Supplementing a survey with respondent Twitter data to measure e-cigarette information exposure

ABSTRACT

Social media data are increasingly used by researchers to gain insights on individuals’ behaviors and opinions. Platforms like Twitter provide access to individuals’ postings, networks of friends and followers, and the content to which they are exposed. This article presents the methods and results of an exploratory study to supplement survey data with respondents’ Twitter postings, networks of Twitter friends and followers, and information to which they were exposed about e-cigarettes. Twitter use is important to consider in e-cigarette research and other topics influenced by online information sharing and exposure. Further, Twitter metadata provide direct measures of user’s friends and followers as opposed to survey self-reports. We find that Twitter metadata provide similar information to survey questions on Twitter network size without inducing recall error or other measurement issues. Using sentiment coding and machine learning methods, we find Twitter can elucidate on topics difficult to measure via surveys such as online expressed opinions and network composition. We present and discuss models predicting whether respondents’ tweet positively about e-cigarettes using survey and Twitter data, finding the combined data to provide broader measures than either source alone.     

Investigating Differences in How the News Media Views Homosexuality Across Nations: An Analysis of the United States,South Africa,and Uganda

While there is a wealth of information about the extent to which people across the world disapprove of homosexuality, we know a lot less about the lenses through which they view same‐sex relations. The aim of this study is to understand better how homosexuality is framed in the public press, and how religion and economic development may combine to shape this discourse. Through an analysis of almost 400 newspaper articles, this study compares how homosexuality is framed in Uganda, South Africa, and the United States. Because these nations have high levels of religious belief, but differ in their level of economic development and democracy, we can assess how these factors interact to shape portrayals. Drawing on work from cultural sociology and the sociology of religion, this study shows that the United States is much more likely than Uganda to frame homosexuality as a civil rights issue and use entertainers as claimsmakers. Conversely, articles from Uganda are more likely than those from the United States or South Africa to frame homosexuality as a religious issue and draw on religious claimsmakers. Likewise, Uganda is much more likely than South Africa to discuss homosexuality in the context of Western influences.     

Social media engagement with organization-generated content: Role of visuals in enhancing public engagement with organizations on Facebook and Instagram

The ubiquity of social media platforms that increasingly foreground visuals over text has led to a rise in organization-generated visual content. This study addresses an underexamined question about this phenomenon: which characteristics of organization-generated visual content are associated with higher levels of public engagement in social media? Engagement is conceptualized as indicators of first level engagement such as likes and comments that represent affiliation with and support for the organization. Employing a visual social semiotic framework, a randomly selected sample of visuals posted on Instagram and Facebook by four leading airport brands in 2019 (N = 400) was coded for representational, interactive, and compositional meanings. Findings revealed that across platforms narrativity of images, and interactive features of distance and point of view enhanced engagement, while the compositional feature of framing increased engagement on Instagram. Implications of the findings for effective organization-generated visual content on social media are discussed.     

Deny or bolster? A comparative study of crisis communication strategies between Trump and Cuomo in COVID-19

This study applied the situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) in political crisis communication amidst the COVID-19 outbreak, a “sticky crisis” that is longitudinal and politicized, thereby involving multiple challenges and complexities. Considering the critical role of Twitter in the information transmissions during the ongoing pandemic, this study considered politicians’ tweets as a proxy to access their crisis communication strategies and conducted a systematic content analysis to critically evaluate COVID-19 crisis communication strategies of two politicians, Trump and Cuomo, according to their perceived day-to-day circumstances during COVID-19. Three strategies categorized by SCCT, deny, diminish, and bolstering, surfaced with significance for both Trump and Cuomo. A new strategy specific to the political context, cohesion, was also identified. In addition, significant differentiation was observed in the strategic narratives between Trump and Cuomo, which reveals the evolving political dynamics in disease representation and crisis messaging. For example, Trump emphasized social exclusion and accusations of Democrats whilst Cuomo stressed care for vulnerable and minority groups and compassion delivery. Moreover, deny strategy, especially accusing other races, significantly boosted audience engagement for Trump. The results are discussed in relation to the idiosyncrasy of the complex COVID-19 pandemic and crisis communication in the political realm. Our findings demonstrate practical implications including online crisis messaging recommendations that foster public trust during politicized and polarized health emergencies and cultivate grounds for information exchange beyond partisan barriers.     

"单位型社区"居民政治参与的微观机制——对Z社区的个案研究

政治活动的本质是一种公共选择,个人在参与政治活动时以个人利益的最大化为目的,以成本-收益分析为根据。对Z社区居民政治参与的研究发现:实际参与率低、参与人群结构不合理的制度根源在于单位的资源垄断和居委会的行政化。激励居民政治参与的关键举措是彻底解构单位制,使社区真正成为社区公共事务的法人主体;以社区为选区,遴选人大代表或政府官员;转变政府职能,发育公共空间,使社区居委会真正成为居民利益的代言人。     

不对等的博弈:土改中的基层政治精英

本文以山东、河北等省的土改运动为例,探讨了群众运动中基层政治精英的独特处境和行为特征.土改期间,基层政治精英并未完全成为国家的忠实代理人,而是在社会人、理性人的角色指引下与国家权力进行博弈,以维护村社利益或追逐个人私利.另一方面,乡村民众的介入改变了国家与基层精英的力量对比和博弈格局,致使基层精英既内在于又外在于国家权力体系,处于明显的权责分离状态,这又进一步强化了他们谋求私利和"去政治化"的离心倾向.     

创造性人才的动力系统分析与构建

创造性人才的动力系统由心理素质和思想素质共同构成 ,为个体进行创造活动提供强大精神动力。需要是创造动机的源泉 ,理想和信念是动机圈的核心。高校思想政治工作要发挥自身优势 ,通过满足大学生的合理需要 ,调动其积极因素 ;引导大学生将个人需要与社会发展需要紧密结合起来 ,追求高层次需要 ;进行理想信念教育 ,帮助大学生树立强烈的社会责任感和强大的精神支柱。高校思想政治教育要通过构建动力系统 ,在创造性人才培养工作中发挥重要作用。     

社会转型期我国政治参与的两重性及执政党的应对策略

社会转型期,我国公民的政治参与呈现出两重性特征,执政党必须正确引导,积极促使公民的政治参与逐渐向主动化、制度化、组织化和决策参与化等方向发展,这是民主政治发展的必然要求,也是增强执政党合法性的重要维度。     

论我国转型期的政治参与与政治稳定

政治参与与政治稳定密切相关 ,政治参与既可以带来政治稳定 ,又可以带来政治不稳定。在我国现代化转型期 ,政治参与中影响政治稳定的问题日益突出。我们只有顺应时代发展的潮流 ,改革、完善政治参与机制 ,多角度地影响日益增长的政治参与心理 ,才能创设稳定安宁的政治环境 ,保证我国现代化发展进程的稳步有序。     

高校思想政治工作使命：人的全面发展

实现人的全面发展是马克思主义的基本观点，是高校人才培养的目标。以实现人的全面发展的思想政治工作必须坚持正确的方向，着眼于提高学生综合素质，并努力营造人才成长的良好环境。