scholarly journals Psychopaths Online: The Linguistic Traces of Psychopathy in Email, Text Messaging and Facebook

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 83-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey T Hancock ◽  
Michael Woodworth ◽  
Rachel Boochever
Keyword(s):  
Text Messaging ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Online Media ◽  
Linguistic Patterns ◽  
Media Types ◽  
Linguistic Dimension ◽  
Callous Affect ◽  
Psychopathic Tendencies

Individuals high in psychopathy are interpersonally manipulative, exhibit callous affect, and have criminal tendencies. The present study examines whether these attributes of psychopathy are correlated with linguistic patterns present in everyday online communication. Participants’ emails, SMS messages, and Facebook messages were collected and analyzed in relation to their scores on the Self-Report Psychopathy Test III. The findings suggest that psychopathic tendencies leave a trace in online discourse, and that different forms of online media sometimes moderate the association between a linguistic dimension and psychopathy scores. Consistent with previous studies and the emotional and interpersonal deficits central to psychopathy, participants higher in psychopathy showed more evidence of psychological distancing, wrote less comprehensible discourse, and produced more interpersonally hostile language. The results reveal that linguistic traces of psychopathy can be detected in online communication, and that those with higher traits of psychopathy fail to modify their language use across media types.

scholarly journals On Frogs, Monkeys, and Execution Memes: Exploring the Humor-Hate Nexus at the Intersection of Neo-Nazi and Alt-Right Movements in Sweden

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 147-165
Author(s):  
Tina Askanius
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Online Media ◽  
Extreme Right ◽  
Visual Content ◽  
Visual Aesthetics ◽  
Resistance Movement ◽  
Media Practices

This article is based on a case study of the online media practices of the militant neo-Nazi organization the Nordic Resistance Movement, currently the biggest and most active extreme-right actor in Scandinavia. I trace a recent turn to humor, irony, and ambiguity in their online communication and the increasing adaptation of stylistic strategies and visual aesthetics of the Alt-Right inspired by online communities such as 4chan, 8chan, Reddit, and Imgur. Drawing on a visual content analysis of memes ( N = 634) created and circulated by the organization, the analysis explores the place of humor, irony, and ambiguity across these cultural expressions of neo-Nazism and how ideas, symbols, and layers of meaning travel back and forth between neo-Nazi and Alt-right groups within Sweden today.

Initial Specification and Empirical Test of Media Enjoyment Theory

2017 ◽  
Vol 47 (8) ◽  
pp. 1246-1271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Hardman Taylor ◽  
Andrew M. Ledbetter ◽  
Joseph P. Mazer
Keyword(s):  
Social Influence ◽  
Text Messaging ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Empirical Test ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Communication Competence ◽  
Mediating Effect ◽  
Phone Calls ◽  
Low Levels ◽  
Media Enjoyment

Building upon online communication attitude research, this article explains why people use certain media in their social relationships by offering an initial formulation and test of media enjoyment theory (MET). We investigated whether medium enjoyment mediated the effects of social influence and communication competence on media use. We proposed that perceived miscommunication would moderate the mediating effect of medium enjoyment. Results were consistent with MET across voice phone calls, email, text messaging, and Facebook. The results indicate an indirect effect of social influence and communication competence on media use through the mediator of medium enjoyment. The pattern of mediation was strongest when participants held low levels of perceived miscommunication. These results suggest that people are most likely to use media when they perceive high levels of enjoyment from medium and low levels of perceived miscommunication. Theoretical implications highlight how MET can be developed in multimodal and dyadic contexts.

scholarly journals A TALE OF TWO TWITTERS? IDENTIFYING BRIDGES BETWEEN LANGUAGE BASED TWITTERSPHERES

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felix Victor Münch ◽  
Luca Rossi
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Forest Fire ◽  
Forced Migration ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Online Media ◽  
Public Spheres ◽  
Preliminary Results ◽  
Global Space

Global political developments – such as Brexit, climate change, or forced migration – are entangled with communication that transcends national publics. Meanwhile, the EU’s integrity suffers, also due to polarised online discourses, which are sometimes actively manipulated. Therefore, an overview of online communication beyond language barriers is essential. However, whether and how online media create a global space that sustains deliberation of national and global interests by citizens, remains understudied. We approach this problem by exploring relations between the Italian and German Twittersphere, while asking: 1) What is the macrostructure of this bilingual network? 2) Are there bridges between these language communities in the form of single accounts and how can they be described? 3) Are there bridges in the form of groups and what are they tweeting about? We build on an innovative network crawling strategy for language-based Twitter follow networks. We developed it further to combine strengths of rank degree, snowball, and forest fire sampling. Thereby, we collect a network sample of the most central accounts in the Italian-German Twittersphere. Preliminary results suggest a bridging quality of soccer and connections between political clusters of both languages by EU politicians. Furthermore, larger network clusters connect mainly with one linguistic domain while smaller communities show a bridging behaviour. The final paper will present results of months of data collection, focusing on the relation between topics discussed within clusters and their connectivity. While it focuses on the German-Italian Twittersphere, our methods open up new avenues of enquiry regarding multi-language public spheres.

Lexical priming in humorous satirical newspaper headlines

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 583-602 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Skalicky
Keyword(s):  
Language Use ◽  
American English ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Linguistic Features ◽  
Lexical Priming ◽  
Corpus Linguistic ◽  
Linguistic Patterns ◽  
Linguistic Methods ◽  
Pragmatic Knowledge ◽  
Do So

Abstract Satire is a type of discourse commonly employed to mock or criticize a satirical target, typically resulting in humor. Current understandings of satire place strong emphasis on the role that background and pragmatic knowledge play during satire recognition. However, there may also be specific linguistic cues that signal a satirical intent. Researchers using corpus linguistic methods, specifically Lexical Priming, have demonstrated that other types of creative language use, such as irony, puns, and verbal jokes, purposefully deviate from expected language patterns (e.g. collocations). The purpose of this study is to investigate whether humorous satirical headlines also subvert typical linguistic patterns using the theory of Lexical Priming. In order to do so, a corpus of newspaper headlines taken from the satirical American newspaper The Onion are analyzed and compared to a generalized corpus of American English. Results of this analysis suggest satirical headlines exploit linguistic expectations through the use of low-frequency collocations and semantic preferences, but also contain higher discourse and genre level deviations that cannot be captured in the surface level linguistic features of the headlines.

Linguistic Diversity in India’s Polity and Economy

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Selma K. Sonntag
Keyword(s):  
Language Use ◽  
Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Economic Liberalization ◽  
Democratic Politics ◽  
Market Forces ◽  
Electoral Participation ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Linguistic Dimension ◽  
Regional Languages

This chapter examines the linguistic dimension of the tension between India’s democratic politics and its liberalized economy. I argue that there is a divergence between languages used in the polity and languages used in the economy. In the polity, characterized by a semblance of empowerment through the electoral participation of the weaker sections of society, vernacular languages predominate. In contrast, the language of the economy in India, particularly since economic liberalization in 1991, tends to be English. It is in the economy that India’s class and caste chasm manifests itself linguistically: between the English-speaking elite and the vernacular-speaking masses. While the noted Indian economist, Deepak Nayyar, warns of an impending clash between the democratically empowered masses and the economically privileged elite, I suggest that in terms of language use India’s robust democracy may well trump market forces. And while linguists have warned that English as the language of the globalized marketplace can have dire consequences for linguistic diversity, I argue that India’s linguistic diversity, at least in terms of its major regional languages, remains impressive. In the case of India, I conclude, the spread of the language of globalization, English, as the language of the economy, is mediated by the languages used in India’s vibrant democracy.

Socio-Economic Processes, User Generated Content, and Media Pluralism

2018 ◽  
pp. 7270-7280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Androniki Kavoura
Keyword(s):  
New Media ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Close Relation ◽  
Media Content ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
Media Pluralism ◽  
Media Types ◽  
Streaming Services

Media pluralism that is associated with the presentation of different points of view and ideas in media content, consists of a recurrent issue of discussion because it is in close relation with the socio-economic, technological and political environment within which media operate. Major developments take place with the worldwide economic instability that exists but also with the advancement of new technologies and social media that enhance online communication. This paper aims (a) to present media pluralism's components and (b) to describe the reciprocal role between media pluralism's dimensions and communication technologies, socio-economic and political processes that take place. These processes are based on the technological advancements of new media platforms such as online video platforms and streaming services as media types for online media content. In doing so, this chapter adds to the literature by illustrating the role of the abovementioned processes on media pluralism. Media pluralism is under continuous negotiation. Current real-world scenarios are discussed.

scholarly journals The effects of text, audio, video, and in-person communication on bonding between friends

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren E. Sherman ◽  
Minas Michikyan ◽  
Patricia M. Greenfield
Keyword(s):  
Emerging Adults ◽  
Digital Communication ◽  
Instant Messaging ◽  
Emotional Experience ◽  
Computer Mediated Communication ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Mediated Communication ◽  
Video Chat ◽  
Digital Environments

Considerable research on computer-mediated communication has examined online communication between strangers, but little is known about the emotional experience of connectedness between friends in digital environments. However, adolescents and emerging adults use digital communication primarily to communicate with existing friends rather than to make new connections. We compared feelings of emotional connectedness as they occurred in person and through digital communication among pairs of close friends in emerging adulthood. Fifty-eight young women, recruited in pairs of close friends, engaged in four conversations each: in-person, video chat, audio chat, and instant messaging (IM). Bonding in each condition was measured through both self-report and affiliation cues (i.e., nonverbal behaviors associated with the emotional experience of bonding). Participants reported feeling connected in all conditions. However, bonding, as measured by both self-report and affiliation cues, differed significantly across conditions, with the greatest bonding during in-person interaction, followed by video chat, audio chat, and IM in that order. Compared with other participants, those who used video chat more frequently reported greater bonding with friends through video chat in our study. Compared with other participants, those who spoke on the phone more frequently with their participating friend reported greater bonding during audio chat. Use of textual affiliation cues like emoticons, typed laughter, and excessive letter capitalization during IM related to increased bonding experience during IM. Nonetheless, a significantly lower level of bonding was experienced in IM compared with in-person communication. Because adolescent and emerging adults’ digital communication is primarily text-based, this finding has significant real-world implications.

From Drag Queens to Leathermen

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rusty Barrett
Keyword(s):  
Religious Identity ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Sacred Music ◽  
Gender And Sexuality ◽  
Gendered Identity ◽  
Gay Male ◽  
Linguistic Patterns ◽  
Risk Takers ◽  
Identity Category ◽  
Drag Queens

This book analyzes gendered forms of language use in several different gay male subcultures. The subcultures considered include drag queens, radical faeries, bears, circuit boys, barebackers, and leathermen. The chapters include ethnographic-based studies of language use in each of these subcultures, giving special attention to the ways in which linguistic patterns index forms of masculinity and femininity. In each case, speakers combine linguistic forms in ways that challenge normative assumptions about gender and sexuality. In an extension of prior work, Barrett discusses the intersections of race, gender, and social class in performances by African American drag queens in the 1990s. An analysis of sacred music among radical faeries considers the ways in which expressions of gender are embedded in a broader neo-pagan religious identity. The formation of bear as an identity category (for heavyset and hairy men) in the late 1980s involve the appropriation of linguistic stereotypes of rural Southern masculinity. Among regular attendees of circuit parties (similar to raves), language serves to differentiate gay and straight forms of masculinity. In the early 2000s, barebackers (gay men who eschew condoms) used language to position themselves as rational risk takers with a natural innate desire for semen. For participants in the International Mr. Leather contest, a disciplined, militaristic masculinity links expressions of patriotism with BDSM sexual practice. In all of these groups, the construction of gendered identity involves combining linguistic forms that would usually not co-occur. These unexpected combinations serve as the foundation for the emergence of unique subcultural expressions of gay male identity.

scholarly journals Characterizing the social diversity of bilingualism using language entropy

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 283-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason W. Gullifer ◽  
Debra Titone
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Social Diversity ◽  
Language Experience ◽  
Language History ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
The Social ◽  
And Control

AbstractBilingual and multilingual individuals exhibit variation in everyday language experience. Studies on bilingualism account for individual differences with measures such as L2 age of acquisition, exposure, or language proficiency, but recent theoretical perspectives posit that the relative balance between the two or more languages throughout daily life (i.e., interactional context) is a crucial determinant for language representation, access, and control. We propose an innovative measure to characterize this construct by using entropy to estimate the social diversity of language use. Language entropy is computed from commonly-collected language history data and generalizes to multilingual communicative contexts. We show how language entropy relates to other indices of bilingual experience and that it predicts self-report L2 outcome measures over and above classic measures of language experience. Thus, we proffer language entropy as a means to characterize individual differences in bilingual (and multilingual) language experience related to the social diversity of language use.

scholarly journals Characterizing the social diversity of bilingualism using language entropy

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Gullifer ◽  
Debra Titone
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Social Diversity ◽  
Language Experience ◽  
Language History ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
The Social ◽  
And Control

Bilingual and multilingual individuals exhibit variation in everyday language experience. Studies on bilingualism account for individual differences with measures such as L2 age of acquisition, exposure, or language proficiency, but recent theoretical perspectives posit that the relative balance between the two or more languages throughout daily life (i.e., INTERACTIONAL CONTEXT) is a crucial determinant for language representation, access, and control. We propose an innovative measure to characterize this construct by using ENTROPY to estimate the social diversity of language use. Language entropy is computed from commonly-collected language history data and generalizes to multilingual communicative contexts. We show how language entropy relates to other indices of bilingual experience and that it predicts self-report L2 outcome measures over and above classic measures of language experience. Thus, we proffer language entropy as a means to characterize individual differences in bilingual (and multilingual) language experience related to the social diversity of language use.

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