Is Network Structure Important for Protest Mobilization? Findings from Agent-Based Modeling

In recent decades, the focus of civic engagement research has shifted towards studying social environments’ effects on individuals’ decisions on whether to participate in a given activity or not. Online communication has been increasingly influencing the scale of social environments as well as the features of both online and offline interpersonal communications. Surely, then, individuals’ decisions concerning protest mobilization are bound to be affected by network properties. Using a series of ABM models with different network structures, we try to identify the structural factors of networks that can influence individuals who are deciding whether to join a protest. The established research in this field traditionally points to two structural factors: network topology and homophily. To our knowledge, however, the literature has not considered two above-mentioned structural factors in combination. In other words, their joint influence on protest mobilization has not been tested. To fill this research gap, we combine several network topologies with enabled/disabled homophily and examine how the combination influences protest turnout and survival. Numerical experiments show that homophily is positively associated with the survival of the protest, but negatively with its size for any network topology. Since we infer this conclusion from a theory-based computational model, we also propose how empirical testing can be conducted. Acknowledgments: This research is supported by the Russian Science Foundation under grant no. 20-18-00274, HSE University.

Dialogic Basis of the Categories of “Openness” and “Tolerance” to the “Other” in Modern Political Discourse – Martin Buber and Gabriel Marcel

The article analyzes the dialogical nature of the concepts of “tolerance”, “freedom”, “openness”. The interpretation of the dialogical relationship and the appearance of “Other” in it as opposed to “I” through the prism of the concepts of M. Buber and G. Marcel are analyzed. The impact of philosophers of dialogue on the formation of the modern meaning of the concepts “tolerance”, “other”, “openness” is substantiated. The dialogical methodology of interpersonal communications as one of the options for political interaction is considered. The relation “I-You” and the relation “I-It” as principles of construction of mass communication and interpersonal interaction are investigated. The rise in understanding the “Other” in the context of the type of interaction with it is illustrated. The need for mutual openness to enable tolerance is established. Tolerance is seen as the mutual acceptance of two equal freedoms without a dichotomous division into primary and secondary. On the example of dialogic concepts of M. Buber and G. Marcel, the types of dialogical interaction with the “Other” and the possible interpretation of the “Other”, including its typology, are demonstrated. The influence of dialogic interpretation of intersubjective connection on the formation of modern European values is determined.

Corporate culture and etiquette.

The topic of etiquette is given the main place in diplomacy and in the formation of corporate culture, interpersonal communications. We are talking about verbal and nonverbal ways, etiquette of business communication. This paper presents the research results and experience of practicing scientists, conclusions on diplomacy, corporate culture, the art of effective communication. Despite global changes in the communications system, etiquette remains a key component of the universal communication culture. The authors emphasize the relevance of the topic of the article, focus on a set of knowledge and rules developed historically, and offer the author's vision of compliance with etiquette for the effectiveness of negotiators at all levels. It has been concluded that the realities of today, globalization and other social factors dictate new conditions for the development of diplomacy and new market demands. Etiquette standards in the conditions of society transformation acquire the status of an effective tool in business and political communications. Unstable political and economic situations have a negative impact on building a positive state image, but it is instability that motivates scientists, educators and professionals to act and find effective ways to form an image, in such conditions, cultural diplomacy gains strength and weight in society. These processes contribute to changes in established standards of diplomacy, the evolution of the industry and the system of social communications Own author's research, practical experience, comparison of opinions and conclusions of fellow researchers, authoritative scientists-practitioners, published in scientific works, all this allows to predict possible ways and prospects of influence of the newest forms of communications, transformation of etiquette norms and standards, their influence on state image creation. in real time and in the short term, as external factors significantly affect the methods of working on the image and new etiquette, in particular introduced during quarantine.

Professionals’ interpersonal communications style: does it matter in building client psychological comfort?

Purpose The inherent characteristics of professional services (i.e. high in credence properties, customized and featuring information asymmetry) often cause difficulties for clients to confidently evaluate technical outcomes before, during or even after service delivery. This results in considerable client psychological discomfort. This study aims to blend a revised social interaction model and uncertainty reduction theory to investigate the role that service provider’s interpersonal communication style plays in establishing client psychological comfort and satisfaction in a health-care context. Design/methodology/approach The study draws on cross-sectional data collected from 355 hospital patients following visiting a physician plus an experimental design in an Eastern culture (Thailand). Findings The study reveals three key findings. First, an affiliative communication style is positively associated with psychological comfort, but not so a dominant communications style. When both styles are presented, the high-affiliative style overshadows the low-dominant style and creates the highest psychological comfort. Second, clients’ perceptions of professional’s affiliative and dominant styles influence psychological comfort differentially under varying conditions of clients’ cognitive social capital, collectivist value-orientation but not service criticality. Third, a competing model suggests psychological comfort acts as a partial mediator between affiliative communication style and satisfaction. Research limitations/implications To generalize the findings, further studies might be conducted in other professional services and in individualist Western cultures. Practical implications The findings have important managerial implications for the appropriate use of communication style to build psychological comfort and engage clients of professional services firms. Social implications The findings shed light on the important role of an everyday social function – interpersonal communications and how this impacts client psychological comfort and satisfaction. Originality/value This is one of the few studies in a services context that examines the impact of professionals’ communications style. Moreover, it examines the impact of cultural value-orientation, cognitive social capital, service criticality in moderating the communications style – client psychological comfort relationship.

NEED-MOTIVATIONAL COMPONENT OF COMMUNICATIVE ACTIVITIES OF MEDICAL STUDENTS OF VSMU

Objectives. To study the need-motivational component of the communicative activities of medical students of VSMU and to analyze the dynamics and gender differences in the indices of levels of need and motivational orientation in communication. Material and methods.We examined 527 students of the medical faculty, there were 386 second-year students (117 boys and 269 girls); 141 sixth-year students (28 boys and 113 girls) from all of them. The study of the need for communication was carried out using the methodology of Yu.M. Orlov «The need for communication». To study motivational orientation in communication, we used the methodology «Diagnostics of motivational orientations in interpersonal communications» (I.D.Ladanov, V.A.Urazaeva). Results.The students demonstrated the dominance of the average level of the need for communication and motivational orientations in communication, which is considered to be optimal. The dynamics of the indices of the levels of the need for communication is considered as conditionally positive, and the levels of motivational orientation - as positive. The revealed patterns are most typical of young men. Conclusions.The patterns of the need for communication and communicative orientations (including their dynamics) identified by us can be explained by the quality of the humanities education of students, as well as the influence of the information and educational environment of VSMU on the personal growth of students of the medical faculty, on the formation of their communicative competence.

WhatsApp: Communication between Parents and Kindergarten Teachers in the Digital Era

The technological revolution has filtered into the field of education and among other things, affects communication between parents and teachers in schools and in kindergartens. A digital method for interpersonal communications enables the immediate transfer of messages to a large number of recipients, which is efficient and ensures transparency of actions and policies. The WhatsApp application is now widely used in correspondence between parents and schools, including in kindergartens. The research investigated how kindergarten teachers in Israel use the social media "WhatsApp" in communication with their parents. Using a quantitative research approach, a specially designed questionnaire was distributed online as a Google.docs document to 161 kindergarten teachers in the North of Israel. The kindergarten teachers reported that they were open to change and willing to adopt new technologies that can help them in their work. However, it appears that the main adoption and use of the WhatsApp tool is for the transmission of information or kindergarten experiences to the parents. The kindergarten teachers felt that the WhatsApp application was advantageous due to its easy accessibility and speed of communication and testified to more sharing and involvement of the parents in the kindergarten activities and work. Nevertheless, several questions led to concerns about the mutual availability of the information that is transmitted, the type of information, and the extent of need for the use of this tool in the present era.

Social Network Communication: Emojis and EFL learners’ Writing Issues

This study aims to find out the impacts of using emojis by EFL learners on their writing skills and highlight the learners’ attitudes towards this new communication phenomenon. It discusses the different uses of emojis in social media apps, investigates the reasons for the rise of using emojis in everyday social interaction, and to which extent the occurrence of this pictographic script can substitute the written language. A qualitative and quantitative analysis has been applied in this investigation where a survey-based questionnaire was distributed among 143 EFL learners in Taibah University in Saudi Arabia. Descriptive statistics and ANOVA (analysis of variables) are used to analyze the obtained data. The results show that the p-value of the study variables is equal to one which is much bigger than alpha and there is no big difference between the variables’ estimation in the participants’ responses, i.e. the emojis’ use in texting affects the use of the language. Moreover, the findings display that the use of emojis and short forms (contractions and acronyms) in text messages form a real threat to the standard and non-standard languages. The outcomes of this study make it clear this new sort of communication may replace mainly languages where social media users found that emojis best represent their feelings and thoughts. This research concluded that the use of emojis has an important role in interpersonal communications, however, standard writing skills would be negatively affected using these newly emerged communication tools. The consequences of these impacts are aptly evidenced in the form of spelling, structural errors, and weakness of expressions in EFL learners’ language learning.

EMPIRICAL STUDIES OF MILITARY STUDENTS’ TOLERANCE TO STRESS IN OVERCOMING CRISIS, CONFLICTS, FRUSTRATIONS AND STRESSES

The article reveals military students’ psychological characteristics manifested at overcoming stresses, conflicts, frustrations and crises during vocational training. Young years is the most interesting and difficult period in a person’s life. An individual’s identification in society is formed at this age. An appearing mature personality determines life goals, values, gender orientation. Incomplete identification is characteristic for people with internal conflicts, which worsen interpersonal communications, contribute to frustration, aggravates an experienced crisis and make searches for meanings more intensive. Interconnections between a crisis, a conflict, a meaning and a stress have not yet been investigated in psychology to the full degree. The article studies the qualities that should be developed in youth in order to have high tolerance to stress in overcoming obstacles, crises, stresses and noogenic neuroses (lack of meaning). The article purpose: to study second-year military students’ tolerance to stress when they overcome stresses, frustrations, crises or conflicts. The article objective: to study empirically correlations among young men’ gender identity, their tolerance to stress and the peculiarities of their defence mechanisms, used strategies for conflict overcoming, readiness to overcome frustration and life-meaning crises. The applied methods and techniques: theoretical analysis; systems approach; Psychological Stress Measure (PSM-25) (Lemyre-Tiesser-Fillion); Life Style Index (R. Plutchik, H. Kellerman and H. Conte); L.B.Shneider's method of gender identity studying; K. V. Karpinsky’s questionnaire on life-meaning crises; Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument; Stevan Hobfoll’s questionnaire on coping with stressful situations; Boyko-Vasserman questionnaire on social frustration; correlation analysis. Research results. Military students’ tolerance to stress contributes to their “adaptation” (0.35) to educational and professional conditions. The reasons for “meaningful crisis” (-0.55), “frustration” (-0.5), “conflict avoidance” (-0.37) are unsuccessful strategies used by military students for stress overcoming. “Life-meaning crisis” (0.39) and “frustration” (0.39) encourage military students to “avoid conflicts”, thus “assertiveness” (self-confidence) and (-0.43) “support” (-0 , 29) decrease, students “leave” conflicts (0.60), resort to “manipulations” (0.39). “Rivalry” in a conflict encourages military students to “antisocial actions” (0.34). The “caution” strategy is used by military students who are inclined to “cooperation” (0.33). The “contact” strategy is opposed to the “compromise” strategy (-0.28) in a conflict. Conclusions. The signs of formed identity for military students are self-acceptance, existing life goals, values, and the absence of internal conflicts, and also the developed ability to overcome stresses, conflicts, frustrations, crises. All critical situations are interconnected. A crisis and a frustration are the most similar. To overcome them, military students need to be taught such technique as “support” and to develop “assertiveness” (self-confidence).

INFORMATION GLOBALIZATION AS A NEW BASIS OF THE INTERNATIONAL ECONOMY. OBJECTIVES OF RUSSIA'S ECONOMIC POLICY

The modern information space is characterized by the active and rapid formation of the network principle of interpersonal communications, which significantly changes the foundations of the communication process. Today, new technologies for creating information products are being actively developed. Information technology and innovation are becoming the main products of the post-industrial economy. Currently, the mechanism of trade transactions with those types of intangible goods is being fundamentally changed, people have the opportunity to choose sources of information, the number of channels is growing, etc. That ultimately leads to increased information openness of the world. The development of the Internet leads to an increase in interpersonal communications, and that, in turn, changes the public structure of society. The article attempts to analyse the understanding of the current changes that the information globalization entails.