Expanding social identity theory for research in media effects: two international studies and a theoretical model

"In this paper we propose that Tajfel’s (1979) social identity theory (SIT) and self-categorization theory (SCT, Turner, Brown & Tajfel, 1987) is a relevant and helpful theoretical groundwork to explain selective exposure to media content in general and to entertainment media in particular. It is hypothesized that gender and national identity have a significant effect on selective exposure to entertainment series when being salient. Two international quasi-experimental studies have been conducted, the first study in the U.S. and Germany (N = 419) and the second in Great Britain and Germany (N = 154). As expected, participants rated series that feature protagonists of their own sex higher with regard to entertainment and intention to watch than those that featured protagonists of the opposite sex. However, national identity did not have the effects expected. Participants from all three countries gave similar ratings to series produced in their home-country as those produced abroad. The use of SIT is discussed in terms of what processes of the theory are of particular importance to explain media related behavior and how to empirically apply the theory in media effects research to make it work. A two-process model of SIT in media effects research is suggested: the process of social comparison is amended with a much simpler process of searching for similarities."[author´s abstract]"Im vorliegenden Beitrag werden die Theorie der sozialen Identität (Tajfel, 1979) und die Theorie der sozialen Kategorisierung (Turner, Brown & Tajfel, 1979) als theoretische Grundlage zur Erklärung der Medienselektion vorgeschlagen. In zwei Quasi-Experimenten wurde die untersucht, ob die Geschlechtszugehörigkeit beeinfluss, ob Probanden lieber unterhaltende TV Serien mit Protagonisten des eigenen Geschlechts oder des anderen Geschlechts sehen. Des Weiteren wurde untersucht, ob die nationale Identität beeinflusst, ob Probanden lieber unterhaltende TV Serien im TV sehen, die im Heimatland oder im Ausland produziert wurden. Die erste Studie wurde in den Vereinigten Staaten (U.S.A.) und Deutschland durchgeführt (N = 419), die zweite Studien in dem Vereinigten Königreich (U.K.) und Deutschland (N = 154). Die Ergebnisse weisen darauf hin, dass Probanden Serien mit Protagonisten des eigenen Geschlechts bevorzugen. Die nationale Identität hatte jedoch nicht den gewünschten Effekt. Die Probanden aller drei Länder bewerteten ausländische Produktionen besser als die Serien aus ihrem Heimatland. In der Diskussion und als Ergebnis der zwei Studien wird ein Zweiprozess-Modell der Medienselektion vorgeschlagen, das einerseits Prozesse der sozialen Identität und andererseits Prozesse der Ähnlichkeit als Ursachen der Medienselektion definiert."[Autorenreferat

Cultural differences in social media use, privacy, and self-disclosure : research report on a multicultural study

This research report presents comparative results from five nations (United States of America, United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, and China) with regard to social media use, self-disclosure, privacy perceptions and attitudes, and privacy behavior in online environments. The data stemmed from an online survey that was conducted from November, 2011, to December, 2011. Across all five nations, N = 1,800 participants completed the survey. The findings suggest that a broad differentiation between Western and Eastern cultures only partly accounted for differences in social media use and privacy behavior. Rather, the results of this report suggest that European countries (United Kingdom, Germany, and the Netherlands) share similar privacy perceptions and show similar behavioral patterns. Non-European cultures (the USA and China) on the other hand, use social media differently. Participants from European countries had generally smaller audiences on social network sites and microblogging platforms, tended to limit the visibility of their postings and profile information more, and used more privacy settings to safeguard their privacy. In particular, German social media users seemed to be guarded, protective, and rather reluctant to participate in online communication. Users from the US, on the other hand, rated privacy-related behavior as less risky and were hence less likely to imply sophisticated privacy strategies. Apart from these findings, the report also shows that there are more commonalities than differences. People from all five countries think that it is important to protect privacy. Most users consciously decides what to share and what not to share. Accordingly, social media users do not always share intimate and detailed information about their lives

Privacy, self-disclosure, social support, and social network site use : research report of a three-year panel study

This research report presents data from a study conducted in Germany based on a 3-year panel design. From October 2009 to April 2012, five waves of data collection were established. N = 327 participants from a convenience sample gave answers to questions regarding media use, privacy behaviors, well-being, social support, authenticity, and specific online experiences with a particular emphasis on social network sites (SNSs). It was found that across the 3 years of the study, people increasingly gained online social capital, developed a greater need for privacy, started to disclose more personal information online, and continually spent more time on SNSs. At the same time, people's willingness to disclose information in offline settings as well as their risk assessment of SNSs significantly decreased over time. Furthermore, frequent users of SNSs had more online social capital than less frequent users, disclosed more personal information online, knew more ways to restrict the access to their profiles, and were more authentic in their online profiles. People who had a higher need for privacy were less satisfied with their lives, less authentic in both their personal relationships and their online profiles, and generally showed more negative effects on different psychological variables. Respondents who had more online social capital also reported having more general positive affect and more offline social support. In the research report, further results are reported: Each variable is presented both individually and in context with other measures. The study is the first longitudinal study on online privacy and as such the first to be able to report mutual causalities between online experiences and privacy behaviors

Why girls play: results of a qualitative interview study with female video game players

"Qualitative interviews with 7 female players were conducted to gather information on the motives and attitudes of female users of video and computer games. Participants were asked about the importance of different gratifications of game play, critical incidents that initiated their interest in games and their perceived competence in the use of computer technology. Special attention was paid to potential shortcomings of contemporary video and computer games in addressing female players specific needs and the question whether female users can identify with in-game characters of today's computer games. The results indicate that the motive to win is of minor importance for female players. Additionally, many interviewees reported a lack of support for their hobby, especially from same-sex friends. Identification with the avatar is an important component of the gaming experience for the female players in this study. At the same time, contemporary computer games that are often situated in primarily masculine contexts (e.g. war, competition) make it difficult for female users to identify with in-game characters." (author's abstract

An Agenda for Open Science in Communication

In the last 10 years, many canonical findings in the social sciences appear unreliable. This so-called “replication crisis” has spurred calls for open science practices, which aim to increase the reproducibility, replicability, and generalizability of findings. Communication research is subject to many of the same challenges that have caused low replicability in other fields. As a result, we propose an agenda for adopting open science practices in Communication, which includes the following seven suggestions: (1) publish materials, data, and code; (2) preregister studies and submit registered reports; (3) conduct replications; (4) collaborate; (5) foster open science skills; (6) implement Transparency and Openness Promotion Guidelines; and (7) incentivize open science practices. Although in our agenda we focus mostly on quantitative research, we also reflect on open science practices relevant to qualitative research. We conclude by discussing potential objections and concerns associated with open science practices

Looking Outside the Box: Reflecting on Gaze Interaction in Gameplay

Gaze interaction in games moved from being a tool for accessibility to be at the core of mass-market game franchises, offering enhanced controller performance and greater immersion. We propose to explore three different popular gaze-based interaction mechanics to create novel opportunities in the game design space. We developed Twileyed, a collection of three games that challenge the "common" use of gaze as a pointer to navigate; select; and aim; to pose a challenging new way to play with the eyes. We used the games as data to reflect on the gaze design space. We asked users to play the games to validate them, and we observed their experience and strategies. Based on the observations, we discussed through 5 themes, the dimensions of gaze interactions and the potential outcomes to create engaging and playful gaze-enabled games. We contribute a position in gaze gameplay design, but also a conversation starter to engage the EyePlay research community

Social Media, Privacy, and Self-Disclosure: The Turbulence Caused by Social Media’s Affordances

The struggle we currently perceive in terms of social media privacy may be the result of the incompatible natures of “warm” and “cold” affordances. Whereas social media’s warm affordances reflect long-standing privacy routines and expectations, cold affordances seem to challenge and sometimes violate them. Sharing under the realm of warm affordances means sharing according to the routines and habits we know. Sharing under the realm of cold affordances means understanding social media’s terms and conditions and how they reflect on our relationships and experiences - similar to assimilating to a new culture that seems opaque and constantly in flux

Transformative or not? How privacy violation experiences influence online privacy concerns and online information disclosure

Previous research has shown that people seldom experience privacy violations while using the Internet, such as unwanted and unknown sharing of personal information, credit card fraud, or identity theft. With this study, we ask whether individuals’ online privacy concerns increase and online information disclosure decreases if they experience such a worst-case scenario. Using representative data from a five-wave panel study (n ¼ 745), we found that people who generally experience more privacy violations also have stronger privacy concerns (between-person differences). However, people who experienced more privacy violations than usual in the last 6 months were only slightly more concerned afterward and did not change their disclosure behavior afterward (within-person effects). The need for privacy moderated these processes. We untangle under which circumstances such experiences may be transformative, and discuss practical and conceptual consequences of how experiences translate into concerns, but not necessarily behaviors