such as the infamous social interactive platform, Tinder, forming romantic relationships online now offers individuals a new way to personalize their dating experiences beyond measures ever imagined. In October 2019, Tinder released their debut “Swipe Night” series which gave users fully functional interactive video episodes that allowed them to create and choose their own “apocalyptic adventure.” While there have been many findings on how these platforms have impacted society on a larger scale, there have been very few addressing the implications of interactive technology …

An Unchanted Life Of Self-Silencing An Artifactual Autoethnography Introducing “Trauma-Induced Subconscious Self-Silencing”, Katherine L. Olson

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Why do we say we’re fine when we’re not? To others and to ourselves? Why does our body nonverbally communicate socioculturally derived “normalcy” and wellbeing when we feel horrible? And why might we ignore messages our body tries to send us? Why do we silence ourselves? These questions transcend interpersonal communication and point at intrapersonal denial of embodied struggle. Using a new method, artifactual autoethnography, I attempt to understand self-silencing behavior through a communicative perspective and assess why self-silencing behavior is so difficult to break. I revisit a novel I wrote when I was 16 years old, Unchanted, to see …

Documenting Emotional Labor: An Exercise In Critical Communication Pedagogy, Molly Wiant Cummins, Audrey A. Huber

Communication Faculty Publications - Archive

This essay builds on Lawless’s call to name and chronicle emotional work. The authors draw attention to the emotional labor that has become an institutional expectation of the academic position, particularly among people with marginalized identities, to name this labor as such and to use this documentation as evidence for compensation. The authors’ emotional labor is grounded in critical communication pedagogy (CCP), which compels them to engage in a fundamentally different form of emotional labor, one that depends on relationship-building and the recognition of systemic and structural forms of oppression through reflexive care and performative listening. This form of emotional …

Not All Influence Is Born Equal: On The Effects Of Various Types Of Behavioral Influence Relationships On Social Media, Chathurani Senevirathna

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Typically, online social influence is analyzed using a single metric approach. However, social influence is not monolithic; different users exercise different influences in different ways, and influence is correlated with the user and content-specific attributes. One such attribute could be whether the action is an initiation of a new post, a contribution to a post, or a sharing of an existing post. Thus, this dissertation uses this platform-independent action classification and models the influence as multiple entities and examines social networks through the perspective of behavioral influence propagation. Two empirical studies are present in this dissertation. The first study presents …

News Treatment Of The Supreme Court: Language Selection, Ideological Directions, And Public Support, Alexander Denison

Theses and Dissertations--Political Science

In an increasingly diverse media landscape, how much of the ideological trends seen in current news reporting affect coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court? This work examines two different aspects of the Court's activities, their decisions and the confirmation hearings of Court nominees, analyzing what factors, if any, lead to differences in coverage language. Finally, through the use of a survey experiment, I analyze whether these differences in language, in combination with positive symbolic imagery, affect attitudes toward the institution. This work provides a novel consideration of whether the Court is subject to the same ideological slant found in coverage …

User Experience In The Visual Notifications On Smart Devices, Young Ae Kim

Dissertations and Theses

Notifications on smart devices have a crucial role for the end-users to help decide their action to the information. Despite the flexible customization of notifications for the intuitive user experience, users feel overwhelmed by the number of notifications they receive daily. The nature of notifications is short-lived, but they are extremely intrusive and disengaging. While user experience and user interface are advanced, notifications have remained broken despite their complexity. In fact, the notifications have the poorest usability that users may struggle to customize notifications in their smart devices and choose to ignore them. Irrelevant notifications not only get ignored, but …

A Human-Centered Approach To Improving Adolescent Online Sexual Risk Detection Algorithms, Afsaneh Razi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Computational risk detection has the potential to protect especially vulnerable populations from online victimization. Conducting a comprehensive literature review on computational approaches for online sexual risk detection led to the identification that the majority of this work has focused on identifying sexual predators after-the-fact. Also, many studies rely on public datasets and third-party annotators to establish ground truth and train their algorithms, which do not accurately represent young social media users and their perspectives to prevent victimization. To address these gaps, this dissertation integrated human-centered approaches to both creating representative datasets and developing sexual risk detection machine learning models to …

Learning And Decision Making In Social Media Networks, Zhecheng Qiang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Social media is a virtual community where users share news, ideas, interests, and information. Learning the information diffusion dynamics and making decisions correspondingly, e.g., selecting the seed nodes to maximize the influence, have been widely applied to the areas of viral marketing and cyber security. In this dissertation, we study the problem of learning diffusion process, i.e., infection prediction, in social media networks utilizing both feature-based machine learning methods and mathematical model-based methods. For feature-based machine learning methods, the neighborhood information is treated as an important feature together with user profile and content similarity features. For model-based methods, two distinctive …