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1 – 10 of over 2000
Article
Publication date: 6 December 2023

Labeeba Kothur and Vidushi Pandey

This paper aims to investigate the mechanisms through which social media news consumption across different platforms leads to opinion polarization in society. To this end, the…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the mechanisms through which social media news consumption across different platforms leads to opinion polarization in society. To this end, the authors draw from cultivation theory to examine whether social media news consumption imparts a mainstreaming or resonance effect. Media consumption imparts a mainstreaming effect if frequent users, regardless of their social identity, develop homogenous attitudes about issues, whereas resonance is at play if there is a differing cultivation effect on various social groups depending on their relatability of life experiences.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conduct the study in the developing context of India, using a population survey dataset from 2019. Regression-based mediation and moderation analyses were carried out to test the hypotheses.

Findings

The findings reveal that resonance is the most prominent mechanism through which social media news consumption cultivates opinion polarization, contrary to the mainstreaming effect imparted by television. Further, WhatsApp use was found to strengthen the polarizing effect of overall social media news consumption, while YouTube use weakened the cultivation of polarization.

Research limitations/implications

The paper unearths how social media news consumption influences the opinion polarization of various social groups differently. The authors also find the differential effect of specific platform use. These findings have the potential to inform policymakers and developers about how to mitigate the detrimental effects of platform-based political persuasion.

Originality/value

This study offers significant contributions. First, the authors explain social media-induced polarization using the novel theoretical lens of cultivation. Second, the authors find that social media and television news consumption differ in their polarizing effects. Third, the authors find that while WhatsApp use amplifies the polarizing effect of social media news consumption, YouTube use weakens it.

Details

Information Technology & People, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-3845

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 10 June 2021

Yuejiang Li and Hong Zhao

The purpose of this paper is to review the recent studies on opinion polarization and disagreement.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to review the recent studies on opinion polarization and disagreement.

Design/methodology/approach

In this work, recent advances in opinion polarization and disagreement and pay attention to how they are evaluated and controlled are reviewed.

Findings

In literature, three metrics: polarization, disagreement and polarization-disagreement index are usually adopted and there is a tradeoff between polarization and disagreement. Different strategies have been proposed in literature which can significantly control opinion polarization and disagreement based on these metrics.

Originality/value

This review is of crucial importance to summarize works on opinion polarization and disagreement and to the better understanding and control of them.

Details

International Journal of Crowd Science, vol. 5 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-7294

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 June 2019

Mohammad Hadi Aliahmadi, Ahmad Makui and Ali Bonyadi Naeini

Building on the Lau and Murnighan’s theory of fault line strength, Flache and Mäs (2008b) proposed a computational opinion dynamics model to explore the effect of demographic…

Abstract

Purpose

Building on the Lau and Murnighan’s theory of fault line strength, Flache and Mäs (2008b) proposed a computational opinion dynamics model to explore the effect of demographic fault line strength on team cohesion. This study aims to extend the Flache–Mäs (FM) model to incorporate geographical location and the dyadic communication regime in opinion formation process. More specifically, we make spatially proximate agents more likely to interact with each other in the dyadic communication regime. Our results show that when agents update their opinion after each pairwise encounter, opinion polarization is lower at steady state compared to when they update their opinion after interacting with all agents. In addition, if nearby agents are more likely to interact with each other, we see greater polarization compared to the FM model with the dyadic communication regime. An immediate policy implication of this result is that organizational managers should design work space in a way that encourage wider communications between members of a team and avoid geographically local communication.

Design/methodology/approach

We introduce our computational models to study the effect of location and the dyadic communication regime on team performance (as measured by agents’ opinions on various work-related issues) in the presence of a strong demographic fault line. Our models are extensions of the FM model. For clarification purposes, first we describe the FM model and then elaborate our extensions.

Findings

The most important finding of this paper is that the timing of interactions plays an important role in steady state of opinion space in a given population. The reason can be traced to the path-dependent nature of social systems, in which initial adopters of a certain opinion or an ideology can significantly change the final configuration of a population. For example, if an early adopter of a given work-related issue in an organization has an extremely positive view toward that issue, and s/he interacts with nearby employees who have similar demographic attributes, we would expect to find an extreme opinion cluster with respect to that issue after a while. However, depending on factors that affect the timing of interaction between individuals, we would expect different outcome in the same organization. If, for instance, more extreme people are more likely to interact, the results would be different compared to when moderate agents are more likely to interact.

Originality/value

One immediate policy implication of the results of this paper is that organizational managers should design work space in a way that encourage wider communications between members of a team and avoid geographically local communication, if they are to temper the negative effect of a strong demographic fault line. However, they should be cautious and take other related findings into account to avoid undesirable outcomes. For example, according to Flache and Mäss’s results, managers can also initially encourage discussion within demographically homogenous groups and avoid controversial work-related issues. In addition, previous studies showed that more contacts between agents may increase opinion polarization. Our results provide no evidence for more complex and modern organizational designs where individuals or teams do not have a fixed location or stable geographical pattern. For instance, in a modern car manufacturing shop floor, it is possible that workers have to move with cars, or operational engineers have to move between different sections and places. Furthermore, there may be a flexible and dynamic work schedule for workers such that they share a same work station but in different time, which requires a more complex model than what we presented in this paper. In this sense, the geographical setting analyzed in this paper should not be generalized to all organizations or companies. We also have no evidence about other critical factors that might affect the communication and activation regime of individuals. For example, one could imagine a case that workers with the same level of skill in a specific work-related issue are more likely to interact with each other. Moreover, some specific organizational structures could impose additional restrictions on who can/should interact with whom.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 50 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 January 2024

Yunfei Xing, Justin Zuopeng Zhang, Veda C. Storey and Alex Koohang

The global prevalence of social media and its potential to cause polarization are highly debated and impactful. The previous literature often assumes that the ideological bias of…

Abstract

Purpose

The global prevalence of social media and its potential to cause polarization are highly debated and impactful. The previous literature often assumes that the ideological bias of any media outlet remains static and exogenous to the polarization process. By studying polarization as a whole from an ecosystem approach, the authors aim to identify policies and strategies that can help mitigate the adverse effects of polarization and promote healthier online discourse.

Design/methodology/approach

To investigate online polarization, the authors perform a systematic review and analysis of approximately 400 research articles to explore the connection between cognitive bias and polarization, examining both causal and correlational evidence. The authors extensively evaluate and integrate existing research related to the correlation between online polarization and crucial factors such as public engagement, selective exposure and political democracy. From doing so, the authors then develop a PolarSphere ecosystem that captures and illustrates the process of online polarization formation.

Findings

The authors' review uncovers a wide range of associations, including ideological cognition, bias, public participation, misinformation and miscommunication, political democracy, echo chambers and selective exposure, heterogeneity and trust. Although the impact of bias on social media polarization depends on specific environments and internal/external conditions, certain variables exhibit strong associations across multiple contexts. The authors use these observations as a basis from which to construct PolarSphere, an ecosystem of bias-based polarization on social media, to theorize the process of polarization formation.

Originality/value

Based on the PolarSphere ecosystem, the authors argue that it is crucial for governments and civil societies to maintain vigilance and invest in further research to gain a deep comprehension of how cognitive bias affects online polarization, which could lead to ways to eliminate polarization.

Details

Journal of Enterprise Information Management, vol. 37 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1741-0398

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 January 2020

Bethany P. Bryson

Research on opinion polarization in the USA repeatedly finds more divergence among politically privileged groups: respondents who are college educated, politically interested…

Abstract

Purpose

Research on opinion polarization in the USA repeatedly finds more divergence among politically privileged groups: respondents who are college educated, politically interested, party identified or have a liberal/conservative orientation. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether their excluded counterparts can be polarized by exposure to political information on the internet.

Design/methodology/approach

Quantile regression and visual analysis of raw data from the online and face-to-face samples in the 2012 and 2016 American National Election Studies (n=9,563) assessed the impact of online political information on opinion polarization among ideological moderates, political Independents, respondents without a college degree, and those with low interest in politics.

Findings

Exposure to online political information during the survey was associated with significant polarizing shifts toward more consistent ideological positions in all four groups.

Practical implications

Engaging the middle is a social justice issue as much as a matter of political conflict, and evidence suggests that politically excluded groups use the internet to translate their own views into the language of policy opinions and popular (polarized) politics. Recommended policy interventions include information literacy programs. Further research should use experimental models and browser histories.

Originality/value

Current research on political polarization leaves open the question of whether larger portions of the electorate are available to join the fray. This study shows that excluded publics can be polarized via exposure to online information.

Details

International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. 40 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-333X

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 19 July 2021

Agnes Blome

What role do people's attitudes toward social policies play for the politics of welfare state reform? This chapter contributes to a growing scholarship on policy responsiveness in…

Abstract

What role do people's attitudes toward social policies play for the politics of welfare state reform? This chapter contributes to a growing scholarship on policy responsiveness in welfare state research with a longitudinal comparative case study of the Bismarckian welfare states of France and Germany. Quantitative analyses of changes in mean attitudes as well as polarization and inequalities of attitudes based on the 1996, 2006, and 2016 waves of the International Social Survey Program (ISSP) Role of Government module are triangulated with a thick description of social policy changes. While recommodifying and defamilializing reforms in Germany transformed the welfare state fundamentally, there was more continuity in the French welfare state, in spite of a stronger focus on labor market activation policies. The quantitative results suggest that lower attitudinal stability toward the welfare state in Germany and lower polarization evoked a higher willingness for reform than in France, where more polarized attitudes and overall marginal changes in attitudes gave French governments less maneuverability in adopting reforms. In both countries, I find no evidence for an upper-class bias in policy responsiveness. In sum, my research supports the claim that change in public opinion toward the welfare state and diverging attitudes within societies play a role for the timing and direction of reforms.

Details

The Politics of Inequality
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83909-363-0

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 April 2022

Shinichi Yamaguchi

This study aims to verify the following hypothesis: People with extreme opinions post on social media more than those with moderate opinions.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to verify the following hypothesis: People with extreme opinions post on social media more than those with moderate opinions.

Design/methodology/approach

A social media posting model was constructed to estimate the influence of extreme opinions on the number of social media posts in Japan, Korea and the USA. For a quantitative verification, data from 5,095 questionnaire surveys were regressed using a Tobit model.

Findings

Extreme opinions were found to increase the number of social media posts in all three countries and for both surveyed topics (constitutional amendment in Japan and increasing number of foreigners in Japan, Korea and the USA). Furthermore, the higher the interest in the topic, the greater the effect. The hypothesis was thus supported.

Research limitations/implications

The survey was conducted online, and the sample size in Korea and the USA was smaller than in Japan. The topics were limited to two, and only three countries were included.

Social implications

People should use social media knowing that there are numerous extreme views online. Companies that provide social media platforms should consider measures to ensure that users are not exclusively exposed to extreme opinions.

Originality/value

This research conducts a quantitative analysis on the effects of opinion extremity on social media posting behavior and the resulting bias in online opinion distribution, a topic on which there is scant prior research.

Peer review

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/OIR-07-2020-0310.

Article
Publication date: 12 September 2023

Yunfei Xing, Yuming He and Justin Z. Zhang

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused significant disruption to the global labor market, resulting in a rapid transition toward remote work, e-commerce and…

Abstract

Purpose

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused significant disruption to the global labor market, resulting in a rapid transition toward remote work, e-commerce and workforce automation. This shift has sparked a considerable amount of public discussion. This study aims to explore the online public's sentiment toward remote work amid the pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on justice theory, this paper examines user-generated content on social media platforms, particularly Twitter, to gain insight into public opinion and discourse surrounding remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Employing content analysis techniques such as sentiment analysis, text clustering and evolutionary analysis, this study aims to identify prevalent topics, temporal patterns and instances of sentiment polarization in tweets.

Findings

Results show that people with positive opinions focus mainly on personal interests, while others focus on the interests of the company and society; people's subjectivities are higher when they express extremely negative or extremely positive emotions. Distributive justice and interactional justice are distinguishable with a high degree of differentiation in the cluster map.

Originality/value

Previous research has inadequately addressed public apprehensions about remote work during emergencies, particularly from a justice-based perspective. This study seeks to fill this gap by examining how justice theory can shed light on the public's views regarding corporate policy-making during emergencies. The results of this study provide valuable insights and guidance for managing public opinion during such events.

Details

Library Hi Tech, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0737-8831

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 March 2018

Francisco J. Sarabia-Sanchez and Maria. J. Cerda-Bertomeu

A place brand is a public instrument for territorial development that needs a strategic design that is made by the public sector with the support of experts. To ensure that this…

Abstract

Purpose

A place brand is a public instrument for territorial development that needs a strategic design that is made by the public sector with the support of experts. To ensure that this design has the greatest chances, there should be an alignment between them regarding how the public sector should act when designing the place brand. This study aims to analyze the alignment and polarization among experts regarding this topic and whether experts with different place brand visions show different expectations in the public sector.

Design/methodology/approach

A Web survey was conducted using a sample (n = 260) of four types of experts (politicians, scholars, public managers and consultants) in Latin America and Spain.

Findings

First, there is high agreement that the public sector should have an active role and an open attitude to establish relationships with the private and voluntary sectors. This favors the dialogue among brand creators and generates a shared vision. Second, there is an elevated alignment with regards to which roles the public sector should play, independently of experts’ place brand visions. Finally, four aspects derived from the four place brand visions are detected that can favor different final approaches regarding the place brand strategic design.

Research limitations/implications

The study has been performed in Latin America and Spain. Other studies in other areas can complete the previous results.

Originality/value

The results show how experts perceive the desirables behaviors from the public sector, which is a missing topic in place brand literature.

Details

Journal of Place Management and Development, vol. 11 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1753-8335

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 March 2013

Kati Pajunen and Jani Saastamoinen

The purpose of this paper is to explore auditors' perceptions of goodwill accounting under international financial reporting standards (IFRS). More specifically, the authors…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore auditors' perceptions of goodwill accounting under international financial reporting standards (IFRS). More specifically, the authors surveyed auditors to see if they believe that IFRS enables earnings management in goodwill accounting. Further the paper explores background factors behind opinions.

Design/methodology/approach

The study uses a survey of KHT certified Finnish auditors. The electronic questionnaire was sent to 523 KHT‐auditors. The authors received 123 responses yielding a response rate of 23.5 percent.

Findings

The survey indicates that there are two lines of thought regarding goodwill accounting under IFRS. According to the first line of thought, managers of listed Finnish companies behave opportunistically in goodwill write‐off decisions. The other line of thought suggests that there is a favorable attitude towards the IFRS procedures of goodwill accounting. Big Four auditors seem to favor goodwill accounting under IFRS.

Research limitations/implications

This study is conducted in Finland. Larger data collection would enhance the reliability of the results.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the literature by providing the perspective of auditors on fair value and goodwill as very few studies have examined goodwill issues from this viewpoint.

Details

Managerial Auditing Journal, vol. 28 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0268-6902

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 2000