AI approaches to understand human deceptions, perceptions, and perspectives in social media

Social media platforms have created virtual space for sharing user generated information, connecting, and interacting among users. However, there are research and societal challenges: 1) The users are generating and sharing the disinformation 2) It is difficult to understand citizens\u27 perceptions or opinions expressed on wide variety of topics; and 3) There are overloaded information and echo chamber problems without overall understanding of the different perspectives taken by different people or groups. This dissertation addresses these three research challenges with advanced AI and Machine Learning approaches. To address the fake news, as deceptions on the facts, this dissertation presents Machine Learning approaches for fake news detection models, and a hybrid method for topic identification, whether they are fake or real. To understand the user\u27s perceptions or attitude toward some topics, this study analyzes the sentiments expressed in social media text. The sentiment analysis of posts can be used as an indicator to measure how topics are perceived by the users and how their perceptions as a whole can affect decision makers in government and industry, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is difficult to measure the public perception of government policies issued during the pandemic. The citizen responses to the government policies are diverse, ranging from security or goodwill to confusion, fear, or anger. This dissertation provides a near real-time approach to track and monitor public reactions toward government policies by continuously collecting and analyzing Twitter posts about the COVID-19 pandemic. To address the social media\u27s overwhelming number of posts, content echo-chamber, and information isolation issue, this dissertation provides a multiple view-based summarization framework where the same contents can be summarized according to different perspectives. This framework includes components of choosing the perspectives, and advanced text summarization approaches. The proposed approaches in this dissertation are demonstrated with a prototype system to continuously collect Twitter data about COVID-19 government health policies and provide analysis of citizen concerns toward the policies, and the data is analyzed for fake news detection and for generating multiple-view summaries

Semantic Text Analysis on Social Networks and Data Processing: Review and Future Directions

Social network usage is growing exponentially in the most up-to-date decade; though social networks are becoming increasingly popular every day, many users are continuously active social network users. Using Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and other social media sites has become the most convenient way for people. There is an enormous quantity of data produced by users of social networks. The most common part of modern research analysis is instrumental for many social network analysis applications. However, people actively utilize social networking sites and diverse uses of these sites. social media sites handle an immense amount of knowledge and answer these three computational problems, noise, dynamism, and scale. Semantic comprehension of the document, image, and video exchanged in a social network was also an essential topic in network analysis. Utilizing data processing provides vast datasets such as averages, laws, and patterns to discover practical knowledge. Using social media, data analysis was primarily used for machine learning, analysis, information extraction, statistical modelling, data preprocessing, and data interpretation processes. This research intentions to deliver an inclusive overview of social network research and application analyze state-of-the-art social media data analysis methods by reviewing basic concepts, social networks and elements social network research is linked to. Semantic ways of manipulating text in social networks are then clarified, and literature discusses studies before on these themes. Next, the evolving methods in research on social network analysis are discussed, especially in analyzing semantic text on social networks. Finally, subjects and opportunities for future research directions are explained

The Shapes of Cultures: A Case Study of Social Network Sites/Services Design in the U.S. and China

With growing popularity of the use of social network sites/services (SNSs) throughout the world, the global dominance of SNSs designed in the western industrialized countries, especially in the United Sates, seems to have become an inevitable trend. As internationalization has become a common practice in designing SNSs in the United States, is localization still a viable practice? Does culture still matter in designing SNSs? This dissertation aims to answer these questions by comparing the user interface (UI) designs of a U.S.-based SNS, Twitter, and a China-based SNS, Sina Weibo, both of which have assumed an identity of a “microblogging” service, a sub category of SNSs. This study employs the theoretical lens of the theory of technical identity, user-centered website cultural usability studies, and communication and media studies. By comparing the UI designs, or the “form,” of the two microblogging sites/services, I illustrate how the social functions of a technological object as embedded and expressed in the interface designs are preserved or changed as the technological object that has developed a relatively stable identity (as a microblogging site/service) in one culture is transferred between the “home” culture and another. The analysis in this study focuses on design elements relevant to users as members of networks, members of audience, and publishers/broadcasters. The results suggest that the designs carry disparate biases towards modes of communication and social affordances, which indicate a shift of the identity of microblogging service/site across cultures

An exploration of smartphone microblogging supporting the device, learner and social aspects of mobile learning within post primary Religious Education

Within Religious Education in the Irish post primary sector, there is little evidence of smartphone use for supporting mobile learning. This research aims to address this shortcoming by exploring our experience of smartphone microblogging supporting mobile learning. A participatory action research (PAR) methodology was employed. Research participants involved one teacher-researcher and a hundred and five first year post primary students of Religious Education from an Educational Training Board (ETB) school. A mixed method design was employed using both quantitative and qualitative data from pre and post online surveys, pre and post-research questionnaires, focus groups, online posts from Edmodo and the teacher-researcher’s own reflective journal. The research question was ‘What were our experiences of smartphone microblogging supporting mobile learning on ‘Images of God?’ ‘Images of God’ is a module from the Junior Certificate Religious Education syllabus. Mobile learning was defined as consisting of three aspects: the device, learner and social aspect as theorised in Koole’s (2009) Framework for the Rational Analysis of Mobile Education (FRAME) model. First, the device aspect of mobile learning examined Edmodo’s technical challenges and conveniences as well as measuring research participants’ perceptions through the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) research instrument (Davis 1989). Second, the learner aspect of mobile learning explored students’ use of Edmodo for supporting cognitive learning, collaborative learning and deeper learning within post primary Religious Education. Third, the social aspect of mobile learning investigated Edmodo as a virtual learning community and a safe space for the students to disclose and discuss their personal images of God that included agnostic and atheist worldviews. The social aspect also provided an insight into suitable pedagogy stemming from relevant mobile learning theories for supporting smartphone microblogging. This research concluded with recommendations for practising smartphone microblogging for supporting mobile learning within post primary Religious Education

Information Communication Technology for Crisis Management and Shared Situational Awareness: Social Media Public Health Communication During the COVID-19 Pandemic

This comprehensive study analyzes the role of social media, specifically Facebook, in crisis communication during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conducted through a longitudinal netnography approach, the research scrutinizes the communication strategies of Australian public health agencies from 2019 to 2020 and their impact on shared situational awareness (SSA). Drawing on the Seppänen et al. (2013) model for crisis communication, the study looks at three key aspects - link content (information), link type (communication), and link quality (trust) - and evaluates how they influence SSA during a crisis. The application of Chaos Theory further enhances the research's depth by identifying patterns and transformations in Facebook communications before and after the COVID-19 disruption. The study reveals that the pandemic significantly disrupted typical health communication strategies, leading to new emergent patterns, and it also underscores the critical role of secondary communication and emotional factors in the public's decision to share crisis information. Moreover, it identifies issues such as misinformation and inconsistency in messaging as significant obstacles to the public's trust in official health communications, ultimately impeding the creation of adequate SSA. The research emphasizes the need to develop consistent, clear, and reliable messaging strategies for effective crisis communication. The findings expand existing knowledge on social media utilization in crisis communication, offering valuable insights to enhance public health agencies' communication strategies, thereby aiding in the creation of trusted SSA. Unlike prior studies focusing on crisis response teams, this research concentrates on shared situational awareness among the general public, providing practical recommendations to improve social media crisis communication for more effective response and management in a health crisis

THE CURIOUS CASES OF CANCEL CULTURE

Cancel culture is a complex phenomenon that challenges our notions of civic practices, perpetuates surveillance practices amongst individuals who encourage digital public shaming and obscures communal ideas regarding accountability. Hence, it is imperative to complicate and nuance “cancel culture” to understand the different meanings derived from its diverse mechanizations. Other matrices such as power, platform governance, decoloniality, and more bolster ideas about the phenomenon’s extensive sociocultural reach. Using a critical digital ethnographic approach, I exemplify with the analysis two cancel culture cases uncovering themes such as selective cancelations, cancelation effectiveness, performative activism, performative wokeness, hypocrisy, victimization, and empathy. This study seeks to complexify cancel culture research approaches

Rethinking e-learning strategy 2.0 in the digital age: case study of the future school project in the Kingdom of Bahrain

PhD ThesisThis research aims to rethink e-learning strategy in the digital age by taking The Future School Project in The Kingdom of Bahrain as a case study and by investigating and evaluating e-learning strategies. In the Digital Age, the new technologies of web 2.0 (such as Facebook, blog, YouTube, etc.) have changed the learning landscape, where learners are becoming active participants and creators of knowledge. Many claims and suggestion have made about learning potential of Web 2.0 tools and technologies, however, these claims and suggestions have not been based on research evidence. New research is critical because many learning institutions and schools are making significant investments in e-learning; however, changes in the learning process have been incremental rather than transformational, mainly due to the lack of strategic direction. The research approach adopted in this dissertation includes (1) Observations and Document Analysis, (2) Interviews Stakeholders and (3) Questionnaires (Staffs, Teachers and Students). The findings show how teachers and students are using ICTs in learning. Moreover, they explain another factor which has an impact on the successful integration of technology in e-learning: this factor is the gaps between e-learning policy, the actual practice of teachers, and students’ practice; these three worlds are very far apart. Also the findings show that Web 2.0 could bridge the gap between digital natives and the educational system leading to successful integration of technology in learning. Furthermore, it explains the role of Web 2.0 in learning and provides an e-learning strategic framework for evaluating e-learning. The research recommends (1) Using social network sites Facebook and video sharing site YouTube in learning, (2) Triangulation of e-learning policy, teacher practice and students practice, (4) Rethinking using current ICTs, and (5) Encouraging and monitoring teachers using ICTs.Ministry of Education in the Kingdom of Bahrai

Social movements using social media in a mined and censored world: examples in the United States and China

This purpose of this thesis is to examine data mining and data censorship in the United States and China through the Occupy Wall Street social movement and labor protest activity at the Foxconn, Foshan, and Lock factories. The question posed relates to the level of investment the U.S. and Chinese governments have made in data mining and data censorship to create either a predictable situation with regard to social movement activity, or to impede communication between social movement organizers in the attempt to stop protest. For the U.S. example, I outline the legal history and interpretation of the 4th Amendment as pertaining to data mining policies enacted now to show the legality of governmental actions regarding data surveillance. The evidence of this is in the Occupy Wall Street example, as I use Freedom of Information Act requested documents to show governmental agencies infiltrating and surveilling activity of the OWS movement using data mining. For the Chinese example, I outline the legal history of data censorship as explained through Chinese legal code. Evidence of these practices is shown in communication issues found amongst protestors in Foshan, Lock, and Foxconn factories. I conclude my argument with an alternative to the U.S. and Chinese methods in German rasterfahndung, or data screening. I describe rasterfahndung as a less extreme example of data mining that has evolve over time to exhibit an open dialog for change in mining policies as opposed to blanket, legal mining in the U.S

Introducing social networking tools into members of the European Parliament’s communication patterns

This PhD research adopts an interdisciplinary approach to answer the following research question: to what extent could Members of the European Parliament incorporate social networking tools (SNT) as part of their communication resources in engaging with other actors when carrying out their work as legislators? The methodological framework chosen to conduct this study is exploratory and combines two qualitative methods: elite interviews and observation. Interviews with MEPs and their staff aimed to explore MEPs’ understanding of SNT use, their motivations and their perceived benefits of using SNT when carrying out their work as legislators. Interviews with officials of the EP and members of the European civil society were purposely designed as validating interviews. In total, 29 interviews were conducted in 2011-2012. Observation of MEPs’ communication patterns during parliamentary weeks has allowed me to assess, on the one hand their communication patterns from an organisational perspective and on the other hand the potential for introducing new communicative tools into MEPs’ communicative practices. Observation was conducted with two MEPs and their staff during two weeks each. The theoretical framework of this study relies strongly upon communication network theories and organisational studies that explore the adoption of SNT in the workplace. Based on a grounded theory approach, this exploratory study suggests an emergent model of use of SNT for MEPs in carrying out their legislative work, based on MEPs’ motivations and perceived benefits of using these tools. Findings suggest that there are four domains in which MEPs could use SNT in their legislative functions: to democratise lobbying practices in the EP, to raise their awareness of public opinion, to reshape their relationship with journalists and finally to coordinate their actions as representatives with the European civil society’s. Thus, this study explores the adoption of SNT by elected members of the European Parliament by focusing on their understanding of their use of SNT when carrying out their role as legislators