MIA

Since online discussion platforms can limit the perception of social cues, effective collaboration over videochat requires additional attention to conversational skills. However, self-affirmation and defensive bias theories indicate that feedback may appear confrontational, especially when users are not motivated to incorporate them. We develop a feedback chatbot that employs Motivational Interviewing (MI), a directive counseling method that encourages commitment to behavior change, with the end goal of improving the user's conversational skills. We conduct a within-subject study with 21 participants in 8 teams to evaluate our MI-agent 'MIA' and a non-MI-agent 'Roboto'. After interacting with an agent, participants are tasked with conversing over videochat to evaluate candidate résumés for a job circular. Our quantitative evaluation shows that the MI-agent effectively motivates users, improves their conversational skills, and is likable. Through a qualitative lens, we present the strategies and the cautions needed to fulfill individual and team goals during group discussions. Our findings reveal the potential of the MI technique to improve collaboration and provide examples of conversational tactics important for optimal discussion outcomes.

Roles of Academic Writers in a Department: Benefits, Structures, and Funding

Background and Objectives: Despite the prevalence of published opinions about the use of professional academic writers to help disseminate the results of clinical research, particularly opinions about the use of ghost writers, very little information has been published on the possible roles for professional writers within academic medical departments or the mechanisms by which these departments can hire and compensate such writers. To begin addressing this lack of information, the Association of Departments of Family Medicine hosted an online discussion and a subsequent webinar in which we obtained input from three departments of family medicine in the United States regarding their use of academic writers. This discussion revealed three basic models by which academic writers have benefitted these departments: (1) grant writing support, (2) research and academic support for clinical faculty, and (3) departmental communication support. Drawing on specific examples from these institutions, the purpose of this paper is to describe the key support activities, advantages, disadvantages, and funding opportunities for each model for other departments to consider and adapt.

A design-based study for development a model for a successful online discussion forum

Due to the current situation of lock-down and social distancing, many educational institutions have shifted to online learning. This study aims to identify the key factors that should be present for successful online discussion and explores the advantages of merging two activities, e-mentoring and online discussion, to improve the quality of the online discussion. A mixed methods design-based was conducted in the setting of the online program in health professions education. Several success factors were identified by the current study: merging of mentorship and online discussion, shifting of roles, structuring of the discussion, assessment, and the use of guides. The study also magnified the role of supervision as moderation and mentorship and suggested solutions to deal with silent participants. Finally, the use of a student guide and shifting of roles between the students play a crucial role in the success of the ODFs.

A Methodological Study on Online Discussion Forum

The Online Discussion Forum system can be used for any sort of discussion. It is a web-based application. The goal of this system is to allow users to connect with each other online and to provide new users with discussion services. It enables users to sign up for our website. A registered user can create new posts and respond to existing ones. The current study uses two primary concepts to support the system at two distinct ends termed the front end and the back end to completely automate the Online Discussion Forum, removing all of the constraints of the manually managed Online Discussion Forum. The front end will be Visual Studio 2010 / ASP.NET, and the back end will be SQL SERVER 8. Other tools utilized in this research are Ajax Toolkit and Jquery. A more accurate system is created in the present study to reduce the manual efforts to achieve easy access to the required information.

Active pro-vaccine and anti-vaccine groups: Their group identities and attitudes toward science

Vaccine rejection is a problem severely impacting the global society, especially considering the COVID-19 outbreak. The need to understand the psychological mechanisms underlying the active involvement of the pro-vaccine and anti-vaccine movements is therefore very important both from a theoretical and practical perspective. This paper investigates the group identities of people with positive and negative attitudes towards vaccination, and their attitudes toward general science. A targeted sample study of 192 pro-vaccine and 156 anti-vaccine group members showed that the group identity of pro-vaccine individuals is higher than of anti-vaccine individuals. and that both pro-vaccine and anti-vaccine individuals had a positive attitude toward science. Results are discussed in context of the heterogeneity of motivations causing vaccine rejection and the relation between active involvement in online discussion and group identity.

OS DESAFIOS DO TRABALHO EM GRUPO NA PANDEMIA, A PARTIR DA EXPERIÊNCIA COM UM GRUPO DE DISCUSSÃO ONLINE SOBRE GÊNERO

Resumo: Este artigo é um relato de experiência de um grupo de discussão online com o tema “Gênero e Docência”, fruto de uma intervenção de estágio do curso de Psicologia, no contexto da pandemia do Covid-19, no Brasil. A reflexão se volta para a questão do esvaziamento do grupo. Para tanto, discutem-se temas como os desafios de se estabelecer diálogo; a formação de vínculos e a constituição de grupo; a lógica produtivista de formação, no contexto atual; e as dificuldades do trabalho com grupo, em ambiente online. A partir desses norteadores, constatou-se que não houve consolidação efetiva de um grupo de trabalho. Mesmo assim, entende-se que as hipóteses levantadas para compreender o fenômeno do esvaziamento do grupo podem contribuir com futuros estudos acerca da temática, já que este tipo de modalidade se tornou um fenômeno atual que demanda melhor compreensão para a pesquisa, no campo das ciências humanas.Palavras-chave: Grupo online. Gênero. Docência. Pandemia. Abstract: This article is an experience report of an online discussion group with the theme “Gender and Teaching”, the result of an internship intervention form the Psychology degree, in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil. The reflection turns to the discussion on the emptying of the group. For it, topics such as the challenges of establishing dialogue, the formation of bonds and the constitution of a group, the productive logic in academic formation in the current context and the difficulties of working with groups in an online environment are discussed. Based on these guidelines, it is stated that there was no effective consolidation of a work group. Even so, it is understood that the hypotheses raised to understand the phenomenon of group emptying can contribute to future studies on the subject, as this type of modality is a current phenomenon that demands better understanding for research in the field of human sciences.Keywords: Online group. Gender. Teaching. Pandemic.

Measuring Polarization in Online Debates

Social networks can be a very successful tool to engage users to discuss relevant topics for society. However, there are also some dangers that are associated with them, such as the emergence of polarization in online discussions. Recently, there has been a growing interest to try to understand this phenomenon, as some consider that this can be harmful concerning the building of a healthy society in which citizens get used to polite discussions and even listening to opinions that may be different from theirs. In this work, we face the problem of defining a precise measure that can quantify in a meaningful way the level of polarization present in an online discussion. We focus on the Reddit social network, given that its primary focus is to foster discussions, in contrast to other social networks that have some other uses. Our measure is based on two different characteristics of an online discussion: the existence of a balanced bipartition of the users of the discussion, where one partition contains mainly users in agreement (regarding the topic of the discussion) and the other users in disagreement, and the degree of negativity of the sentiment of the interactions between these two groups of users. We discuss how different characteristics of the discussions affect the value of our polarization measure, and we finally perform an empirical evaluation over different sets of Reddit discussions about diverse classes of topics. Our results seem to indicate that our measure can capture differences in the polarization level of different discussions, which can be further understood when analyzing the values of the different factors used to define the measure.

Co-designing genomics research with a large group of donor-conceived siblings

Background Human genomics research is growing rapidly. More effective methods are required for co-design and involving people, especially those sub-populations which are inherently high interest to medical research and thus at greater risk of being exploited. This case study documents how we worked with a large group of donor-conceived siblings who share the same sperm donor father, to explore how they might want to engage with and influence any future genomic research. Method A participatory action research process was used to explore the views of a group of 18 people who knew they are donor-conceived siblings. They are part of a larger group of up to 1000 people who share the same sperm donor father but the only ones in contact with each other; it is likely that many of the uncontacted siblings are unaware of their biological father, have been unable to trace others or have died. The discussion explored views about how the group would like to be involved in future research. Five members participated in co-design; 12 completed a pre-discussion online survey; and six participated in an online discussion forum and evaluation survey. The online discussion was led by one facilitator, supported by the study team. Results Of the 18 siblings approached in 2018, 14 participated in the co-design stages or the surveys and online discussion. Co-design informed the research process. Participants reported enjoying the overall experience of the surveys and discussion forum, which were perceived as inclusive and flexible. Most participants’ views regarding the value of involvement in research changed during the process, and ‘widened’ about who should be involved. Participants were supportive of future research being done with the siblings group. All who completed the final survey requested to remain part of the co-design process. Other themes in the online discussion included concerns about conflicting interests and a desire for research participation to improve the situation for people affected by assisted conception. The process informed later discussions in the sibling group about participating in a self-managed biobank and informed decision making about participating in genomics research. Conclusion Findings from this study help inform ways in which people from certain sub-populations can be involved in planning and defining their participation in genomic research, particularly those that are inherently high interest to medical research and thus at greater risk of exploitation. This process provides a replicable method of involving potential participants in co-designing genomics research using online discussions, with positive outcomes. Reporting this study using ‘Standardised data on initiatives (STARDIT)’ to report the process allows comparison with other studies.

Poor black women and messy drag queens: A discursive map of the scandalous event of “Haute Mess”

<p>In 2012, Vogue Italia became embroiled in an online scandal about “Haute Mess,” the centrepiece fashion spread from its March issue. Shot in a fast-food diner, the models in the spread wore garish clothing, stacks of jewellery, long heavily pattered acrylic nails, outré makeup, and extreme weaves (hairpieces that are similar to wigs). In response to “Haute Mess,” several prominent online magazines accused Vogue Italia of cultural appropriation. These claims hinged on the shoot’s hairstyling, as some of the extreme weaves featured on the models in “Haute Mess” resembled weaves worn by anonymous black women in photographs that circulate online, on websites such as NoWayGirl.com. This thesis examines the scandalous event of “Haute Mess,” exploring the relationships between the shoot itself, the online discussion about it, Vogue Italia’s framing of it, and the photographs of weaves worn by anonymous black women that resemble those hairstyles in “Haute Mess.” Following Michel Foucault’s work on the archive, and Lauren Berlant’s “histories of the present,” this thesis questions the status of the event as given, and sets out to unpick its seams. This process involves mapping the emergence of two distinct categories of knowledge about marginalised bodies from this event: the ‘Poor Black Woman’ and the ‘Messy Drag Queen.’ By tracing the formation of these figures, this thesis argues that this event functions as a concentrated instance of the production of knowledge about marginalised bodies. In relation to this production of knowledge, the scandalous event of “Haute Mess” frames the Poor Black Woman and Messy Drag Queen in binary terms, as authentic and inauthentic, respectively. In order to circumvent this binary, this thesis seeks a way to engage with this event beyond appeals to authenticity.</p>