The motives attributed to trolls in metapragmatic comments on three Hungarian left-wing political blogs

This thesis looks at how users construct trolling as a negatively marked communicative behaviour and troll as a behaviour-based identity in their comments on British and Hungarian political blogs, thus focusing on the users’ metapragmatic discourses on online trolling. The main aim of the thesis is to identify the perceived actions, motives, and aims that users associate with trolling in their comments. The thesis is also concerned with how these actions, motives, and aims affect the ways in which trolling is depicted and trolls are portrayed in the users’ comments. To answer these questions, the thesis presents a corpus-based analysis of 6,129 British and 1,118 Hungarian comments in which users call someone a troll or refer to someone’s behaviour as trolling or trollkodas. These comments were collected from 1,713 British and 519 Hungarian comment threads, which were posted on 27 British and 28 Hungarian political blogs in 2015. The thesis observes that British and Hungarian commenters attribute the same four activities, five motives, and six aims to the alleged trolls. The perceived trolling activities include spamming, ignoring or withholding information, flaming, and dishonesty, which in total cover sixteen specific actions. The trolls’ perceived motives comprise various emotional, mental health-related, and social reasons, financial gain, political beliefs, being employed by a political body, and unspecified political affiliation. Finally, the trolls’ perceived aims involve diverting others’ attention, triggering unpleasant emotions, eliciting responses, provoking conflict, misleading or confusing others, and disrupting the ongoing discussion. The analysis also shows that, although users construct trolling and trolls in many different ways, trolling is generally conceptualised as a non-normative and manipulative behaviour while trolls are portrayed as bad debaters and uncooperative troublemakers.

This article provides a comparative study of the discursive construction and use of Otherness among anti‐immigration populist radical right politicians in Sweden and Finland. Based on rhetorical and critical discursive psychology, our analyses of discourse within nine political blogs identified three distinct representations of Otherness. These representations of adeviant group of people, of athreatening ideologyand ofinner enemiesare highly familiar from previous research on radical right discourse. However, what seems to characterize populist radical right discourse in the Nordic context is the strong reliance on the rhetorical juxtaposition between the welfare system and immigration. Our study furthermore highlights how populist radical right politicians exploit the digital discursive tools provided by political blogging. These tools, first, create a sense of connectedness and mutual understanding between blogger and reader and, second, allow the blogger to convey messages that are hostile towards immigrants and ethnic minorities without expressing an explicit personal opinion. In combination, the features provided by political blogging and the discursive and rhetorical strategies that deny racism make discourse within a populist radical right political blog especially powerful and convincing. We conclude that research must be sensitive to this ‘digital discourse’, as it reaches a public far beyond the sphere of a political blog through its potential to spread and influence mainstream media.

Purpose This article examines the motivations behind sport fans' purchases of nonfungible token (NFT) products, focusing on both hedonic and utilitarian factors. It also investigates the moderating role of team and athlete identification in shaping these motivations. The study aims to expand the literature on consumer behavior and sport management by examining how emerging digital assets, such as NFTs, impact fan engagement and purchasing behavior. Design/methodology/approach The study employed a quantitative approach using a survey of 142 sport NFT consumers recruited from online platforms such as Reddit, Discord, and Facebook. Motivations were measured using validated scales assessing five constructs (financial gain, ownership, drama, enjoyment and socialization) and fan identification. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and moderation analyses were conducted to test the proposed model. Findings The results confirmed that all five motivation factors significantly influence the intention to purchase sport NFT products. Additionally, team and athlete identification significantly moderated the effects of hedonic motivations (drama, enjoyment and socialization), reinforcing the role of social identity in digital fan behavior. Group comparisons revealed that individuals with higher purchase quantities or higher spending values tend to emphasize different motivational dimensions, such as drama and financial gain. Originality/value This study empirically tested a theoretical model of sport NFT purchase motivations, integrating hedonic and utilitarian perspectives with social identity theory. It contributes to both academic literature and practical applications in the rapidly evolving landscape of digital sport merchandise.

It is problematic to classify the relationship between political parties and the state in post-communist Hungary as a case of low or no party patronage and state politicization. A study of the ministerial bureaucracy reveals that the passing of public administration reforms has not provided an effective constraint against politicization, and that the politicization of the ministerial bureaucracy has increased over time in terms of extent, intensity and scope. Comparison of four post-communist governments in Hungary permits one to relate the politicization of the ministerial bureaucracy to the desire of governing parties to enhance their political control over the formulation and implementation of public policies under conditions of polarized political competition between former communists and their political allies, on the one side, and anti-communist parties, on the other.

Restricting NGOs: From Pushback to Accommodation

Great Expectations and Interwar Realities: Hungarian Cultural Diplomacy, 1918–1941

Over the last 15 years, anti-gender discourses, the politicization of gender, and political attacks on gender studies have intensified in Hungary. Yet, limited research has examined how these factors have shaped the field of gender scholarship. To date, no review of the Hungarian academic literature on gender and gender-based needs has been conducted during the right-wing populist political era. This paper aims to fill this gap by addressing the following research question: How have academic narratives conceptualized gender and gender-based needs in Hungary under the governance of the right-wing populist party coalition since 2010? Based on a purposive sampling procedure combined with expert selection, we analyzed 67 articles published between 2010 and 2023 to represent the main theoretical approaches and empirical investigations on the multifaceted nature of gender-related research in Hungary. The findings indicate that the Hungarian academic literature on gender and gender-based needs has evolved significantly despite the adverse political climate. While most articles implicitly understand gender in its classical binary form as the roles of men and women and gender is predominantly understood through a constructivist lens in Hungary, the academic narratives continue to encompass a wide range of topics and approaches related to critical gender-based needs. The paper identifies both more traditional sex- and gender-based needs (such as those related to motherhood, fatherhood, the distribution of household chores, work-life balance issues, and combating labor market discrimination), in addition to more contemporary and politics-driven gender-based needs such as empowering women through civil society organizations, policies and practices for LGBTQ+ individuals, and the effects of anti-gender rhetoric. The paper concludes that policymakers should pay more attention to social science research, as scholars are actively mapping gender-based needs in the Hungarian context.

This paper investigates how the relationship between Hungary and the European Union, particularly regarding the diffusion of social norms and values, has been discursively constructed in the Hungarian media in relation to the adoption of Act LXXIX of 2021, frequently referred to as the “child protection Act” or “homophobic Act” in the Hungarian political and media discourse. The Act introduced stricter regulations aimed at protecting children from sexual exploitation and abuse while also restricting the dissemination of media content portraying sexual minorities, asserting that it is harmful to children. The adoption of the law intensified tensions between Hungary and the European Union, sparking discussion in the Hungarian media about the EU’s role in promoting LGBTQ rights among its Member States, as well as the specific relationship between the EU and Hungary. Therefore, this study focused on media content discussing the European Union and the new Hungarian anti-LGBTQ law. The analysis identified nine dominant discourses and found that anti-EU discourses connected to the Hungarian government called for weaker enforcement of the social norms and values enshrined in various EU documents, labeling the diffusion of such norms as external oppression and as the violation of national sovereignty. In contrast, only a few discourses advocated for the European Union to monitor, disseminate, and enforce the norms enshrined in its own founding documents more rigorously.

Study question How does psychological health and experiences of surrogates in a cross-border commercial surrogacy setting change from pregnancy, 4-6 months, and five years post-birth? Summary answer Longitudinally surrogates’ psychological health did not significantly change. Majority had still not met the parents, continued hiding surrogacy, and reported mixed feelings for the child. What is known already Commercial surrogacy was banned in India in 2017 due to concerns related to exploitation and psychological harm. Power differentials between surrogates and intending parents and commercialization raised concerns regarding the psychological health of surrogates in low-income settings. Post the ban, surrogacy hotspots moved to countries like Mexico and Georgia embroiled in similar practices. There is however no academic literature on long-term psychological health of surrogates from low-income settings. Previous research showed that surrogacy pregnancy and prenatal attachment did not significantly contribute psychological harm post-birth. Instead, socio-cultural practices related to support during pregnancy and stigma increased depression scores post-birth. Study design, size, duration The fieldwork was administered in Mumbai, India, where international cross-border, gestational, and commercial surrogacy was being practiced. Data was collected over three phases: 1) during pregnancy 2) 4-6 months post-birth and 3) 5-6 years after surrogacy. Being a mixed-method design, findings include quantitative data on psychological health of surrogates from all three phases and qualitative data from phase 3 of the research. The study spans from 2014 to 2021. Participants/materials, setting, methods In-depth semi-structured interviews and standardized questionnaires (anxiety, depression, stress scale) were administered to 50 surrogates during pregnancy, 45 surrogates 4-6 months post-birth, and 19 surrogates 5-6 years post-birth. In phase III, mothers also responded to the perceived social support scale. Interviews included questions related to narratives and feelings about the baby, intending parents, surrogate hostel, fertility clinic, potential financial gain, perceptions of stigma, and the new law banning surrogacy. Fieldwork was administered at the clinic. Main results and the role of chance Three one-way repeated measures ANOVA were administered which showed that anxiety, depression, and stress of surrogates did not significantly differ over the three time-points, suggesting that practicing surrogacy did not significantly contribute to psychological harm. It is important to note that financial gain did not significantly improve their psychological over time. Non-parametric tests also did not show significant differences. Mean scores show a downward trend for anxiety and depression, but an upward trend for stress. The perceived social support scale showed that participants received support from family and significant other and least support from friends. However, support from family positively correlated with the stress scores of surrogates. Perhaps an overwhelming involvement of family adds to stress. Most surrogates were not in touch with friends from the surrogate hostel. Majority reported still thinking about the baby frequently, had mixed feelings, and were still hiding surrogacy. Most of them had not met the parents and child, did not know if intending parents should disclose to the child about surrogacy. Majority did not appreciate the new law and wouldn’t consider becoming surrogates without a payment. Prenatal bonding from phase 1 did not have any relationship with psychological health observed in phase 3. Limitations, reasons for caution The study’s sample size raises generalizability concerns. Diminishing sample sizes and potential social bias may affect robustness. Limited psychological measures and homogeneity assumptions suggest a need for caution in interpreting results. Wider implications of the findings This is the first longitudinal study on surrogate mothers from low-income settings practicing commercial surrogacy. Findings advocate policy reassessment, enduring support structures for surrogates, educational initiatives for transparency, international collaboration on best practices, and future research exploring cultural nuances and the perspectives of intending parents in cross-border commercial surrogacy. Trial registration number N/A

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) was passed in 1999 as an attempt to update copyright law to the age of the internet. The law was intended to serve as a compromise for both sides, giving copyright holders an easy means of taking action against infringements while giving websites reduced liability. To that end, the DMCA included the Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act (OCILLA), which created Safe Harbors for service providers.While creating a Safe Harbor was a good idea, it has not been encouraging sites to be less fearful of lawsuits. With the rise of video hosting sites like YouTube, the internet is a far larger and more critical part of society than it was in 1999. Unfortunately, there has been a recent trend of sites like YouTube regulating their content more strictly than the Safe Harbor provision requires in order to avoid any chance of liability. This has resulted in the unnecessary take down and removal of countless videos, and if things are left alone, content removal across the internet will only become more frequent.The issue of over regulation stems from an ambiguous section of the Safe Harbor provision which removes protection from content hosting sites that gain a financial benefit from the infringing content and have a right and ability to control it. This has been interpreted several ways by courts. Some have said that a site must do more than just have the content on their site, while others have used the common law vicarious liability test, which raises its own problems and ambiguities when applied to a content hosting site. An uncertainty on what to do has lead to sites over regulating to avoid liability. Because of this, the financial gain with right and ability to control language should be struck from the Safe Harbor provision to resolve this ambiguity and over regulation. While the concept that the OCILLA is ambiguous has been discussed in academic literature before, the outright removal of the financial benefit with right and ability to control language is a new solution.

This study examines Russia’s deployment of HermeticWiper malware in the early hours preceding the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine as part of a broader hybrid warfare strategy. Unlike conventional cyberattacks focused on espionage or financial gain, HermeticWiper was designed to irreversibly destroy digital infrastructure, disrupting governance, finance, and communication sectors. Using a qualitative case study method with secondary data from technical reports, academic literature, and verified media, the study finds that the malware was strategically aligned with military objectives. Despite the destructive intent, Ukraine demonstrated significant cyber resilience through formal institutional responses and collaborations with Microsoft, ESET, and its volunteer-based IT Army. The study applies the National Cybersecurity Strategy framework and Desecuritization Theory to highlight how Ukraine addressed the threat without escalating the conflict. These findings illustrate a paradigmatic shift in modern warfare, where digital domains play a central role in national defense.

IntroductionThe scholarly publishing industry has witnessed the appearance of numerous scholarly, open- access publishers, an innovation that has made many thousands and even millions of scholarly articles available for free over the Internet. open- access movement has benefitted from the goodwill of countless authors, organizations, funding agencies, and open- access repositories. Unfortunately, as with any large- scale innovation, there has emerged a cadre of racketeers, distributed worldwide, who seek to exploit the open- access (OA) model for their own financial gain. These unscrupulous publishers abuse the authorpays model of open access publishing only for their own profit, engaging in dishonest, deceptive, and unethical practices, and mocking the goodwill of those who promote scholarly, open- access publishing. This article identifies and examines unethical practices in scholarly, open- access publishing, limiting its focus to those publishers employing the gold model.Etiology of the Unethical PracticesOne of the sources of the current problem is the common belief or assumption that all open- access publishing is meritorious, benevolent, and wellintentioned, a belief promoted by librarians and others backing the open- access movement. Many academic librarians blindly and comprehensively promote scholarly, open- access publishing, which means they are partially promoting publishers committing unethical practices.The nature of gold open- access publishing means that those who promote the model must qualify their recommendations. In the traditional scholarly publication model, the market served to prevent or eliminate publishers that engaged in unethical practices; that market control is non- existent in the openaccess model, especially given the minimal startup barriers and low operating costs of open- access publishing. For example, no library would pay for a journal known to be bogus, but bogus journals that are free are unbounded by the startup cost barrier. And because publishers are masters of deception, it is easy for them to fool submitting authors into thinking they are legitimate. Moreover, in the online environment it is especially easy for an unethical publisher to appear legitimate. Also, the very nature of the author- pays model is a conflict of interest; the more articles a gold OA publisher accepts, the more money it earns.Reading a bibliography, vita, or list of published works, it is hard to identify journals from unethical titles they use mimic those of legitimate journals and begin with phrases such as Journal of.... This sideby- side placement of both legitimate and illegitimate journals is a loss, for no longer can one assume that an unfamiliar but legitimate sounding journal is in fact legitimate; further investigation is required, creating new burdens for those engaged in the evaluation of scholarly activities or in judging research grant applications.Other StudiesThe problem of fraudulent open- access publishers is a relatively new one, and few authors have covered it. review journal Charleston Advisor has published several of this writer's reviews of these In 2009, it pub - lished this writer's review of Bentham Open (Beall, 2009). In 2010, the journal published a collective review of nine publishers, and it is in this review that this author coined the term predatory open- access publishers. We use the term 'predatory' cautiously, primarily in an attempt to initially categorize a certain class of Open- Access, scholarly publishers with like characteristics (Beall, 2010a, pp. 14-15). A later update to this article examined three additional publishers this author identified as (Beall, 2010b). Writing in 2011, this author reviewed the Texas- based publisher Internet Scientific Publications (Beall, 2011).The 2010 version of the International Mathematical Union's Best Current Practices for Journals (2011) alludes to publishers, saying, The proliferation of poorly run mathematical journals is becoming an increasing burden to the community. …

Promoting integrity in scholarly research and its publication: International Endodontic Journal policy on reporting conflicts of interest, funding and acknowledgments within manuscripts submitted for publication.

This chapter examines how the relationship between translingualism and second language writing has been discursively constructed through scholarly publication. Examining 23 published texts that make some direct reference to this relationship, I examine how each text categorizes translingualism and second language writing (e.g., as fields of study, areas of inquiry, approaches) and how they characterize the relationship between the two areas. The analysis suggest that a dichotomous and agonistic relationship has been reified through scholarly writing, making the characterization of a "frayed relationship" increasingly difficult to counter. The chapter ends with recommendations for moving forward in a more collaborative spirit.

Introduction: The historic revival of the political Islam late 1970s and the establishment of the Islamic Republic in Iran as an unprecedented form of government has attracted many international scholars for four decades. From the very beginning of this socio-political transition in Iran, the status of women and their rights and empowerment have been of high priority under an Islamic government. The Islamic Republic has become an enabling force to bring an exceptional opportunity for Iranian women to acknowledge their position in individual and social capacities. Simultaneously, the definition of womanhood and women’s social mission and role taking has changed a lot based on new Islamic cultural values and laws in the Islamic Republic. In parallel, some new and different interpretations came to surface in particular during Mohammad Khatami’s presidency and under the title of dynamic jurisprudence was giving way to Islamic feminism. Islamic feminists claim to re-interpret Quran and the Prophet’s Sunnah in terms of modern gender equality and women’s socio-political participation. However, “Islamic” and “feminism” sounds paradoxical to many critics, “Islamic feminism” is a named phenomenon and a theorized body of knowledge that got its climax in 1990s as it sounds to remain significant in the 21st century. Method: The present study is an attempt to seize the focal discursive nodes of Islamic feminism regarding both academic and journalistic literature with acknowledging the fact that many of the current Islamic feminists are not even located in Iran as they produce and publish such knowledge in European and American universities. The present study, thus, addresses various academic and journalistic publications to unveil the focal nodes that constructs the discourse of Islamic feminism in Iran. It has covered a vast literature including 40 articles, book chapters and books in the Islamic feminism genre to unveil its discursive construction in Iran. It employs Laclau and Mouffe’s approach to critical discourse analysis: it finds the most frequent concepts that imply the re-reading of Islam in terms of gender equality and women’s rights and empowerment. Results and discussion: The study indicates that Islamic feminism that has developed in response to the political Islam discursively focuses on four major themes, including a) criticizing the Islamic Republic for reductionism in women’s identity into the domestic and communal roles, b) emphasis on human dignity to achieve the legal equality, c) demand on halting gender-based discriminatory legislature, and finally, d) fostering women’s participation in civil society. Conclusion: To provide a compatible version of Islam with women’s modern needs and wishes is a dilemma with which many Muslim scholars and activists are faced. Islamic feminists in Iran challenge the pervasive narrative of womanhood post Revolution since they believe it has undermined women’s position as individuals and reinforced men’s power and control over women. Studies such as the present one paves the way for a vigorous dialogue between Islam and modernity in the field of gender. It draws the complex status of modern Muslim women in border thinking between Islam and modernity.