Defence strategies in an online community of caregivers

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marianna Lya Zummo
Keyword(s):  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Group Solidarity ◽  
Stereotype Content ◽  
Defence Strategy ◽  
Defence Strategies ◽  
Discursive Constructions ◽  
Online Group

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand caregivers’ discursive constructions and responses to their unwanted (family and social) role as resulting in exchanges on social media. Online group platforms are understood as particularly suitable for the expression of intimate feelings among adults, for meeting and exhibiting stigma issues, and for the circulation of information and support (Suler, 2004; McCormack, 2010; Pounds et al., 2018). Design/methodology/approach This paper draws from digital Conversation Analysis (Giles et al., 2015), and considers data after combining quantitative (corpus analysis) and qualitative methods, from a critical discourse analysis perspective. The Stereotype Content Model (SCM; Fiske et al., 2002) is used together with collocation analysis to understand categorisations, which ultimately result in a defence strategy (Assimakopoulos et al., 2017) to negotiate the Self and the Others (Tannen, 1992). Findings Considering that the digital environment allows a discursive negotiation of identities, data suggest that these interactions are expressions of membership construction, group solidarity and empowerment, that normalise and legitimise emotions with the ultimate goal of (self-)acceptance. Originality/value This study provides a basis for further research on caregivers’ self-positioning in power-relations with others.

Curvilinear effects of e-loyalty in China’s online tourism industry

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xueyan Yang ◽  
Xiaoni Zhang ◽  
Samuel Goh ◽  
Chad Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Virtual World ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Virtual Community ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Consumer Loyalty ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Travel Industry ◽  
Online Travel

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand e-loyalty in the travel industry. Specifically, this paper aims to examine the curvilinear relationship between predictors and e-loyalty. Design/methodology/approach An empirical study was conducted using an online survey with one of the largest travel companies in China. Structural equation modeling was used to test the models, and pair-wise nested F-tests were used to compare the models. Findings Results show that the curvilinear model has greater explanatory power of loyalty than traditional linear models. The results of pair-wise nested F-tests show that the loyalty model exhibits statistically significant R2 improvement compared to the linear model. However, the R2 improvement in the integrated model is not statistically different from that in the linear model. Confirmation and satisfaction are found to be salient factors influencing loyalty. Research limitations/implications This study makes important contributions to the online community literature by understanding the drivers of loyalty in the travel industry. However, there are limitations. First, this study addressed member loyalty of an online travel community with data collected from one company. Thus, generalizability is limited. Online communities and firms may have different characteristics, resulting in different factors influencing consumer loyalty. The authors plan in the future to collect data from other online travel companies and examine their model with different samples so as to check the generalizability of the current findings. Second, the authors collected a snapshot view on loyalty. Both researchers and managers note that small changes in loyalty and retention can yield disproportionately large changes in profitability (Reichheld et al., 2000). Consumer loyalty may change over time, so to maintain and increase profits, it is important to monitor such change. In the future, the authors plan to conduct a longitudinal study of community members to evaluate their loyalty over time. Practical implications As China seeks to gain additional market share in the global tourism market, travel companies should make use of websites as a marketing tool to attract and retain customers. These actions enable a travel company to enhance its competitiveness. More and more people use the internet for tour deals, bookings and finding tour-related information. Effective use of websites can affect the competitiveness of ecommerce companies. E-vendors could assess and adopt the dimensions recommended in this paper to help better understand areas for improvement. It is common today for consumers to buy travel products online instead of going through a travel agent. Considering the importance of reciprocity in formulating consumer satisfaction and loyalty in the virtual environment, companies should monitor reciprocal behavior on the virtual community. With advancement in technologies, consumer behaviors have changed and more consumers prefer social interactions in the virtual world. Companies can analyze posts in the virtual environment to assess reciprocity and may design a mechanism to foster reciprocal behaviors. By leveraging reciprocity, firms can better connect satisfaction with loyalty. More than 70 per cent of executives surveyed by McKinsey (2012) said that they regularly generate value through their Web communities. In addition, to pay attention to consumer to consumer reciprocity in the virtual world, companies should listen to what customers say in their online community, as this attention is an indication of reciprocity between consumers and companies. The ideas and opinions expressed in the online community tell the company customers’ perception of the value of its products and customers’ needs. Such attention to the voices in the online community will help companies to better tailor products/services to meet customers’ needs. Furthermore, the voices expressed in the virtual community are also effective in developing and maintaining new internet marketing opportunities such as email marketing, giveaways, search engine optimization, pay per click and shopping comparison marketing. Companies interested in retaining and attracting customers should leverage their established virtual communities and pay close attention to online posts and evaluate members’ satisfaction. Such effort will provide tangible benefits. As shown in Ye et al.’s study, traveler reviews produce a significant impact on online sales (Ye et al., 2011), with a 10 per cent increase in traveler review ratings, boosting online bookings by more than 5 per cent. This finding suggests that businesses should link online user-generated reviews to business performance in tourism. Finding incentives for users to share might be one way to improve interactivity and further create stickiness on the part of the website. Originality/value This paper is one of the first studies to address the need to move beyond linear models of e-loyalty and to additionally examine potential curvilinear and interactive effects. This study also identifies key variables such as reciprocity and satisfaction as determinants of e-loyalty in the Chinese online travel and tourism industry.

The importance of social media on holiday visitors’ choices – the case of Athens, Greece

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 360-374 ◽  
Author(s):  
Androniki Kavoura ◽  
Aikaterini Stavrianeas
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Geographical Differences ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Community Belonging ◽  
And Gender

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine visitors’ perceptions and relevant importance of social media when choosing a Mediterranean destination and also to explore the extent in which they believe it is important for them to belong to an online community with shared characteristics among its members. Design/methodology/approach – A stratified, based on nationality and gender, sample of 301 respondents of foreign arrivals of visitors in the Athens airport, Greece was collected in June and July 2014 based on the official Athens Airport Authorities Arrival Research. This is a partially exploratory research. Findings – Differences between age groups as far as the importance attributed to social media as sources of information about a tourism destination were found. The respondents, when using the internet for gathering information about a tourism Mediterranean destination, consider different online channels. Facebook is among the most important sources of information for them associated with the tourism destinations. Official web sites/blogs of the destination are the first source and photo sharing sites are the second most preferred source; sharing aesthetics of photos was found to contribute to the feeling of belonging to an on line travel community. Research limitations/implications – Further research will contribute to the development of greater understanding of the strategic approaches to social media and their use to promote a destination. Greek diaspora would be interesting to examine and geographical differences among groups. Practical implications – The paper denotes the importance for destination management organizations and companies, to fully employ the social media in their marketing efforts. Originality/value – The present study increases our understanding of the adoption of online and traditional communications in the visitor’s process for Athens, Greece, shedding light to the literature existing on the significance attributed to the online travel community belonging from visitors through sharing aesthetics of photos and associations of ideas based on age differences.

Gender, formal organizational status and humor use: perceptions of social acceptance

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy R. Moake ◽  
Christopher Robert
Keyword(s):  
Social Acceptance ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Role Expectations ◽  
High Status ◽  
Organizational Status ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Gender Influence ◽  
Aggressive Humor ◽  
Influence Perceptions ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeHumor can be a useful tool in the workplace, but it remains unclear whether humor used by men versus women is perceived similarly due to social role expectations. This paper explored whether female humorists have less social latitude in their use of aggressive and affiliative humor in the workplace. This paper also examined how formal organizational status and the target's gender can impact audience perceptions.Design/methodology/approachTwo scenario-based studies were conducted where participants rated the foolishness of the humorist. For Study 1, participants responded to a scenario with an aggressive, humorous comment. For Study 2, participants responded to a scenario with an affiliative, humorous comment.FindingsResults suggested that high-status female humorists who used aggressive humor with low-status women were viewed as less foolish than low-status female humorists who used aggressive humor with low-status women. Conversely, status did not impact perceptions of male humorists who used aggressive humor with low-status women. Results also indicated that high-status women who used affiliative humor were viewed as less foolish when their humor was directed toward low-status men versus low-status women. Conversely, no differences existed for high-status men who used affiliative humor with low-status men and women.Practical implicationsNarrower social role expectations for women suggest that interpersonal humor can be a riskier strategy for women.Originality/valueThis study suggests that women have less social latitude in their use of humor at work, and that organizational status and target gender influence perceptions of female humorists.

Who is a “Senior”? Looking for a definition in the healthcare system

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica Consolandi
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Healthcare System ◽  
Health Care System ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Core ◽  
Starting Point

Purpose Seniors are nowadays at the core of important reflections to understand both how to ensure them a proper quality of life and better recognize their social role, providing them services and proper health care to value them as persons and resources. This paper aims to find a through definition about who is a senior, in the author’s opinion the starting point to help them flourishing. Design/methodology/approach As an example of definitions, an online dictionary and two geriatric text-books are quoted, highlighting qualities and rights referred to seniors especially in the delicate context of the health-care system. Findings The lack of a commonly shared perspective on this delicate kind of patient entails the difficulty to reach a coherent and satisfying definition about who a senior is. Originality/value The lack of a commonly shared definition leads to inevitable misunderstandings and could explain the arduousness of considering seniors in all their aspects. Further investigations are suggested.

Understanding a shifting methodology

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (11) ◽  
pp. 3423-3441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A. Whalen
Keyword(s):  
Best Practices ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Virtual Communities ◽  
Tourism Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Analysis Techniques ◽  
Hospitality And Tourism ◽  
Qualitative Methodologies ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeWhile netnography was established to study virtual communities from the traditional ethnography methodology, over time it has evolved and moved away from standard ethnographic practices. The modifications are especially prevalent in hospitality and tourism research because of the nature of experiential and service-based goods. This gap has created exciting new opportunities for researchers. As netnography has matured into its own methodology, it has provided the opportunity for researchers to use netnography techniques or more traditional techniques by following ethnography methodologies. This paper aims to analyze the differences between these two methodologies within hospitality and tourism literature enabling researchers to choose the methodology that is most suited for their project.Design/methodology/approachThis study reviews netnographic research in hospitality and tourism and compares current uses of netnography against traditional ethnographic methodologies.FindingsThere are four major differentiating points between netnography and ethnography: online community definitions, data collection methodologies, ethics in research and data analysis techniques.Practical implicationsIn comparing ethnography and netnography in hospitality and tourism research, this analysis provides a foundation to evaluate the best use and best practices for these two distinct qualitative methodologies in the field. The study also provides references to how other hospitality and tourism researchers have used netnography.Originality/valueEthnographic principles grounded in the foundation of anthropological doctrines are important and distinct from netnography. The ability to use the diverse tools in the qualitative methods toolbox will help hospitality and tourism researchers understand the transforming marketplace.

Implicit occupational gender stereotypes: a research among Turkish university students

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cigdem Basfirinci ◽  
Zuhal Cilingir Uk ◽  
Sernur Karaoglu ◽  
Kadriye Onbas
Keyword(s):  
Information Processing ◽  
University Students ◽  
Gender Stereotypes ◽  
Role Theory ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hypothetical Scenario ◽  
Turkish University Students ◽  
Occupational Gender

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to reveal implicit occupational gender stereotypes for 12 different occupations in Turkey.Design/methodology/approachUsing a sample of 954 Turkish university students, this study aimed to explore which jobs are implicitly perceived to be masculine and which jobs are implicitly perceived to be feminine. The role of the respondents’ sex, the place where they grew up (metropolitan or rural) and the information level about the occupation (job title or job description) on occupational gender stereotypes were also tested. Gender stereotypes were assessed using a hypothetical scenario method, which provides an opportunity to reveal implicit information processing. Chi Square andt-test were used in hypothesis testing.FindingsConsistent with the circumscription and compromise and the social role theory, as expected, the findings of the current study provided additional support about occupational gender stereotypes showing that job titles are strongly effective vehicles to communicate gender stereotypes for Turkish university students.Originality/valueUsing implicit measures of information processing and offering findings from a completely different cultural background (Turkey) constitutes the original contribution of this work.

“Sharia on a Plate?” A critical discourse analysis of halal food in two Norwegian newspapers

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 331-353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Thomas ◽  
Amina Selimovic
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Fundamental Aspect ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Online Newspapers ◽  
Halal Food ◽  
The Media

Purpose – This study aims to explore how two Norwegian national online newspapers, Dagbladet and Aftenposten, have framed halal food in the past 6 years (2008-2014), a period conflating with a rise in Muslim demographics in Norway. Design/methodology/approach – A mixed-methods approach is used. Employing among others a Hallidayan transitivity analysis and other approaches from critical discourse analysis (CDA), clausal semantic structures, collocations and nominalizations were explored with a view toward fleshing out ideological significance. Particular attention was given to the neologism – “covert-Islamization” – popularized by the populist right-wing Progress Party. Findings – The findings reveal that Dagbladet refracts halal food through a discourse of crime and other dubious frames tapping into topoi of Islamophobia. Halal is, in this manner, transformed into a synecdoche for deviance. This is contrasted with Aftenposten’s more “halal-friendly” gaze which inter alia is attributed to greater access for Muslim contributors (over 40 per cent), with nearly all authorship penned in the aftermath of the Breivik massacre of July 22, 2011. Research limitations/implications – As a comparative research that explores two newspapers – albeit with substantial national circulation – there are obvious limitations. Future research could explore the contents of Verdens Gang, the biggest newspaper in Norway, and perhaps incorporate iconic semiotic content. Social implications – The prevalent media discourse on halal in Norway casts a shadow over a fundamental aspect of the identity construction of Norwegians who adhere to Islam, thus highlighting issues of belonging and citizenry in the “new” Norway. National discourses of identity and belonging impact upon the Muslim consumer’s perception of self and ethnicity, and how these perceptions are negotiated in the interstices of a skewed media coverage of halal certainly serves to undermine this self-perception. Originality/value – Several recent studies have broached the subject of the manifold representations of Muslims and Islam in the media using a CDA, but there is a dearth in studies with a specific focus on halal food. This study contributes to the lacuna in the literature in an area of growing importance, not just as a socio-political and religious phenomenon, but a lucrative commercial project in a Scandinavian context.

Liberal articulations of the ‘Enlightenment’ in the Greek public sphere

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 195-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yiannis Mylonas
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Public Sphere ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Discourse Theory ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Greek Crisis ◽  
The Enlightenment ◽  
Crisis Discourse ◽  
Neoliberal Restructuring ◽  
Discursive Constructions

Abstract This study presents a scrutiny of ‘liberal’ discursive constructions of the ‘Enlightenment’ in the Greek public sphere. The study is based on the analysis of articles published in two news/lifestyle websites, ‘AthensVoice’ and ‘Protagon’, during the (ongoing), so-called, ‘Greek crisis’. Discourse theory, informed by critical discourse analysis, is deployed to analyze these discursive constructions. The analysis shows that Greece’s economic/social/political problems are constructed as symptoms that underline Greece’s fundamental deficit, which is the country’s alleged ‘lack of ‘Enlightenment’, as perceived by ‘liberal’ voices in Greece and elsewhere. The article concludes that such discourses are part of a biopolitical, disciplinary framework producing the object to be reformed by austerity: an ‘un-Enlightened’ ‘Greek character’, ‘guilty’ for ‘self-inflicting’ Greece’s crisis. This ‘reform of character’ envisioned by liberals in Greece and elsewhere, is supposed to emerge through the institutional advance of neoliberal restructuring processes that include austerity reforms, privatizations, and loss of labor and civic rights, conditions to foster the neoliberal, entrepreneurial, mobile and austere subject, to potentially meet the socio-political requirements of late capitalist growth.

Immaterial labour, public librarians, and third-generation public libraries

2016 ◽  
Vol 117 (3/4) ◽  
pp. 186-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siobhan A Stevenson
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Future ◽  
Public Librarians ◽  
Policy Arena ◽  
Blind Spots

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to draw attention to one specific upper-level government policy document in which a discourse of perpetual innovation and customer service is promoted, and the kinds of questions such discursive interventions raise for the future of work in public libraries; and second, to demonstrate the explanatory potential of the concept of immaterial labour for questions relating to emerging labour processes in libraries. The concepts of “prosumer” and Web 2.0 are included as discursive resources of relevance to any discussion of immaterial labour. Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents a critical discourse analysis of a public policy visioning document for public libraries in Ontario, Canada, with reflections on related literatures. Findings – The concept of immaterial labour provides an additional analytic tool suitable for questions of relevance to public librarians and library scholars. Within the government text under review which deals specifically with the future of the public library to 2020, the identity of the public librarian is alarmingly absent. Conversely, the library patron as a producer and consumer is privileged. Research limitations/implications – Failure to attend to the broader policy arena within which the public library resides creates dangerous blind spots for public library professionals, educators and researchers. Practical implications – This paper demonstrates the value of a discourse analysis for uncovering the ideological dimensions of policy documents, while simultaneously modelling the method using the kind of policy text commonly produced in governments around the world. Social implications – This paper shows how failure to attend to the broader policy arena within which the public library resides creates dangerous blind spots for the public library community. Originality/value – This paper contextualizes the immaterial and volunteer labour of the public library user as producer/consumer in the context of the future of the frontline professional and waged librarian.

scholarly journals Building brand loyalty in e-commerce of fashion lingerie

2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier A. Sanchez Torres ◽  
Francisco-Javier Arroyo-Cañada
Keyword(s):  
Product Quality ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Virtual Community ◽  
Brand Strategy ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Fashion Industry ◽  
Quality Factors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Customer Perceptions ◽  
Electronic Shopping

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to know if the loyalty of online purchasing is determined by the final perceptions of product quality and brand reputation in the online community of lingerie customers. Design/methodology/approach The authors used an exploratory model which aspects in previous studies have evaluated satisfaction, loyalty and trust in electronic shopping, in order to examine whether the customer’s perception of the quality and innovation of the final product sold through e-commerce and reputation in the examined was made “Virtual Community” are key factors in creating loyalty. The sample was obtained from a lingerie company which sells its products in Europe in the website leonisa.com, the data were analysed with the software SmartPLS, validating the proposed relationships between customer perceptions on the purchased product and loyalty to the brand. Findings The results demonstrate theoretical conceptions regarding product characteristics (Quality, Innovation and Satisfaction), and constructs brand (Virtual Community, Reputation and Trust). Research limitations/implications This paper presents a case study for a specific brand as exploratory research in the lingerie industry, this must be validated with this type of product for other companies. Practical implications This research has elements of support for management, companies will turn attention to the satisfaction of consumers and to maintain goods levels of reputation in the virtual community. Social implications This research shows a real case of the correct implementation of brand strategy, detailing how customers are valued and therefore provides valuable information for customers and companies. Originality/value This exploratory study provides a new analysis of product quality factors that were not directly related to the loyalty of electronic purchasing, also, it allows the fashion industry to have elements of support for management and quality control, and that hypotheses relating to the product quality and loyalty in the electronic shopping is confirmed.

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