(Mal) adjustment to societal crisis: a case study from the analysis of coping expressions on social media

The present research had the goal to explore how individuals perceived, reacted to and coped with the Ebola virus outbreak in 2014, which was considered to be a health epidemic. When confronted with public health events perceived as threats, people tend to adapt to them by individually and collectively make sense of them (e.g. concerning the source of contagion) and manage resources to best cope with the demands posed. One of the maladaptive side-effects of this sense making process occurs when individuals associate the epidemic and its related features to specific social groups, for example by blaming them for the outbreak and ultimately, stigmatizing. In the specific case of the Ebola epidemic, we aimed to comprehend whether it was 1) more associated to the African continent and its related social groups (Africans; African countries; …) than to other countries, as evidence of a Symbolic Othering effect; and 2) if there were natural manifestations of this othering, by means of coping with the perceived threat, in the form of escape and opposition coping strategies.. Hence, we aimed to demonstrate the Symbolic Othering effect by means of a web-based questionnaire in which participants estimated the percentage of cases of human contamination, in non-contaminated African and non-African countries. Secondly, we aimed to present evidence of naturally occurring instances of Symbolic Othering in the form of coping expressions collected on social media, namely Twitter. This multi-method approach allowed both a qualitative and quantitative analysis. Results showed a strong association between the Ebola epidemic and the African continent, with more human contamination cases identified in African countries, even though they had an actual zero percentage of cases. Moreover, the qualitative analysis of twitter data showed direct and indirect mentions to the social group – Africa/Africans/African countries – in addition to the identification of other groups to blame for the epidemic and its social amplification, such as the government, media and other targets. Overall, these results present themselves as a relevant for health crisis managers and communicators, given that Symbolic Othering effects may be found when people perceived health related events as threats, which may eventually lead into social stigmatization processes.A presente investigação teve como objetivo explorar de que forma os indivíduos percepcionaram, reagiram e lidaram com o surto do vírus Ébola em 2014, o qual foi considerado uma epidemia de saúde. Quando confrontadas com eventos de saúde pública avaliados enquanto ameaças, as pessoas tendem adaptar-se às mesmas, de forma individual e coletiva, de modo a conferir-lhes um sentido (por exemplo, em relação à fonte de contágio) e gerir recursos para melhor lidar com as exigências. Um dos efeitos colaterais deste processo de procura de sentido é desadaptativo, dado que consiste em associar a epidemia e as suas características a grupos sociais específicos, por exemplo, culpando-os e, eventualmente, estigmatizando-os. No caso específico da epidemia do Ébola, o nosso objetivo foi compreender se: 1) esta estaria mais associada ao continente Africano/países africanos (em comparação a outros países), como evidência de um efeito de othering simbólico; e 2) se existiam expressões naturais deste othering, através de estratégias de enfrentamento como o escape e a oposição. Deste modo, procurámos demonstrar o efeito de othering simbólico através da aplicação de um questionário online, no qual os aprticipantes estimavam a percentagem de casos de contaminação humana em países africanos e não-africanos, todos não contaminados. Segundo, procurámos apresentar evidências de othering simbólico refletidas em estratégias específicas de enfrentamento, extraídas dos media sociais, nomeadamente, do Twitter. Esta abordagem multi-método permitiu uma análise qualitativa e quantitativa. Os resultados mostram uma forte associação entre a epidemia do Ébola e o continente Africano, com mais casos de contaminação humana identificados nos países africanos, apesar da percentagem real ser de zero casos. A análise qualitativa dos dados recolhidos no Twitter demonstrou menções diretas e indiretas ao grupo social – África / Africanos / países africanos – bem como identificação de outros grupos sociais – por exemplo, o governo, os meios de comunicação e outras entidades – que foram alvos de culpabilização não só pela epidemia em si, como também pela sua amplificação social. De um modo geral, estes resultados são relevantes para gestores e comunicadores de crises de saúde, tendo em conta que os efeitos do othering simbólico podem ser encontrados quando as pessoas percecionam eventos relacionados com saúde enquanto ameaças e que podem, eventualmente, resultar em processos de estigmatização social

A treatise on Web 2.0 with a case study from the financial markets

There has been much hype in vocational and academic circles surrounding the emergence of web 2.0 or social media; however, relatively little work was dedicated to substantiating the actual concept of web 2.0. Many have dismissed it as not deserving of this new title, since the term web 2.0 assumes a certain interpretation of web history, including enough progress in certain direction to trigger a succession [i.e. web 1.0 → web 2.0]. Others provided arguments in support of this development, and there has been a considerable amount of enthusiasm in the literature. Much research has been busy evaluating current use of web 2.0, and analysis of the user generated content, but an objective and thorough assessment of what web 2.0 really stands for has been to a large extent overlooked. More recently the idea of collective intelligence facilitated via web 2.0, and its potential applications have raised interest with researchers, yet a more unified approach and work in the area of collective intelligence is needed. This thesis identifies and critically evaluates a wider context for the web 2.0 environment, and what caused it to emerge; providing a rich literature review on the topic, a review of existing taxonomies, a quantitative and qualitative evaluation of the concept itself, an investigation of the collective intelligence potential that emerges from application usage. Finally, a framework for harnessing collective intelligence in a more systematic manner is proposed. In addition to the presented results, novel methodologies are also introduced throughout this work. In order to provide interesting insight but also to illustrate analysis, a case study of the recent financial crisis is considered. Some interesting results relating to the crisis are revealed within user generated content data, and relevant issues are discussed where appropriate

Interloper Media: Journalism's reactions to the rise of WikiLeaks

This thesis explores journalism through its reactions to change. Adopting field theory and approaching journalism as a profession, it explores the ways journalism enforces its self-perceived identity criteria and societal primacy along in-group/out-group divisions. This involves promoting an idealised picture of journalism that also marginalises new media entities that claim belonging, distances the challenge they present, and bars entry to the journalistic field. At the vanguard of this in-group/out-group dynamic is WikiLeaks. WikiLeaks confronts traditional concepts of journalism first by claiming to be journalism, second by adopting its idealised roles, and third by antagonising journalism’s boundaries. While unique in its methods, and iconoclastic in its identity, WikiLeaks serves as a paragon of interloper media in its out-sized claims of journalistic belonging, and its wholly unfamiliar approach. Through discourse analysis of more than 1,200 news texts referring to WikiLeaks and Julian Assange in the Guardian as well as the New York Times, a concept of interloper media is built to define new media entities that claim to be journalism. With further analysis of documentaries, books, lectures, and other media discourses, alongside expert interviews, this thesis introduces interloper media reactions as a unique boundary-building process interwoven in overt and covert discourses of belonging to reinforce journalism’s in-group/out-group construct. In the latter chapters these concepts are developed beyond reactions to WikiLeaks to broaden the interloper category to blogs and new media, and to differentiate interloper media reactions from journalistic boundary maintenance. Finally, in its conclusion, this thesis revisits traditional concepts of journalism to propose a new conceptualisation of journalism through a multi-sphere model. This model takes into account interloper media and their performance of journalism, and puts forward an idea of journalism that reflects modern shifting media dynamics, defining journalism with flexibility and utility for past, current, and future media actors

Bowdoin Orient v.138, no.1-25 (2008-2009)

https://digitalcommons.bowdoin.edu/bowdoinorient-2000s/1009/thumbnail.jp

Is social capital formation and maintenance under threat in County Sligo? : A critical review and exploration 1993-2013

This thesis seeks to assess the extent to which social capital formation and the commensurate maintenance of this substance, imputed to ‘bind society’, has been under threat in County Sligo over the period 1993-2013. Relatedly, issues around individualism, community and social self-encapsulation, as a consequence of the recent era of significant economic recession and austerity, are unpacked by providing a within case and non-generalizable case study of County Sligo.\ud Adopting a mixed method approach, this research was operationalized by undertaking an extensive literature review of social capital. From this review a list of issues and themes emerged. These initially informed a topic guide for a focus group session consisting of community activists from all walks of life in County Sligo. The views of the focus group participants laid the foundations for a quantitative survey which in turn paved the way for a number of one-to-one interviews with leading members of County Sligo society representing a range of organisations.\ud The findings from this research indicate that there is significant and widespread anger at the way leading institutions of the State behaved over the preceding decades including concern at the manner in which consecutive County Development Plans did not adequately facilitate, encourage or support the development of the social capitalisation of Sligo. Low levels of trust in society emerge as a major issue. However, people in County Sligo distinguish between interpersonal trust and institutional trust and indicate that they are prepared to reach out and engage in collective re-social capitalisation activities transcending social, economic, ethnic cleavages.\ud That human nature will find the strength to heal the wounds and face the future with hope and some confidence was the principle finding of this research and that Sligo people have a pride in their county