No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the authors.
Complementary Explorative Data Analysis: The Reconciliation of Quantitative and Qualitative Principles
... At the same time, it is still in the phase of self-discovery and self-definition. Sudweeks and Simoff (1999), therefore, stressed that "a modern Internet research methodology should take into account rapidly changing technology, social norms and communication behaviour" (p. 30). ...
... In general, ethical standards for research are challenged in online environments because boundaries between public and private are blurred; however, the participation in online studies is not more risky than the participation in any of the offline counterparts. Risks should be reviewed and questioned carefully for the specific research project (Kraut et al., 2004;Sudweeks & Simoff, 1999). ...
... As one of the participants said in the postevaluation, "One gets tired of sitting in front of the computer and of typing." Sudweeks and Simoff (1999) have argued that computer-mediated communication is affected by information and processing overload, which could lead to digital fatigue and avoidance of additional computer-mediated work in form of writing a diary. Because my participants were all students and had a certain load of computer-mediated work already, it is understandable that they were not really keen on spending yet another hour in front of the laptop to write their diary. ...
Weblogs and life journals are popular forms of reflecting and reporting online about one's everyday life. In this article the author examines whether solicited online diaries can be used in qualitative research. She discusses advantages and disadvantages of the online research, diaries as a source of data, and narration as a method. The discussion is exemplified by the presentation of an online diary study conducted in two parts in the spring and autumn of 2009 with students from Tartu, Narva, and Tallinn, Estonia. This article shows the illuminating potential and richness of solicited online diaries applied in an open-ended, qualitative understanding as a way to investigate everyday life. At the same time, the main challenges are presented and discussed.
... 24 Third, the random sample (n=404) was manually coded using the Complementary Explorative Data Analysis framework, which integrates qualitative and quantitative methods in content analysis of media communications. 25 Using a qualitative approach and preliminary "open" coding of a subset of posts, a coding scheme was developed. 25 The coding scheme focused on the following key elements: if the post discussed buprenorphine to self-treat withdrawal (since co-occurrence of the two terms could be linked to other issues, such as withdrawal from buprenorphine); if it expressed views about buprenorphine's efficacy in withdrawal management (positive/negative views and reasons for lack of efficacy); if it reported buprenorphine dosing practices (reported amount in mg in selftreatment of withdrawal); and concomitant buprenorphine and other drug use ( Table 1). ...
... 25 Using a qualitative approach and preliminary "open" coding of a subset of posts, a coding scheme was developed. 25 The coding scheme focused on the following key elements: if the post discussed buprenorphine to self-treat withdrawal (since co-occurrence of the two terms could be linked to other issues, such as withdrawal from buprenorphine); if it expressed views about buprenorphine's efficacy in withdrawal management (positive/negative views and reasons for lack of efficacy); if it reported buprenorphine dosing practices (reported amount in mg in selftreatment of withdrawal); and concomitant buprenorphine and other drug use ( Table 1). The coding scheme was then consistently applied to the entire body of 404 posts. ...
There is growing evidence of an alarming increase in the illicit use of buprenorphine in the U.S., but our understanding of its use is limited because current epidemiologic systems do not systematically monitor buprenorphine. This study aims to explore Web-based data on illicit buprenorphine use, focusing on user beliefs about the appropriate dosing in self-treatment of opioid withdrawal. A web forum that allows free discussion of illicit drugs and is accessible for public viewing was selected for analysis. Posts that contained discussions of buprenorphine and opioid withdrawal symptoms were retrieved using PREDOSE, a novel semantic web platform developed for the information extraction and analysis of social web data on illicit drugs. All unique user names were anonymized. A total of 1,140 posts were retrieved, covering a time period between 2005 and May, 2013. These posts were uploaded to an NVivo database. A random sample of 378 (33%) posts was selected for content analysis. The number of buprenorphine-related posts increased from 46 in 2005 to 1,012 in 2009 and 4,376 in 2011. Over 65% of coded posts that contained information about buprenorphine dose in the self-treatment of withdrawal symptoms, endorsed and/or advocated, use of significantly lower amounts of buprenorphine (2 mg and lower) than typical doses of 16-24 mg per day recommended for standard treatment. Such posts expressed a belief that lower doses of buprenorphine are more effective in the self-treatment of opioid dependence, while the physician-prescribed dosage is too high. Thus, prescribed doses can be textquoterightconservedtextquoteright or shared with others. Social Web data suggest that the textquoterightless is moretextquoteright approach to buprenorphine dosing may be fairly prevalent among illicit opioid users and may be one of the contributing factors to the increasing availability of diverted buprenorphine. Our findings highlight the importance of Web-based data in drug abuse epidemiology research.
... 24 Third, the random sample (n=404) was manually coded using the Complementary Explorative Data Analysis framework, which integrates qualitative and quantitative methods in content analysis of media communications. 25 Using a qualitative approach and preliminary "open" coding of a subset of posts, a coding scheme was developed. 25 The coding scheme focused on the following key elements: if the post discussed buprenorphine to self-treat withdrawal (since co-occurrence of the two terms could be linked to other issues, such as withdrawal from buprenorphine); if it expressed views about buprenorphine's efficacy in withdrawal management (positive/negative views and reasons for lack of efficacy); if it reported buprenorphine dosing practices (reported amount in mg in selftreatment of withdrawal); and concomitant buprenorphine and other drug use ( Table 1). ...
... 25 Using a qualitative approach and preliminary "open" coding of a subset of posts, a coding scheme was developed. 25 The coding scheme focused on the following key elements: if the post discussed buprenorphine to self-treat withdrawal (since co-occurrence of the two terms could be linked to other issues, such as withdrawal from buprenorphine); if it expressed views about buprenorphine's efficacy in withdrawal management (positive/negative views and reasons for lack of efficacy); if it reported buprenorphine dosing practices (reported amount in mg in selftreatment of withdrawal); and concomitant buprenorphine and other drug use ( Table 1). The coding scheme was then consistently applied to the entire body of 404 posts. ...
Background
Illicit use of buprenorphine has increased in the U.S., but our understanding of its use remains limited. This study aims to explore Web-forum discussions about the use of buprenorphine to self-treat opioid withdrawal symptoms.MethodsPREDOSE, a novel Semantic Web platform, was used to extract relevant posts from a Web-forum that allows free discussions on illicit drugs. First, we extract information about the total number of buprenorphine-related posts per year between 2005 and 2013. Second, PREDOSE was used to identify all posts that potentially contained discussions about buprenorphine and opioid withdrawal. A total number of 1,217 posts that contained these terms were extracted and entered into NVivo data base. A random sample of 404 (33%) posts was selected and content analyzed.ResultsBuprenorphine-related posts increased over time, peaking in 2011. The posts were about equally divided between those that expressed positive and negative views about the effectiveness of buprenorphine in relieving withdrawal symptoms. Web-forum participants emphasized that buprenorphine's effectiveness may become compromised because of the “size of a person habit,” and/or when users repeatedly switch back and forth between buprenorphine and other illicit opioids. Most posts reported use of significantly lower amounts of buprenorphine (≤2 mg) than doses used in standard treatment. Concomitant use of other psychoactive substances was also commonly reported, which may present significant health risks.Conclusions
Our findings highlight the usefulness of Web-based data in drug abuse research and add new information about lay beliefs about buprenorphine that may help inform prevention and policy measures. (Am J Addict 2015;XX: 1–7)
... Embora comumente os métodos quantitativos e qualitativos sejam vistos como incompatíveis e mutuamente excludentes, é possível entendê-los como abordagens complementares, a serem mobilizadas conforme os objetivos de cada pesquisa, de forma integrada ou em etapas sucessivas. O imperativo e os benefícios da combinação de procedimentos quantitativos e qualitativos para as pesquisas de internet já foram destacados por diversos autores (por exemplo Sudweeks e Simoff, 1999;Hine, 2005;Thelwall, 2009;Fragoso, 2009). ...
... Devido à sua adaptabilidade, a etnografia pode ser combinada com esses e outros métodos e técnicas, bem como com outros aparatos teórico-metodológicos tais como análises quantitativas e estatísticas (Sudweeks e Simoff, 1999), Pesquisa de Opinião (Witmer, Colman e Katzman, 1999;Joison, 2005; Amaral e Aquino, 2009), Análise de Redes Sociais (ARS) (Ryan, 2008;Recuero, 2009;Montardo, 2009), Webometria (Mclaughlin et al, 1999), Análise de Hyperlinks (Park e Thelwall, 2005;Beaulieu, 2005), Análise de Discurso Online (Markham, 1998), Análise de Conteúdo (Schenider e Foot, 2005), Análise de Conversação (Herring, 1997;Denzin, 1999), Estudo de Caso (Kleinman, 2004;Almeida, 2009), Análise Semiótica (Liu, 2007), Entrevista em Profundidade (Viana, 2009), Método Biográfico (Ward, 2006;Espinosa, 2007) Grupo Focal Online (Williams e Robson, 2004), Análise Documental (Schenider e Foot, 2005), entre muitos outros. ...
... We followed the Complementary Explorative Data Analysis framework in developing our coding scheme (Sudweeks and Simoff 1999). Issue-specific frames were extracted from the content and refined during the discussions among the authors. ...
This article examines the reporting strategy and gender perspective in Chinese media coverage of COVID-19 news. The article employs a mixed-method approach to analyze news reports, using quantitative statistics and qualitative semantic materials that complement each other. The study found that the media construct a stereotypical image of female healthcare workers absent from public participation. Media reports on the actual number of female healthcare workers involved in treating COVID-19 patients are lower than those about men. Reports focusing exclusively on female staff tend to focus on their private affairs, that is, on their non-professional identities and characteristics, and show an excessive gaze on the female body. To understand this phenomenon prevailing in Chinese media, it is necessary to highlight the predicament of Chinese women in society as well as acknowledge the work of contemporary Chinese feminism in raising awareness on Chinese women’s experiences.
... Nous analysons, comme cela a été dit, des fils de discussion (ou discussion threads dans la littérature - Sudweeks et Simoff, 1999). Les threads permettent d'isoler des échanges cohérents autour d'un sujet proposé à la discussion par un locuteur et ainsi de limiter le champ d'investigation du chercheur. ...
... The sense of combining quantitative and qualitative research methods in social sciences was noted twenty years ago (Sudweeks & Simoff, 1999). Sociology and social sciences were adapting to the new reality, developing independent and mixed methods of online research. ...
Accepting ethic norms involves naturalization of beliefs, assuming them as unalterable truths. Social sciences have been inscribed with certain standards for years. In the last twenty-five years, the practice of having research projects approved by ethics committees has become institutionalized, in some cases leading to extreme bureaucracy and changing the character of the issue, shifting the weight from the personal moral obligation of the researcher and an issue that requires high flexibility and individualism towards a set of forms to be filled out, pseudo-warrants of the safety of the research subjects. However, Internet research has opened the eyes of the sociologists to new problems and caused reconsideration of some issues of research ethics. This chapter discusses key notions of research ethics in the digital studies context. It shows how internet can be a source of infamy, and warns against improper use of data. It positions the fundamental rules of anonymity, privacy, informed consent, data ownership, as well as data confidentiality in the context of digital social studies.
... The sense of combining quantitative and qualitative research methods in social sciences was noted twenty years ago (Sudweeks & Simoff, 1999). Sociology and social sciences were adapting to the new reality, developing independent and mixed methods of online research. ...
The chapter presents the idea of Thick Big Data, a methodological approach combining big data sets with thick, ethnographic analysis. It presents different quantitative methods, including Google Correlate, social network analysis (SNA), online polls, culturomics, and data scraping, as well as easy tools to start working with online data. It describes the key differences in performing qualitative studies online, by focusing on the example of digital ethnography. It helps using case studies for digital communities as well. It gives specific guidance on conducting interviews online, and describes how to perform narrative analysis of digital culture. It concludes with describing methods of studying online cultural production, and discusses the notions of remix culture, memes, and trolling.
... The sense of combining quantitative and qualitative research methods in social sciences was noted twenty years ago (Sudweeks & Simoff, 1999). Sociology and social sciences were adapting to the new reality, developing independent and mixed methods of online research. ...
This chapter discusses three major changes resulting from the emerging communication technologies. It addresses the new forms of shaping relations online. Friendships, intimacy, the rise of weak ties, as well as an increased fluidity of relations are discussed. Next, the chapter addresses the demise of expert knowledge. Starting with McDonaldization of higher education and the rise of anti-intellectual sentiments, the chapter addresses the new trends in democratizing knowledge. While recognizing highly positive aspects of the turn, such as citizen science, Wikipedia, or free/open source movement, it also addresses the darker and more troubling processes, such as anti-scientific sentiments, pseudotheories, and the takeover of knowledge production and distribution by quacks. Finally, the chapter focuses on sharing economy. By problematizing the “sharing” premise, as well as by showing the impact of the ongoing change reaching far beyond economy itself, the chapter introduces the notion of collaborative society, as better covering the social change we witness.
... The sense of combining quantitative and qualitative research methods in social sciences was noted twenty years ago (Sudweeks & Simoff, 1999). Sociology and social sciences were adapting to the new reality, developing independent and mixed methods of online research. ...
The social sciences are becoming datafied. The questions that have been considered the domain of sociologists, now are answered by data scientists, operating on large datasets, and breaking with the methodological tradition for better or worse. The traditional social sciences, such as sociology or anthropology, are thus under the double threat of becoming marginalized or even irrelevant; both because of the new methods of research, which require more computational skills, and because of the increasing competition from the corporate world, which gains an additional advantage based on data access. However, sociologists and anthropologists still have some important assets, too. Unlike data scientists, they have a long history of doing qualitative research. The more quantified datasets we have, the more difficult it is to interpret them without adding layers of qualitative interpretation. Big Data needs Thick Data. This book presents the available arsenal of new tools for studying the society quantitatively, but also show the new methods of analysis from the qualitative side and encourages their combination. In shows that Big Data can and should be supplemented and interpreted through thick data , as well as cultural analysis, in a novel approach of Thick Big Data.The book is critically important for students and researchers in the social sciences to understand the possibilities of digital analysis, both in the quantitative and qualitative area, and successfully build mixed-methods approaches.
... According to Yin (1994), the reliability of a case study entails the demonstration that operations of the study (such as the data collection procedure) could be repeated with the same results. However, Sudweeks and Simoff (1998) argued that in online research, rapid changes in CMC/Internet technologies and application features imply that the "path of information communication" (p.31) is seldom stable. Also, given delays/time lags in synchronization and the creative use of language, participants on each side of the real-time link in this case study are likely to experience "a unique conversation" (Ruhleder, 2000, p.13). ...
... Early on, scholars acknowledged that tools, applications, content formatting and other Internet affordances not only repackage existing research methods, adapting them to the Internet, but also suggest completely new and often innovative approaches to and methods of research (Jones, 1999;Sosnoski, 1999;Sudweeks and Simoff, 1999). Schneider and Foot (2004) suggested that the analysis of websites and their content requires new analytical tools, since increasingly complex web applications alter traditional relationships between media 7 For instance, to aggregate and analyse tweets, researchers use tools such as DiscoverText, a cloud-based, collaborative text-analytics solution for capturing, filtering, duplicating, clustering, searching, human coding and machine classifying large numbers of small, unstructured items of text. ...
... However, specific populations may be targeted (Best & Kruger, 2004) at virtually no cost (Krishnamurthy, 2004). A combination of quantitative and qualitative data may be collected (Sudweeks & Simoff, 1999), which is instantly recorded electronically ready for statistical analysis. ...
Music reading skills are acknowledged as essential for musicians when learning new pieces, accompanying, or playing with others in ensembles. Approaches to teaching beginners may be divided into rote, with new pieces learnt by ear and /or finger positions, and note, where students learn to read from conventional music notation from the earliest lessons. This study set out to examine relationships between first methods of learning musical instruments and outcome measures of subsequent music reading skills, participation in music ensembles, and ability to play music by ear. A self-administered online questionnaire collected data regarding the musical background of volunteer adult participants, and included a two-part music reading task. This was comprised of 24 audiovisual matching tasks using sets of four 2-bar melodies requiring either matching the scored melody to one of four recorded melodies, or matching a recorded melody to one of four scored melodies. Over a period of 52 days, 155 responses to the questionnaire were recorded, of which 118 (76%) were analyzed using a series of one-way analyses of variance. Results supported the hypothesis that the first method of instruction affected subsequent music reading ability, with note methods resulting in higher reading abilities than rote. Furthermore, a significant relationship emerged between music reading ability and ensemble participation, and a significant effect was found for playing by ear on music reading ability.
... Early on, scholars acknowledged that tools, applications, content formatting and other Internet affordances not only repackage existing research methods, adapting them to the Internet, but also suggest completely new and often innovative approaches to and methods of research (Jones, 1999;Sosnoski, 1999;Sudweeks & Simoff, 1999). Schneider and Foot (2004) suggested that the analysis of websites and their content requires new analytical tools, since increasingly complex web applications alter traditional relationships between media form and content (Schneider & Foot, 2004, p. 116). ...
This paper reports on a qualitative study of the employment of digital tools, resources and services by social researchers in the UK and has a twofold aim. First, it presents the employment of digital means of research work from the stage of designing the research through to data collection and dissemination of the research results. Second, it assesses the complexity and multiplicity of digital tools, resources and services used in research as well as the complexity and range of such usage, also providing explanations as to why researchers in different disciplines use in different ways and for different purposes digital technologies of various ranges and degrees of complexity. The paper concludes that there are certain commonalities and differences in researchers' practices with digital technologies and that such practices are largely driven by researchers' expertise combined with associated disciplinary traditions and etiquette.
... La méthode leur permet de traiter les données issues du terrain avec un outil informatique (la liste de mots les plus fréquents, le sexe des participants, etc.) laquelle, une fois associée avec une analyse d'ordre qualitatif, permet d'augmenter la compréhension du phénomène. Cet appel à la combinaison des approches quantitatives et qualitatives dans les recherches sur le web est d'ailleurs récurrent(Sudweeks et Simoff, 1999) et vise à combiner les comptabilisations, les cartographies, les graphiques avec l'analyse des relations entre les internautes, leurs représentations, le sens qu'ils donnent à leurs gestes, etc..Beaulieu (2003) présente cette évolution en deux approches : ...
BÉLANGER, Pierre C., professeur titulaire, Université d'Ottawa DEMERS, François, professeur titulaire, Université Laval (directeur) NGUYEN-DUY, Véronique, professeur agrégé, Université Laval (rapporteur) RINGOOT, Roselyne, maître de conférences, Université de Rennes 1 RUELLAN, Denis, professeur des universités, Université de Rennes 1 (directeur) TÉTU, Jean-François, professeur des universités, Université de Lyon (rapporteur)
... Ridings, Gefen, and Arinze (2002) ultimately determined how individuals desired to give and receive information through the use of electronics. The survey they developed was conceptualized from Sudweeks and Simoff (1999) model of virtual community type members. The respondents used electronic means to distribute personal and professional information to peers and superiors. ...
... The forms of dialogicity and textual intersubjectivity inherent in online interactions, the way in which the mediating technologies disrupt interaction and Sudweeks and Simoff's (1999) observation about how to define the environment in mediated situations all point to the need to develop a framework to define the environment. This is of particular relevance in discussions of learning in mediated environments, as many assumptions are made which construct the learning environment prior to its population by students, the actors, undertaking the purpose for which the environment is created. ...
... They gather together around topics that are related to their leisure activities. In combination with the two conditions of online and blended mode, practices of OLC construct a semantic map of how types of OLC can be described (Sudweeks & Simoff, 1999). Conditions, structure and design can be explored in order to understand learning in these environments. ...
People participate and learn in online communities. Through the use of the information and communication technology (ICT), participants in an Online Learning Community (OLC) collaborate on the basis of common interest to share knowledge and experiences. The aim of this article is to examine the constituents that construct an OLC as a social arena for collaborative learning. An OLC is developed by different actors, and constructed by participants through specific practices in which activities are performed with the support of communicative tools. The results of the constituents are divided into three frames; Actors, Activities and Tools. By using the three frames the constituents can be related to each other and broaden our understanding of OLC.
... Synchronous communication tools, for instance IRC, are used for task-specific communication. They mainly function as a quick help forum where users ask advanced users for help, and as a medium for socio-emotional talk (Sudweeks and Simoff, 1999). The advantage of these tools lies in overcoming geographic and time boundaries, which means you always find someone to ask at any time. ...
Open-source communities are innovative online communities, some of which have recently attracted increasing attention. The study suggests that members of innovative online communities learn and build collective knowledge through the use of 'technologies' and the establishment of discursive practices that enable virtual re- experience. Theories of knowledge creation and learning have been reviewed and a social- experiential view of learning has been applied in order to examine the reflective inquiry processes and collective learning practices. The findings demonstrate that re-experience is enabled by code, transactive group memory, instructive content and discourse, and reflective discourse. The manifestations of learning processes lead to concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation at the individual level. Collective reflection, collective conceptualization, virtual experimentation, and participative practice are initiated at the social level. Empirical evidence is based on an interpretive investigation of the K Desktop Environment (KDE) community—an open- source software project that is administered online. Key Words: experiential learning; knowledge-building; open-source
... Participating in online interviews did involve a degree of technical knowledge for participants, as well as for the researcher. Indeed, Sudweeks and Simoff (1999) pointed out, every communication channel (whether mediated by text or vocal output) requires specific knowledge about operating within that context. This includes knowledge of the typical communicative conventions, such as turn-taking and preliminary phatic conversation, as well as the technical skills needed to access and deliver information. ...
Online interviews are deemed an effective and appropriate approach for accessing discourse about the online experiences of people with disabilities. Some of the central arguments in support of conducting discursive research online, a type of qualitative approach, are delineated. Various practical benefits are considered for researchers, as well as participants-especially those with disabilities. Ethical issues surrounding access to, and the analysis of, readily available data in online communities are brought to the fore. In light of ethical dilemmas surrounding naturalistic data collection online, an alternative approach is offered, which utilizes online interviews with people with disabilities about their online experiences. A description of the data-collection process is given, including participants and recruitment, materials and procedures, rapport building, and security and ethics. Reflections on the process highlight how methodological pitfalls were managed and, in some cases, resolved.
... Coding: A random sample of 258 (20%) posts was selected for content analysis. The study used Complementary Explorative Data Analysis (CEDA) framework, which integrates qualitative and quantitative methods in content analysis of media communications (Sudweeks and Simoff, 1999). First, using a qualitative approach and preliminary "open" coding of a subset of posts, a coding scheme was developed. ...
ABSTRACT: Aims: Many websites provide a medium for individuals to freely share their experiences and knowledge about different drugs. Such user-generated content can be used as a rich data source to study emerging drug use practices and trends. The study aims to examine web-based reports of loperamide use practices among non-medical opioid users. Loperamide, a piperidine derivative, is an opioid agonist approved for the control of diarrhea symptoms. Because of its general inability to cross the blood-brain barrier, it is considered to have no abuse potential and is available without a prescription. Methods: A website that allows free discussion of illicit drugs and is accessible for public viewing was selected for analysis. Web-forum posts were retrieved using Web Crawlers and retained in an Informal Text Database. All unique user names were anonymized. The database was queried to extract posts with a mention of loperamide and relevant brand/slang terms. Over 1200 posts were identified and entered into NVivo to assist with consistent application of codes related to the reasons, dosage, and effects of loperamide use. Results: Since the first post in 2005, there was a substantial rise in discussions related to its use by non-medical opioid users, especially in 2009-2011. Loperamide was primarily discussed as a remedy to alleviate a broad range of opiate withdrawal symptoms, and was sometimes referred to as 'poor man's methadone.' Typical doses frequently ranged from 100 mg to 200 mg per day, much higher than an indicated dose of 16 mg per day. Conclusions: This study suggests that loperamide is being used extra-medically by people who are involved with the abuse of opioids to control withdrawal symptoms. There is a growing demand among people who are opioid dependent for drugs to control withdrawal symptoms, and loperamide appears to fit that role. The study also highlights the potential of the Web as a 'leading edge' data source in identifying emerging drug use practices.
... These new technologies ''are a transformative force that will challenge received knowledge, generate original empirical insights, and catalyze new theories'' (Hackett, 2011, p. 26). Researchers need to be able to adapt to new communication technologies and the norms they create within society as they begin to challenge ''existing research assumptions and premises'' (Sudweeks & Simoff, 1999, p. 30). Internet-mediated research has been spearheaded by the commercial sector of the economy, especially among market researchers. ...
This article provides an examination of a range of mixed methods research projects that employ Internet-mediated technologies (IMT) for data collection. Using a case study approach, this article allows for the uncovering of a process by which IMT are used as a data collection medium in mixed methods praxis. Under the theoretical position of medium theory, the impact of how going online and changing the “mode” of traditional research will be explored. Advantages, drawbacks, as well as ethical issues that emerge for mixed methods using the online medium are highlighted throughout the article. Finally, implications and directions for future research using IMT are discussed.
... What was important to them was how technology was understood and used in learning, and they advocated for research into the curriculum with the emphasis on learning, rather than the technology. Sudweeks and Simoff (1999) had earlier observed that most of the research in the CMC field had been carried out in experimental conditions and, therefore, might not accurately represent the reality of the situation. Windschitl (1998) commented, in relation to web-based learning, that rather than looking at increasing efficiency, we would be better to investigate the unique characteristics of the medium and focus on students and how they access information, use it and learn and describe what is happening. ...
Computed mediated conferencing (CMC) into asynchronous form, offers potential benefits for learning through its text based nature and space and time to reflect. The project investigates student approaches to teaming (deep surface) and teaming strategies, in this environment. The research is sited in a degree course where flexible teaming models are available for n campus students. The relationship between CMC and face-to-face activity in terms of student learning will be a part of the research. The project takes a student perspective, which is explored through a case study design.
... Qualitative research studies were conducted through ethnographic editing of data from virtual social spheres such as chat rooms, virtual communities and museums, and so forth (Sudweek & Simoff, 1999;Hakken, 1999). The ethnography of the studies is based primarily on analysis of texts and chats (Herring, 1996;Mitra & Cohen, 1999) or on interactive online studies as participant-observer; interviews and recording of actions in Internet communication groups such as forums and communities that supply clearer boundaries to the qualitative researcher (Sharf, 1999;Fernback, 1999;Kendall, 1999). ...
This article proposes a new methodology for qualitative research on the Internet, based on the integration of qualitative data-gathering methodologies both online and offline. This combination enables the creation of rich ethnography or, as Geertz (1973) has called it, "thick description," not limited to the Internet alone. The importance of this article lies in its contribution to a better understanding of the research potential of the Internet and its implementation in qualitative research methodologies.
... To communicate using email, the user needs to know enough of the operating system to launch the application; to compose, reply, and send a message; and to quit the application. Discussion lists often generate hundreds of messages a day, and contributing to a conversation means responding immediately before the topic shifts and the sequence is lost (Sudweeks and Simoff, 1998). ...
Since the introduction in 2000 of the Personal Guided Projects (TPEs in French) for students, which are a new educational form of learning in the French secondary school, the role of physics teachers has changed. The aim of TPEs is for students to organise a portfolio on relatively broad issues usually not taught in a traditional physics course, such as the greenhouse effect or wind energy. New teaching strategies are emerging and as a result physics teachers are adapting and developing new class skills, and new models of teaching. This paper aims to investigate the new roles that some French physics teachers are developing in class when they use ICT in their practice giving a stable theoretical background for analysing virtual communities of teachers. Our study is based on a content analysis of emails exchanged between physics teachers through two mailing lists. In our study, we consider the TPE-TICE and the PHYSCHIM mailing lists of the French Ministry of Education as a computer social network connecting teachers facing the introduction of two innovations (TPEs and ICT) in their classrooms. French physics teachers exchange and share ideas and material with their colleagues through these two lists which are then used as collaborative work tools for interaction and dialogue and as a way of sharing and discussing their new experiences. These two networks can be characterised as pedagogical networks playing a vital role in the diffusion of innovations. The content analysis of exchanged emails gives a glimpse of the way teachers are considering that their role is changing in class.
This qualitative, netnographic case study anticipates the cocreation of musical talent, a phenomenon I conceptualized as talentification. The hotspot of this investigation is the YouTube platform, on which fans and critics alike share their musical experiences and perceptions of talent related to selected Norwegian child pop stars’ performances. Cyborg theory is introduced to elucidate the entanglement of human and machine. Thus, YouTube is conceptualized as a cyborg system, and talentification is subsequently reconceptualized as cyborg talentification. Cultural cosmopolitan theory and power structures complement my theoretical framework. The empirical materials comprise YouTube comment rooms, their adjoining YouTube music videos, and YouTube interview footage starring the young celebrities. Regarding the internet as text rather than space, and based on ethical standards for online research, this investigation is solely conducted with publicly accessible material that obviated the need to seek consent. As offline experiences were found to inform my online understandings, I included a live concert visit. This autoethnographic experience proved valuable not only in pinpointing the characteristics of cyborg talentification on YouTube but also in shedding light on the online–offline binary, which was further investigated and deconstructed by cyborg subjectivity. The analysis of YouTube materials identified motivational, discursive, narrative, and cultural cosmopolitan levels in the cyborg talentification processes. In close discussion with existing scholarship on talent and adherent research, divergent views on talent and prodigiousness in commenters’, the media’s, and in child stars’ own voices were unpacked. The child stars were found to be caught between contrasting expectations of innocence, authenticity, mature extraordinariness, and originality, which, supported by YouTube’s archival functions, problematized both their present status and their transition from child pop star to adult artist. At the same time, the young celebrities’ interpretive reproduction of pop performance confirmed, but also challenged, the general proclivity of infantilization and youthification of popular culture.
Throughout, I have discussed the topic’s impact on the field of music education research. This included a consideration of YouTube as an informal learning platform and facilitator of online Bildung, and of the conceptual and practical contributions of cyborg talentification to discourses on musical talent, formal music education practices, and curricula. Furthermore, the findings gleaned from YouTube on the media industries’ view of and influence on child stars were situated in a music education research perspective.
Emergence of new media and its influence on the broadcasters value chain.
Immonen, Visa & Kinnunen, Joonas 2020. Kulttuurinen kestävyys 2010-luvun metallinilmaisinharrastuksessa. Muinaistutkija 2/2020: 2–25.
ENG: This master's thesis systematizes contemporary interdisciplinary methodological approaches to internet social platform research with an emphasis on internet public forums. Quantitative and qualitative methodologies for Web 2.0 social platform research are aggregated along with methodological and ethical challenges commonly associated with virtual community research. The dissertation takes internet platform Reddit as an example, and analyzes its development and operation from socioeconomic and technological perspectives. Reddit is a social news aggregation, web content rating and discussion platform. With over 330 million monthly active users, it is currently the 19th most visited website in the world. Reddit's unique design and functionality enable the formation of particular virtual communities which can potentially serve as valuable research objects and sites for contemporary researchers from many scientific fields and disciplines.
HR: Ovaj diplomski rad sistematizira suvremene interdisciplinarne metodološke pristupe istraživanju internetskih društvenih platformi s naglaskom na internetske javne forume. Objedinjen je pregled kvantitativne i kvalitativne metodologije za istraživanje Web 2.0 društvenih platformi te su mapirani metodološki i etički izazovi svojstveni za istraživanja virtualnih zajednica na internetu. Kao primjer je uzeta platforma Reddit čiji razvoj i funkcioniranje ovaj rad analizira iz socioekonomske i tehnološke perspektive. Reddit je internetska platforma za društveno agregiranje vijesti, rangiranje web sadržaja i raspravu, ujedno 19. najposjećenija web stranica na svijetu s preko 330 milijuna mjesečno aktivnih korisnika. Specifičan dizajn i funkcionalnost ove platforme omogućuju stvaranje jedinstvenih virtualnih zajednica koje potencijalno predstavljaju vrijedan predmet istraživanja za suvremene znanstvenike iz brojnih znanstvenih disciplina.
Fragment książki "Socjologia internetu", stanowiącej wprowadzenie do cyfrowych metod badań społecznych, zarówno ilościowych (Big Data, SNA - analiza sieci, kwestionariusze, kulturomika), jak i jakościowych (etnografia, wywiad, storytelling, narracje) i kulturowych (analiza wizualna i treści) z dodatkiem na temat etyki badawczej w badaniach internetu.
In the era of globalisation, non-Anglophone higher education institutions worldwide have begun to offer English courses with the strategic aim of generating funding and proving competitive on a global scale. Along with this, the global employment market seeks graduates who can assimilate into diverse cultural and social contexts. Institutions therefore aim to cultivate ‘global citizens’ who have the knowledge and skillset to adapt to globalised environments. However, global citizenship is a contested terrain with very little empirical basis. This research aims to provide an exploration into a non-Anglophone site – South Korea – with the aim of understanding how two institutions present the role of English, student perceptions of the role of English and how in turn the latter are conceptualising global citizenship as pertains to their identity.
The research employed two data sets – websites and individual interviews. Within the two institutions, 20 undergraduate students participated in the study. Students from one of the universities were majoring in Social Welfare while students from the other university were drawn from a range of disciplines. The epistemological agenda of the study is constructivist in nature with an approach heavily rooted in symbolic interactionism and qualitative methodologies. The websites were analysed through a mixed approach of discourse analysis and multimodal analysis. The individual interviews were analysed through thematic analysis and discourse analysis as deemed appropriate suitable.
The findings show that overall the institutions’ internationalisation agenda is rooted in English with orientations towards native English. Internationalisation as a whole is presented as something ‘non-Korean’ and usually Americanised, while native English is presented as the ideal for global citizenship. Student perceptions on the role of English were largely divided due to the amount of choice they had regarding participation in policies such as English Medium Instruction. Students also mainly perceived English proficiency in terms of native English and an aversion to Korean influenced English. As regards global citizenship identity, students conceptualised it in terms of English. This had major repercussions on how they viewed their membership of a global community and was mostly accompanied by a disregard for their own culture and the capacity to position themselves within a globalised framework. This research has ideological and practical implications for English practices and policies within internationalisation contexts such as South Korea and beyond. The findings regarding global citizenship can contribute to literature in the area and fill many conceptual gaps. It can also provide an insight into 21st century identities particularly in newly globalised environments such as South Korea.
With much silence around menstruation, certain superstitions and beliefs still prevail in Confucian East Asian cultures such as China. As a result, domestic tampon brands did not appear until 2016. This study examines the promotion posts of tampons that are new to Chinese females on We Media channels. Specifically, a content analysis was conducted on the frames used in these promotion posts composed by different types of public accounts, guided by the intersectional perspective. Besides the commonly used generic frames, the issue-specific frames reflected how public accounts symbolized the use of the product. More than half of the promotion posts focused on the health benefits of tampons, and about a quarter portrayed them as being trendy. Despite their relative small amounts, the care and independence frames were also worth further attention, considering that contemporary Chinese society is increasingly normalizing gender equality and females’ economic independence. While a spectrum of values and ideas co-exist, these posts reflect the gender equality wave of the current kaleidoscopic Chinese society.
Cette distance qui nous rassemble
« Mettre de la distance » n’a pas une connotation particulièrement positive. Elle est plutôt le signe d’une tentative d’éloignement par rapport à un évènement, une personne ou un lieu qui ne nous convient pas. Dans le cadre de la formation « à distance », cette dernière est à l’origine d’un processus particulier de la démarche d’enseignement – apprentissage lors de laquelle il va falloir tenter de réduire la fracture spatiale.
Mais cette rupture entre l’enseignant et l’apprenant n’est pas que géographique, elle peut aussi être sociale dans la mesure où les contacts entre les interlocuteurs du processus éducatif sont médiatisés d’une manière telle que toute une série d’informations destinées à leur permettre de mieux se connaître sont absentes, comme le langage non verbal, les contacts directs ou le son de la voix.
Cependant, il semble que l’obstacle que représente cet éloignement mutuel soit surmontable, que lesresponsables de formation, les enseignants et les apprenants cherchent ensemble à recréer un sentiment de présence sociale, de communauté et de confiance. Si des difficultés se présentent, elles peuvent constituer autant d’occasions pour surmonter les différences et pour favoriser une compréhension réciproque. Et, lorsque certaines incompréhensions ponctuelles persistent, celles-ci se révèlent parfois utiles à ce qu’un apprentissage se réalise par l’obligation devant laquelle il place chacun de devoir s’expliquer (à soi-même et à l’autre) en vue d’arriver à un accord.
C’est ce que nous disent les auteurs (G. Lameul & T. Kuster, M. Ciussi, J. Eneau & S. Simonian, B. Coulibaly, A. Daele, N. Deschryver, C. Papi) qui ont pris leur plume pour proposer ces articles. Ils témoignent que le sens de l’autre perdure y compris dans une relation pédagogique à distance. Ils répètent que les communautés n’ont pas seulement un sens virtuel, mais qu’elles existent réellement. Ils expliquent comment des contacts profonds peuvent se nouer entre des individus qui ne se voient pas. Ils mettent en évidence l’importance de la prise en compte du contexte social, de la réalité culturelle et du vécu individuel pour que l’apprentissage puisse prendre place.
L’être humain est ainsi fait que devant une situation défavorable son sens de l’« humanité » arrive malgré tout à prendre le dessus. Et la « distance » qui semblait devoir séparer les acteurs de l’apprentissage se révèle les rassembler… Elle devient l’occasion de contacts sociaux qui se créent et de communautés qui vivent pour pouvoir continuer à se raconter la belle histoire de la marche vers la connaissance.
Nous avons le grand plaisir de vous présenter ce numéro thématique « e-290 » intitulé « Communautés d'apprenants en ligne, apprentissage et socialisation » coordonné par Jacques Audran et Stéphane Simonian. Ils nous proposent dans ce qui suit une belle sélection de recherches et d’analyses des pratiques qui se déroulent en ligne, à distance, mais avec des contacts humains bien présents qui pourraient en étonner plus d’un. Si vous
faites partie de ceux-là, n’hésitez pas à prolonger votre surprise. Quant aux convaincus, ils trouveront de l’eau pour alimenter le moulin qui permet à la formation à distance de poursuivre sa ronde.
In their article "Toward an Empirically-generated Typology of Weblog Genres" Maciej Maryl, Krzysztof Niewiadomski, and Maciej Kidawa propose a typology of weblog genres based on empirical data, namely on the analysis of metadata and the study of blogs' content. In Study 1 they explore 287 categories used by Polish bloggers to classify their blogs. The analysis shows that most categories are topical, but some could be useful for genre analyses. In Study 2 they analyse "syntagma" combinations of 2-3 categories assigned to 88 252 blogs on one of the Polish blog platforms. Through quantitative analysis and clustering 3 main groups are identified: public sphere, private sphere, leisure-time activities. And in Study 3 the authors present an alternative take on findings conducting a qualitative, non-topical analysis of 322 Polish blogs aimed at uncovering weblog genres according to their communicative purpose. In consequence the following genres emerge: diaries, reflection, criticism, information, filter, advice, modelling, and fictionality.
In the era of globalisation, non-Anglophone higher education institutions worldwide have begun to offer English courses with the strategic aim of generating funding and proving competitive on a global scale. Along with this, the global employment market seeks graduates who can assimilate into diverse cultural and social contexts. Institutions therefore aim to cultivate ‘global citizens’ who have the knowledge and skillset to adapt to globalised environments. However, global citizenship is a contested terrain with very little empirical basis. This research aims to provide an exploration into a non-Anglophone site – South Korea – with the aim of understanding how two institutions present the role of English, student perceptions of the role of English and how in turn the latter are conceptualising global citizenship as pertains to their identity.
The research employed two data sets – websites and individual interviews. Within the two institutions, 20 undergraduate students participated in the study. Students from one of the universities were majoring in Social Welfare while students from the other university were drawn from a range of disciplines. The epistemological agenda of the study is constructivist in nature with an approach heavily rooted in symbolic interactionism and qualitative methodologies. The websites were analysed through a mixed approach of discourse analysis and multimodal analysis. The individual interviews were analysed through thematic analysis and discourse analysis as deemed appropriate suitable.
The findings show that overall the institutions’ internationalisation agenda is rooted in English with orientations towards native English. Internationalisation native English and an aversion to Korean influenced English. As regards global citizenship identity, students conceptualised it in terms of English. This had major repercussions on how they viewed their membership of a global community and was mostly accompanied by a disregard for their own culture as a whole is presented as something ‘non-Korean’ and usually Americanised, while native English is presented as the ideal for global citizenship. Student perceptions on the role of English were largely divided due to the amount of choice they had regarding participation in policies such as English Medium Instruction. Students also mainly perceived English proficiency in terms of and the capacity to position themselves within a globalised framework. This research has ideological and practical implications for English practices and policies within internationalisation contexts such as South Korea and beyond. The findings regarding global citizenship can contribute to literature in the area and fill many conceptual gaps. It can also provide an insight into 21st century identities particularly in newly globalised environments such as South Korea.
This study considers the attraction of company online communities, taking the perspective of relationship marketing. The purpose of the study is to identify and analyse the attraction of different company online communities. To achieve this purpose three questions are answered. The first question considers the classification of company online communities. The second question explores the types of relationships in company online communities while the third one identifies attraction factors in those relationships.
The exploratory and qualitative case study approach enabled to use an abductive logic in which different processes are intertwined with each other. The empirical data was gathered in four case company online communities with multiple methods including both traditional methods such as interviews and online research methods such as posing questions in discussion forums. To be able to find a wide variety of attraction factors, the cases represent different types of online communities aimed for women and families, teenagers, banks customers and software developers.
The study suggests that company online community members may establish different kind and levels of relationships. These relationships may be formed between members, between a member and a maintainer, between a member and a service as well as between a member and a brand. Altogether 16 attraction factors were found in these relationships. As a supplement to the attraction relationships and the attraction factors, attraction was divided into two types: self-related or social related. To obtain a deeper insight into this phenomenon, the differences between the maintainers and the members views on the attraction factors were compared, and finally two models of attraction offerings were constructed based on the type of attraction and the origin of attraction.
The present study contributes to marketing theories by modeling the attraction of company online communities. The study also offers valuable knowledge for companies in building, maintaining and utilising their own online communities. As studies on relationship marketing with company online communities are still rather non-existing, this study opens several future research avenues.
As Lee (2013) points out in Facebook Nation, we live in an age of “total information awareness.” With Google Street View, MySpace, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, WikiLeaks, and recent revelations by Eric Snowden regarding the extent of the NSA’s surveillance activities, it may seem whimsical to talk about privacy rights, informed consent, and other ethical concerns when it comes to conducting research in cyberspace. Nevertheless, the debate concerning ethics in cyber research continues unabated, as it affects most social researchers whose activities are governed by institutional research ethics boards and by the standards of their professional associations (Graber and Graber 2013; McKee and Porter 2009).
Widening participation has opened higher education (HE) to diverse learners, but in doing so has created challenges negotiating situations of disadvantaged positioning compared with peers conforming more closely to the ideal ‘bachelor boy’ student. As one of the most financially vulnerable groups of students, lone parents occupy a doubly precarious position negotiating the challenges, including financial constraints, of both university participation and raising children alone. Their experiences of HE participation are particularly important to understand as increasing financial precariousness of both studentship and lone parenthood squeezes them further through concurrent rising university fees and welfare cuts. This paper draws on insights from longitudinal qualitative research with 77 lone mothers in England to explore the negotiation of social and economic risks and rewards involved in their undertaking of a debt-financed higher education.
Since the introduction of chat technology there has been resistance within education to fully engage with it partly due to policy making that has left teachers disempowered (UCLAN 2002:66). Unlike other innovative technologies, its use has been limited. Pastoral support has developed significantly in education but in some instances, like chat rooms, has been viewed with scepticism. One reason for this scepticism may be that a clear measurable link between support and achievement is not easily proven. However, there is widespread acceptance that academic success is not the only measure of intelligence (Gardner 2006) and that supporting and understanding how young people communicate with each other and feel supported is an important research area for development.
This research uses exploratory case study to consider the introduction of a bounded bespoke chat system into a sixth-form college. A range of sources are considered including semi-participant observation, chat transcripts and observational diaries. It is shown that the introduction of such a system can be managed effectively and be useful for students. The research reveals there are critical drivers for its successful introduction. The first relates to the role of the moderator, including perceptions about them and their impact on rules and boundaries for behaviour. The study shows that finding moderators with the appropriate level of skill is challenging. It also shows that students access support online in different ways compared to offline and that the use of topics can influence their behaviour. Anonymity, gender, the use of „text speak‟ and participant consciousness all affect communication. Future research is proposed into the specific impact of the gender of the moderator on chat usage, the impact of an individual institutional culture on the willingness of learners to use chat, attitudes of stakeholders towards chat and the purpose of "lurking" in bounded environments.
The Internet has tremendously increased communication possibilities among people by enabling them to stay in touch via networks with other people in many different ways. It also opens new possibilities for creating and belonging to online communities, which enable people to communicate regardless of their geographical location or time of the day. This development also offers both academic and practical researchers a possibility to electronically study communication and actors' behaviour in online communities. However, the computer-mediated research needs specific and carefully designed instruments that not only accommodate but exploit the features of the electronic environment to attract respondents. The Internet and online communities provide various data collecting methods including questionnaires, interviews, observational techniques and using experimental methodology (Hewson et al 2003). In addition to these traditional research methods, Internet offers new possibilities of acquiring data, both documentary and personal. The purpose of the paper at hand is to report an exploratory research case conducted in online communities. In two cases, we placed an open question in the discussion forum while in one case a questionnaire with the same question in addition to some background questions was linked to a company's newsletter. The advantages of collecting the data online compared to offline were adaptability, easiness and cost-and time-efficiency. The perceived disadvantages we could mention were the low response rate and the uneven quality of the answers. However, the method is still new and offers many possibilities in future.
The present book aims to introduce a selection of research applications in the area of Web Intelligence. We have selected a number of researchers around the world, all of which are experts in their respective research areas. Each chapter focuses on a specific topic in the field of Web Intelligence. Furthermore the book consists of a number of innovative proposals which will contribute to the development of web science and technology for the long-term future, rendering this collective work a valuable piece of knowledge. It was a great honour to have collaborated with this team of very talented experts. We also wish to express our gratitude to those who reviewed this book offering their constructive feedbacks.
This article examines the challenges of deploying ethnography to study the fluid and dispersed processes of ICT use in journalism practice. It draws on the author’s ethnographic field experience in Zimbabwean mainstream newsrooms. The article specifically focuses on the practicalities of deploying ethnography to study the fluid and diffuse processes of ICT use in the ‘real-world’ of journalism practice with the high ethnographic standard of firsthand experience. It closely examines how these challenges shaped and constrained the author’s fieldwork and attempts to highlight the strategies employed to manage them. In doing so, the article shows that there is more to gain from ones’ ‘insider-status’ and sustained intuitive and creative inclinations when researching in politically charged and unpredictable contexts such as Zimbabwean newsrooms. The discussion thus offers insight for practically negotiating methodological dilemmas likely to be faced by researchers who may find themselves in similar circumstances.
Participation in online support and counseling constitutes an essential but often overlooked second step in the Lodder–Zeleznikow (Harv Negot Law Rev 10:287–337, 2005, Enhanced dispute resolution through the use of information technology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2010) model of online dispute resolution; dialogue techniques. This paper highlights the potential role that online support and counseling can play in avoiding extreme family conflict and potential hazardous litigation. The research centers on a case study organization, Relationships Australia Victoria, who provide counseling and support services and who are moving toward online service delivery. It analyzes this case and contrasts it with relevant international cases to identify key considerations and approaches for those developing, enhancing and evaluating online support and counseling sites in the future. The goal of this research is to assist Relationships Australia Victoria to construct online support and counseling services for isolated men, who have lost day-to day contact with their children and have diminished social networks, so that they might enhance the quality of life of both their children and themselves. The lessons learned in this research are relevant for the wider use of online support and counseling services by separating parents.
Most of the studies in the recent literature focus on the method used but not the philosophy behind it. This article focuses on doing ethnography, from within a constructivist paradigm, to explore individuals’ participation in virtual communities in Saudi Arabia. An aim of this article is to highlight how particular ethnographic techniques, viz unobtrusive observation and participation, were used in that study. The article argues that doing ethnography in this way allowed for placing the results within the social and cultural context of Saudi society. The article, which includes a sample of the findings from the two techniques involved for illustration, concludes that the one-year unobtrusive observation and the eight months’ participation in two different but similar virtual communities, during the period 2001-2002, have produced findings that are deep, meaningful and rich in description.
ResearchGate has not been able to resolve any references for this publication.