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1 – 10 of 32
Open Access
Article
Publication date: 2 December 2022

Noora Hirvonen

The study examines how the technical features and associated social practices of an anonymous, text-based online forum intended for young people make it a unique platform for…

1031

Abstract

Purpose

The study examines how the technical features and associated social practices of an anonymous, text-based online forum intended for young people make it a unique platform for acquiring and sharing health information among peers.

Design/methodology/approach

The features and content of a young people's section of a popular Finnish discussion forum were examined with a focus on health-related threads. Observational notes and thread content were analysed with a focus on the forum's affordances for health information practices.

Findings

The findings indicate that the forum's affordances including anonymity, persistence, searchability, cohesion and tolerance enabled the pooling of peer experiences, opinions and experience-based advice on health, rather than sharing factual information or embracing reciprocal discussion. As such, instead of competing for a cognitive authority position with medical authorities or offering emotional support like tight online support communities, the anonymous forum served as a platform for young people to gain information on others' experiences and opinions on sensitive, mundane and disnormative health issues and for reflecting their own lived experiences to those of others.

Originality/value

The study is original in its approach to examining the affordances of an online platform for health information practices. It helps in understanding young people's ways of using different resources to meet their diverse health information needs and the value of gaining access to experiential health information.

Details

Journal of Documentation, vol. 78 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0022-0418

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 14 February 2022

Mohammad Fraiwan

Social networks (SNs) have recently evolved from a means of connecting people to becoming a tool for social engineering, radicalization, dissemination of propaganda and…

1513

Abstract

Purpose

Social networks (SNs) have recently evolved from a means of connecting people to becoming a tool for social engineering, radicalization, dissemination of propaganda and recruitment of terrorists. It is no secret that the majority of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) members are Arabic speakers, and even the non-Arabs adopt Arabic nicknames. However, the majority of the literature researching the subject deals with non-Arabic languages. Moreover, the features involved in identifying radical Islamic content are shallow and the search or classification terms are common in daily chatter among people of the region. The authors aim at distinguishing normal conversation, influenced by the role religion plays in daily life, from terror-related content.

Design/methodology/approach

This article presents the authors' experience and the results of collecting, analyzing and classifying Twitter data from affiliated members of ISIS, as well as sympathizers. The authors used artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning classification algorithms to categorize the tweets, as terror-related, generic religious, and unrelated.

Findings

The authors report the classification accuracy of the K-nearest neighbor (KNN), Bernoulli Naive Bayes (BNN) and support vector machine (SVM) [one-against-all (OAA) and all-against-all (AAA)] algorithms. The authors achieved a high classification F1 score of 83\%. The work in this paper will hopefully aid more accurate classification of radical content.

Originality/value

In this paper, the authors have collected and analyzed thousands of tweets advocating and promoting ISIS. The authors have identified many common markers and keywords characteristic of ISIS rhetoric. Moreover, the authors have applied text processing and AI machine learning techniques to classify the tweets into one of three categories: terror-related, non-terror political chatter and news and unrelated data-polluting tweets.

Details

Applied Computing and Informatics, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2634-1964

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 3 September 2021

Ravinesh Rohit Prasad and Ramadhani Lausi Mkumbachi

Higher education plays a vital role in educating citizens about climate change and promoting pro-environment behavior. Based on this statement, this study aims to analyze and…

7189

Abstract

Purpose

Higher education plays a vital role in educating citizens about climate change and promoting pro-environment behavior. Based on this statement, this study aims to analyze and evaluate students’ perception of climate change at the University of the South Pacific in Fiji. The study aims to understand the main ideas and concepts of climate change by analyzing information habits and individual opinions on the causes of climate change as perceived by the students of two student organizations aimed at environmental protection.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative approach was used to gather data on students’ perceptions and information habits toward climate change. The data were collected through a questionnaire to characterize students from the socio-demography and their perceptions, information habits and knowledge relating to climate change. This paper uses the case study method to examine students’ climate change perceptions at two different student organizations at the same university. The research study involved a focus group technique. Two focus groups at the University of the South Pacific were administered. The focus groups’ selection in this study took into account the aims and objectives of the students’ organization toward climate change awareness, adaptation, mitigation and environment protection.

Findings

The focus groups participants believe that climate change is a serious problem in the South Pacific region. Results suggest significant differences in climate change perception at the two students’ organizations chosen for this study. Students at the Econesian society nicknamed climate change as a nuclear weapon for the South Pacific responsible for changes in the habitat, coral bleaching, lifestyle changes, mother of all other environmental problems and the introduction of invasive species into Fiji. Students at Wantok Moana-related climate change to drastic weather changes, lack of fish feed and additional toxins in the sea. The results also showed that students at the Econesian society have a better understanding of climate change than the students of Wantok Moana.

Practical implications

This paper provides an insight into how students of Small Islands Developing States view climate change and the factors affecting their opinions. It also shows how climate change perception varies within the same university. This implies the need to integrate climate change into the higher education curriculum and more research on this topic.

Originality/value

This paper is the first to compare and contrast university students’ climate change perception in Fiji. The results make an essential contribution to the extant climate change literature by identifying and categorizing climate change perception and the factors that shape students’ perception of climate change from the university students’ perspective in Fiji.

Details

International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, vol. 13 no. 4/5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1756-8692

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 8 February 2023

Kibbeum Na and Kwanghee Han

Gamification is a booming motivational approach in information systems. Leaderboards play a key role in gamification; however, there are mixed findings regarding the heterogeneous…

3985

Abstract

Purpose

Gamification is a booming motivational approach in information systems. Leaderboards play a key role in gamification; however, there are mixed findings regarding the heterogeneous motivational impacts of leaderboard positions. This study aims to clarify the motivational effects of high and low leaderboard positions by assembling diverse behavioral measures and self-reports. The measures used in this study shed a light on the quantitative and qualitative dynamics of motivation facilitated by leaderboard positions. The authors inspect motivation in relation to satisfaction and frustration of competence need.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted an online experiment set in a crowdsourcing context, asking the participants to compete in an image tagging game. Participants' leaderboard positions were manipulated to be either high or low for five consecutive rounds. The number of clicks, tags, duration of tagging and persistence on the task were measured as indicators of motivation.

Findings

High ranks on leaderboards induced complacent behaviors choosing easy ways to maintain their positions, while low ranks led the participants to stick to the right process of the task with intensified motivation round after round. However, neither of the motivations seemed to be of intrinsic nature.

Originality/value

The present study provides conclusive evidence on the varying motivational impact of leaderboard positions. The authors also demonstrate how the “needs-as-motive” model (Sheldon and Gunz, 2009) applies to gamification. Its implications in self-determination theory and gamification literature are discussed.

Details

Internet Research, vol. 33 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1066-2243

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 3 July 2017

Nina Steinhauer, Michael Gros, Martin Ebner, Markus Ebner, Anneliese Huppertz, Mike Cormann, Susanne Biermeier, Lena Burk, Konstanze Edtstadler, Sonja Gabriel, Martina Wintschnig, Christian Aspalter and Susanne Martich

Due to the important role of orthography in society, the project called IDeRBlog presented in this paper created a web-based tool to motivate pupils to write text as well as to…

1689

Abstract

Purpose

Due to the important role of orthography in society, the project called IDeRBlog presented in this paper created a web-based tool to motivate pupils to write text as well as to read and to comment on texts written by fellow students. In addition, IDeRBlog aims to improve student’s German orthography skills and supports teachers and parents with training materials for their students. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

With the aid of learning analytics, the submitted text is analyzed and special feedback is given to the students so that they can try to correct the misspelled words themselves. The teachers as well as the parents are benefiting from the analysis and exercises suggested by the system.

Findings

A recent study showed the efficiency of the system in form of an improvement of the students’ orthographic skills. Over a period of four months 70 percent of the students achieved a significant reduction of their spelling mistakes.

Originality/value

IDeRBlog is an innovative approach to improving orthography skills combining blogging and new media with writing and practice.

Details

Journal of Research in Innovative Teaching & Learning, vol. 10 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2397-7604

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 13 January 2022

Eleonora Masiero, Giulia Leoni and Carlo Bagnoli

This paper aims at exploring the historical roots of ideals-based accountability (IBA) in a family business of the past. It examines the narrative accounts of the history of an…

1203

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims at exploring the historical roots of ideals-based accountability (IBA) in a family business of the past. It examines the narrative accounts of the history of an Italian long-lived family business written by one of its latest business owners to determine how and to what extent it was used to discharge a more ethical form of accountability.

Design/methodology/approach

An extensive thematic analysis informed on the conceptual framework of IBA is conducted on the unpublished manuscript by Angelo Barovier, the oldest leader of the Barovier’s family business.

Findings

The retrospective narrative served the family owner as a means for IBA, unveiling to the present and future generations of family owners the values and ideals that had motivated the ancestors to sustain the family business throughout the centuries despite the financial performance or the adversities.

Research limitations/implications

This paper reveals the historical roots of IBA as grounded in family business historical narratives. It contributes to management and family business history by showing the historical relevance of ideals and values for the development and sustainment of a family business.

Practical implications

This study opens to a larger application of IBA also in contemporary businesses, as a tool to foster and disseminate a more ethical form of accountability and to a further extent support the construction of a more ethical society.

Originality/value

This paper connects the newly developed IBA framework, conceived for family businesses, to a management history perspective showing its potential for the intergenerational transmission of business culture.

Details

Journal of Management History, vol. 28 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1751-1348

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 31 May 2022

Fethiye Ozis, Shannon Lynn Isovitsch Parks, Deborah Lynne Sills, Mustafa Akca and Christine Kirby

This paper aims to analyze how a tangram activity improved students’ abilities to explain sustainability, articulate a positive perception of sustainable design and relate…

1441

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to analyze how a tangram activity improved students’ abilities to explain sustainability, articulate a positive perception of sustainable design and relate sustainability with innovation in engineering design.

Design/methodology/approach

The concept of paradigm shift was introduced in the classroom by using a tangram activity to help students understand that sustainable design requires out-of-the-box thinking. Instructors from three institutions teaching various levels of sustainability courses to engineering majors used the activity to introduce sustainable design, then measured the understanding and appreciation of the concepts introduced through the tangram activity with pre- and post-activity surveys.

Findings

Findings from the study indicate that students’ perceptions of sustainability significantly improved due to the activity, without regard to the institution. The activity also significantly improved students understanding of the connection between sustainability and innovation, across all three institutions, across all majors and across all years of study except second-year students. Improving engineering students’ views on sustainability may lead, over time, to changes in the industry, in which environmental performance is incorporated into the engineering design process.

Originality/value

Active learning approaches are needed for affective-domain learning objectives in the sustainability field for students to learn the necessary attitudes, values and motivations to implement sustainability in engineering design. Simple, easily implemented active learning techniques, such as the tangram activity presented here, can be implemented across the curriculum or to the public to introduce the paradigm shift necessary with sustainable design.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 23 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 10 June 2022

Teemu Kaskela, Ronja Järvelin, Janne Nahkuri, Teemu Gunnar, Aino Kankaanpää, Anna Pelander and Miina Kajos

Drug checking is a popular method to reduce risks of drug use. In many countries, including Finland, legislation restricts implementing drug checking. The aim of this study was to…

Abstract

Purpose

Drug checking is a popular method to reduce risks of drug use. In many countries, including Finland, legislation restricts implementing drug checking. The aim of this study was to explore whether some benefits of drug checking could be achieved by substance residue analysis.

Design/methodology/approach

Drug paraphernalia (mostly empty plastic bags) were used in the study. Participants left a sample and information about the former content to a local needle exchange point. After laboratory analysis, participants could return for the results and a short consultation on the substance(s) found. Afterward, participants were asked whether they would still use the batch.

Findings

Ninety-eight samples were received. In most cases, the samples had originally been sold as amphetamine (n = 39). Overall, laboratory results matched with supposed content in 52 cases, but in 21 cases, the sold content had been altered, in 17 cases, only other psychoactive substances were found and in 8 cases, no traces of psychoactive substances were found. Participants returned for results in two-thirds of the cases. When the laboratory result did not match participants’ expectations, the majority of participants estimated they would not use the same batch (17/25) or would use it in a different way (2/25).

Originality/value

While reports on drug checking are numerous, studies exploring possibilities to achieve harm-reducing benefits of drug checking by analyzing drug residues are scarce. The results of this pilot study suggest some benefits of drug checking can be achieved by substance residue analysis.

Details

Drugs, Habits and Social Policy, vol. 23 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2752-6739

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 28 November 2022

André Luiz Maranhão de Souza-Leão, Bruno Melo Moura and Fernando Sacic Carneiro-Leão

Sports leagues have stood out in the entertainment industry due to their great economic value and cultural impact. This is the case of the American sports leagues, with emphasis…

Abstract

Purpose

Sports leagues have stood out in the entertainment industry due to their great economic value and cultural impact. This is the case of the American sports leagues, with emphasis on the National Basketball Association (NBA), whose largest Latin American market lies on Brazil. The aforementioned league’s audience is constantly growing, a fact that can be partially explained by the encouragement provided for its viewers to interact through social media, in a phenomenon called social TV. Accordingly, the aim of the present study is to investigate how social TV works as a means for Brazilian fans to coproduce their NBA broadcasting enjoyment through social media interactions.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted a netnography on the community of fans engaged in Twitter hashtag #NBAnaESPN, which was released by ESPN to promote audience integration during NBA games' broadcasting.

Findings

A theorization about the role played by social TV in the way fan culture articulates through social media to enjoy broadcasting media products was herein presented. The findings of this study have evidenced three categories concerning the role played by television broadcasting, social media and the fandom in NBA consumption by Brazilian fans. Based on these findings, the authors got to the conclusion that social TV establishes a mediatized environment where fan culture can be articulated through social media to enable interactions about television broadcasting.

Research limitations/implications

The study was limited to members of the Brazilian NBA audience who engage in the official social media of the league’s broadcasting.

Originality/value

The study heads toward a theoretical generalization based on the research results.

Details

Revista de Gestão, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1809-2276

Keywords

Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 4 June 2021

Elina Vaahensalo

The growth of online communities and social media has led to a growing need for methods, concepts, and tools for researching online cultures. Particular attention should be paid…

Abstract

The growth of online communities and social media has led to a growing need for methods, concepts, and tools for researching online cultures. Particular attention should be paid to polarizing online discussion cultures and dynamics that increase inequality in online environments. Social media has enormous potential to create good, but in order to unlock its full potential, we also need to examine the mechanisms keeping these spaces monotonous, homogenous, and even hostile toward some groups. With this need in mind, I have developed the concept and theory of othering online discourse (OOD).

This chapter introduces and defines the concept of OOD and explains the key characteristics and different attributes of OOD in relation to other concepts that deal with disruptive and discriminatory behavior in online spaces. The attributes of OOD are demonstrated drawing on examples gathered from the Finnish Suomi24 (Finland24) forum.

Details

The Emerald International Handbook of Technology-Facilitated Violence and Abuse
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83982-849-2

Keywords

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