scholarly journals Trolls Without Borders: A Cross-Cultural Examination of Victim Reactions to Verbal and Silent Aggression Online

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Linda Cook ◽  
Juliette Schaafsma ◽  
Marjolijn L. Antheunis ◽  
Suleman Shahid ◽  
Jih-Hsuan Tammy Lin ◽  
...  

Trolling—the online exploitation of website, chat, or game mechanics at another user's expense—can and does take place all over cyberspace. It can take myriad forms, as well—some verbal, like trash-talking an opponent in a game, and some silent, like refusing to include a new player in a team effort during an in-game quest. However, despite this variety, there are few to no studies comparing the effects of these differing trolling types on victims. In addition, no study has yet taken into account users' offline cultural context and norms into the trolling victim experience. To fill this gap in the literature, the present study put participants from three culturally-distinct countries—Pakistan, Taiwan, and the Netherlands—in a simulated trolling interaction using the Cyberball game. Participants were either flamed (read: harshly insulted) or ostracized by a member of their own cultural group (ingroup) or a minority member (outgroup), and the participants' emotional responses, behavioral intentions toward the other players, and messages sent during the game were taken as indicators of their response to the trolling. Results showed that our Taiwanese sample used the most reactive aggression when trolled and our Dutch sample was the most passive. In addition, ostracism generally produced the desire to repair relationships, irrespective of cultural context, and perpetrator culture (ingroup or outgroup) only produced an effect in the behavioral intentions of our Pakistani sample. Overall, it would appear that online and offline culture interact to produce the variety of responses to trolling seen in extant literature. Additional implications for future research into computer-mediated communication and online aggression are also discussed.

Author(s):  
Adrian Meier ◽  
Emese Domahidi ◽  
Elisabeth Günther

The relationship between computer-mediated communication (e.g., Internet or social media use) and mental health has been a long-standing issue of debate. Various disciplines (e.g., communication, psychology, sociology, medicine) investigate computer-mediated communication in relation to a great variety of negative (i.e., psychopathology) and positive (i.e., well-being) markers of mental health. We aim at charting this vast, highly fragmented, and fast growing literature by means of a scoping review. Using methods of computational content analysis in conjunction with qualitative analyses, we map 20 years of research based on 1,780 study abstracts retrieved through a systematic database search. Results reveal the most common topics investigated in the field, as well as its disciplinary boundaries. Our review further highlights emerging trends in the literature and points to unique implications for how future research should address the various relationships between computer-mediated communication and mental health.


2012 ◽  
pp. 1088-1095
Author(s):  
Kumi Ishii ◽  
Brittany R. Black

With the diffusion of networked technology in our society, online communication has become an integral part of daily life, and conflict no longer occurs only in face-to-face (FtF) contexts. Many people experience cyber conflict (i.e., a perceived incompatibility of goals among two or more cyber parties over computer-mediated communication (CMC) or online communication) and manages it online. While research in this significant and emerged topic is scattered across contexts and disciplines, this chapter provides preliminary knowledge by discussing the antecedents and outcomes of cyber conflict as well as factors that affect cyber conflict management. The chapter also offers future research directions.


2009 ◽  
pp. 1617-1629
Author(s):  
Veronica M. Godshalk

E-mentoring, also known as online mentoring or virtual mentoring, is changing the way that traditional mentor and protégé dyad members interact with each other. Mentoring has been widely known for its ability to enhance the career development, and to provide psychosocial support, for more junior organizational members. Through the use of computer-mediated communication technology, e-mentoring may allow individuals to bridge geographic and time differences. However, there is still much we do not know about e-mentoring and its social effects. This chapter focuses on whether or not computer-mediated communication (CMC) technology will allow for true mentoring relationships to develop, as well as what personal characteristics may be necessary to grow these virtual relationships. A model and proposition for future research are offered.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Othman Ismail ◽  
Adlin Nadhirah binti Mohd Roslan ◽  
Malissa Maria Mahmud

This research proffers a critical overview of the theoretical and analytical occurrence of code-switching by reviewing a range of empirical and relevant studies. In particular, the dominating and governing factor of computer-mediated communication and code-switching. This research also probes the pertinent concepts, focusing on the types of code-switching and its correlation with computer mediated communication. Subsequently, it reviews the structural features of WhatsApp, deliberating the occurrence of code-switching among UiTM undergraduates in Malaysia, noting the social motivation of style-shifting. The research concludes with recommendations for future research, emphasising on the issue of its applicability to the analysis of second language acquisition and learning. <p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0950/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>


2020 ◽  
pp. 009365022095822
Author(s):  
Adrian Meier ◽  
Leonard Reinecke

Computer-mediated communication (CMC), and specifically social media, may affect the mental health (MH) and well-being of its users, for better or worse. Research on this topic has accumulated rapidly, accompanied by controversial public debate and numerous systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Yet, a higher-level integration of the multiple disparate conceptual and operational approaches to CMC and MH and individual review findings is desperately needed. To this end, we first develop two organizing frameworks that systematize conceptual and operational approaches to CMC and MH. Based on these frameworks, we integrate the literature through a meta-review of 34 reviews and a content analysis of 594 publications. Meta-analytic evidence, overall, suggests a small negative association between social media use and MH. However, effects are complex and depend on the CMC and MH indicators investigated. Based on our conceptual review and the evidence synthesis, we devise an agenda for future research in this interdisciplinary field.


2021 ◽  
Vol PCP2020 (1) ◽  
pp. 128
Author(s):  
Hayato Tokutake ◽  
James York ◽  
Hiroshi Nakayama

Synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC) is a topic of great interest in CALL literature where research has investigated the effectiveness of SCMC compared to traditional face-to-face instruction. However, there are few studies that investigate the intrinsic differences in SCMC modes, particular in terms of their effect on oral communication. At the JALTCALL 2019 conference, we introduced research which assessed the anxiety-reducing affordances of VR. This year we presented results of a follow-up study which focused on the effect of SCMC modality on learners’ speaking performance. 30 participants (15 pairs) completed a spot-the-difference task within three different SCMC modes: voice, video, and virtual reality (VR). Using the complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) model, participants’ oral task performances were analysed. Results suggest that the voice mode promoted the highest structural complexity, however, the VR mode promoted the highest lexical complexity. Findings therefore suggest that different modes of communication may be used to focus on different skill development. Additionally, practitioners should consider how modality affects learner anxiety and choose the most appropriate system for their students and needs. This paper introduces the VR system, a detailed analysis of results, pedagogical implications, and future research directions for the use of VR in language teaching contexts.


Author(s):  
Kimiz Dalkir

Computer-mediated communication has become the foremost means of sharing knowledge in today’s knowledge-based economy. However, not all Internet-based knowledge-sharing channels are created equal: they differ in their effectiveness when used for exchanging knowledge. A number of factors influence the efficacies of knowledge exchange, including: (1) characteristics of the knowledge being exchanged and, (2) characteristics of the channels used. It is therefore necessary to define key knowledge and channel attributes in order to understand how knowledge can be effectively shared using computers. This chapter examines the computer-mediated knowledge sharing mechanisms and proposes a typology based on media richness and social presence characteristics that can serve as a preliminary conceptual basis to select the most appropriate channel. The chapter concludes with a discussion of key issues and future research directions. While much of the research has been done in organizational settings, the chapter is applicable to all forms of computer-mediated communication.


2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erhan Aslan

Abstract This study investigates the impact of power/distance (PD) variables operationalized as face systems on the pragmalinguistic features of academic e-mail requests. A corpus of 90 academic e-mails was classified into four face system groups: hierarchical (sender +P), hierarchical (recipient +P), deference, and solidarity. Request perspectives, strategies, and mitigating supportive moves were analyzed. The analysis revealed that the speaker and hearer dominance were the most frequent request perspectives in the hierarchical (recipient+P) and deference groups. The impersonal perspective was more common in the hierarchical (sender+P) group. The preparatory was the dominant request strategy in all groups, relatively more frequent in the hierarchical (recipient+P) and deference groups. The most common supportive move was the grounder, which occurred more frequently than other supportive moves. The findings of the study indicate that face systems influence the request patterns in academic e-mail communication. The study has implications for future research on pragmatics of computer-mediated communication (CMC).


ReCALL ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 257-275 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gang Zeng

AbstractPrevious research has documented that collaborative dialogue promotes L2 learning in both face-to-face (F2F) and synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC) modalities. However, relatively little research has explored modality effects on collaborative dialogue. Thus, motivated by sociocultual theory, this study examines how F2F compares with SCMC regarding the generation of collaborative dialogue specifically in terms of its frequency and nature. Thirty-two Chinese English as a foreign language (EFL) students participated in this study and completed two types of collaborative tasks (i.e. dictogloss and jigsaw) in dyads in both modalities. The analyses of learners’ exchanges focused on language-related episodes (LREs), the instantiation of collaborative dialogue. The identified LREs were categorized based on their focus, outcome and type. A follow-up questionnaire was conducted to elicit students’ perspectives. The results revealed that LREs were more frequent in SCMC than in F2F. Furthermore, the analyses of the nature of LREs indicated some cross-modality differences: whereas SCMC LREs had the features of orthographical, correct and self-correction outcomes, F2F LREs were characterized by incorrect and request for assistance outcomes. Pedagogical implications and suggestions for the future research were also discussed.


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