Communication Practices Research Articles

Consent work in intimacy coordination and adult content creation

ABSTRACT This article draws on the researcher’s training and experience as a certified intimacy coordinator to examine how labour from professional sex work to intimacy coordination necessitates nuanced approaches to consent. What I call consent work – practices of communication, negotiation, and boundary setting – supports bodily autonomy while guiding portrayals of intimacy and nudity in film, television, theatre, and erotic media. I begin by discussing intimacy coordinators’ communication and consent frameworks to create context for my ensuing investigation. Next, utilizing data from interviews with online sex workers, I explore their sophisticated personal and community-oriented harm reduction techniques that, without formal training, dovetail with those in the intimacy coordination industry. Continuing my qualitative analysis, I describe the ways in which my interlocutors’ use of knowledge from consensual BDSM reflects the breadth of practices that inform consent work while illuminating the links between kink and intimacy coordination. Finally, I unpack how consent models remain entangled within systems of inequality and exclusion while owing much to marginalized communities’ contributions to contemporary understandings of bodily autonomy. Overall, consent work and its capacious lineage contribute to the expanding literature on intimacy coordination and highlight the field’s under-researched intersections with adult content creation.

When culture becomes relevant in intercultural lingua franca communication

AbstractLiterature has argued that (a) culture makes intercultural communication more prone to miscommunication and that (b) culture is a non‐issue in intercultural communication. The former has been linked to differences in cultural norms and communicative practices, while the latter has been attributed to the existence of cultural differences even in intracultural communication. While it is true that culture is not always a relevant factor in intercultural communication, it is also true that culture can cause a rift between interactants. In this paper, I explore when culture becomes a relevant factor in intercultural lingua franca communication and under what circumstances interactants make reference to cultural differences. Drawing on data from a wide variety of intercultural encounters observed in informal interactions collected across East Asia and South‐East Asia, this paper examines the relevance of culture in intercultural communication and looks at how interactants construe their identity as situated in their respective cultural backgrounds.

Understanding Risk Communication Through a Postcolonial Theory Perspective: Lessons from Three Studies on COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy

AbstractThis article uses postcolonial theory to examine optimal risk communication practices of new risks and scientific information to non-indigenous communities. The article calls on risk communication scholars and health practitioners to embrace postcolonial theory as it provides a critical and reflective framework to examine ontological beliefs and methodological and structural aspects in the communication of public health messages. The article draws on insight from three studies on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy within Scotland’s African, Caribbean, and Black communities between March 2021 and April 2022. The article offers new insight into why some communities hesitate to respond to public health messages such as vaccine uptake advice. Therefore, risk communication scholars should use the postcolonial lens to examine their assumptions, thinking, and perspectives on communicating new science and risk information in emergencies. Postcolonial theory enables risk communication scholars to address power imbalances, representation, and inclusion challenges in public health communication and trust-building efforts.

Study of the Performance and Determinants of Initial Coin Offering

The aim of the paper is to study the relationship between the performanceand the determinants of initial coin offering. We use panel data and multiple regressionmodels to measure the impact of the determinants of the initial coin offering on its performance. Based on a sample of 3,498 ICOs issued between January 2019 and December2023, we find that the reputation of the founding team, the quality of the informationmaterials provided to stakeholders, the market liquidity, and regulatory complianceare closely related to ICO Performance. The implications of these findings are indeedsubstantial, as they have far-reaching effects on all participants in the ICO market. Forentrepreneurs, the results highlight that success in ICOs depends not only on innovativeideas but also on effective governance and transparent communication. This underscoresthe importance of factors beyond the core technology or concept in determining the success of ICOs and emphasizes the need for comprehensive strategies thatencompass governance and communication practices.

Mediated parent networks as communicative figurations: practical sense and communicative practices among parents in four European countries

Mediated parent networks as communicative figurations: practical sense and communicative practices among parents in four European countries

Characterizing Emergency Department Disposition Conversations for Persons Living With Dementia: Protocol for an Ethnographic Study.

Almost 40% of persons living with dementia make an emergency department (ED) visit each year. One of the most impactful and costly elements of their ED care is the decision to discharge or admit them to the hospital-the "disposition" decision. When more than one reasonable option exists regarding a health care decision, such as the decision to admit or not, it often requires a complex conversation between patients, care partners, and ED providers, ideally involving shared decision-making. However, little is known about how these conversations are conducted and the real-world context in which they take place. Best practices in ED communication and shared decision-making for persons living with dementia and their care partners are limited. This study aims to characterize current practices in ED disposition conversations for persons living with dementia and their care partners, informed by perspectives from patient and care partner participants. This study will use an ethnographic design, including direct observation methods with a semistructured data collection tool to capture the ED encounter for up to 20 patient and care partner dyads, including all discussions about dispositions. Follow-up qualitative, semistructured interviews will be conducted with persons living with dementia and their care partners to explore specific observations made during their ED encounter, and to gain insight into their perspective on their role and elements of decision support used during that conversation. Data collection was initiated in October 2023, with 13 dyads recruited and observed as of July 2024. This study is expected to be completed by December 2024. Novel methods can offer novel insights. By combining direct observation and follow-up interviews about an ED visit, our study design will provide insights into how ED disposition occurs in real-world settings for persons living with dementia. Findings can inform more patient-centered interventions for disposition decision-making. DERR1-10.2196/65043.

The Impact of Food Label Perception and Nutrition Literacy on Communication Behavior : A Case Study of Medan State University Students

This study aimed to investigate the correlation between food label perceptions, nutritional literacy, and communication behaviors among students at Medan State University. Given the growing importance of food literacy for public health, this research sheds light on the challenges that university students face in comprehending and utilizing information from food labels. Employing a qualitative methodology grounded in thematic analysis, data were gathered through an online survey involving 30 students representing diverse academic disciplines. Findings indicate that while a majority of participants possessed a moderate level of understanding regarding food labels, there existed gaps in comprehending crucial aspects such as Daily Value (%DV). Food labels often serve as a tool for fostering conversations about healthy eating, yet their consistent utilization remains limited. In conclusion, this study underscores the necessity for a structured nutrition literacy program to enhance students' capacity for making well-informed nutritional choices and cultivating more robust communication practices of nutrition. The insights gleaned from this study carry implications for shaping educational policies and curricula that more comprehensively integrate food literacy.

The Role of Social Media in Enhancing Communication among Individuals: Prospects and Problems

This study is a discussion about the role that social media plays in enhancing communication among individuals, highlighting its prospects and related challenges. This research examines the impact of social media on improving communication among individuals and its prospects and challenges. This study had taken an integrated approach of secondary data analysis methodology through an extensive systematic review of the existing literature, along with the Canadian Research Data Collection (CREDC) national web-survey, to collect the attitudinal and behavioral insight of social media users on different platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn considering theoretical frameworks like Social Presence Theory and Media Richness Theory. Further, this conceptual review used PRISMA guidelines to examine how social media improves communication. Eligibility and exclusion criteria ensured peer-reviewed article selection and credibility. Study reveals that social media platforms significantly enhance interpersonal communication by fostering increased interconnectedness, more accessible information, and community formation. Notably, while these digital environments have considerable benefits, such as the facilitation of learning and support networks, they are also fraught with challenges, including misinformation, privacy concerns, and potential adverse effects on mental health. These findings therefore have dual approaches to reaping the benefits of social media in communication: the promotion of user education to reduce misinformation and building up digital literacy, while there is also a need to consider regulations that will protect against violation of privacy and cyberbullying. It is at this point that stakeholders will, arguably, have fewer difficulties in making use of social media to continue developing active citizenship and rich interpersonal relationships. Future research is encouraged to further explore the implications of emerging technologies on social media communication practices.

Digital Minority Religions

Abstract Religion has always been, to a certain extent, mediated. Communication practices are at the core of religious communities, but it is in recent decades that the rapid developments of media technologies have created new possibilities for interactions about religion. In this context, a focus on religious minorities represents a unique opportunity for scholars to analyze the internet in nuanced ways within the framework of digital religion. Through the analysis of minority groups, the internet can be understood both as a space of empowerment of marginal voices and as a venue that further increases social exclusion. In this editorial I outline previous works that show this double-faced role of the internet for minorities, and I offer some reflections on theoretical perspectives for the future of digital minority religions.

Pragmatic Competence in Saudi EFL Learners: Challenges, Consequences, and Strategies for Overcoming Barriers

This article critically explores the challenges Saudi learners of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) face in developing pragmatic competence. Despite the pivotal role pragmatic skills play in facilitating effective communication, Saudi EFL learners frequently struggle with the nuances of English pragmatics, leading to miscommunication and social misunderstandings. The article is organized around three key areas of inquiry: the factors contributing to these pragmatic difficulties, the broader consequences of inadequate pragmatic competence, and practical strategies for overcoming these challenges. Major contributing factors include limited exposure to authentic language usage, cultural divergences in communication styles, pragmatic transfer from Arabic to English, and an EFL pedagogy that prioritizes linguistic accuracy over pragmatic awareness. The repercussions of insufficient pragmatic competence extend beyond communication, affecting learners’ academic performance, professional prospects, and social integration. In response, the article advocates for the incorporation of explicit pragmatic instruction into the curriculum, the creation of opportunities for authentic communicative practice, and the inclusion of culturally relevant contexts to foster greater intercultural sensitivity. By equipping Saudi EFL learners to navigate the intricacies of English pragmatics more effectively, this study seeks to enhance their overall communicative proficiency and intercultural competence, while contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of pragmatic development in specific sociocultural contexts.

The Narrativist Turn in Healthcare and its Implications on the Experience of Perinatal Grief

The non-recognition of perinatal bereavement in society leads parents to an isolated condition that may hinder their psychological adjustment after the loss (Layne; Markin and Zilcha-Mano). Improving bereaved parents’ experiences of communication in healthcare practice thus seems to be crucial to lessening the risk of dysfunctional grief. This paper presents a research project on the topic of perinatal death, “Words Fail Me”: Naming the Unnamable (PERINAT), funded by the French National Agency for Research (2023-2027). By focusing on the metaphorical constructions used by bereaved parents in their narratives of perinatal death, PERINAT seeks to improve the communication experience of the bereaved by furthering health care practitioners’ understanding of this grief. The study is conducted by means of a dataset collected in 2022-23 from interviews with a hundred bereaved parents in France. The preliminary findings of this ongoing project are meant to be used to inform and improve the support offered by health care providers who are likely to come across a bereaved parent in their professional capacity. More specifically, from a perspective of narrative medicine, this contribution seeks to explore what the study of metaphor can potentially offer to the development of narrative competence in the training of health professionals. By developing higher awareness of bereaved parents’ narrative, more specifically of their use of figurative language, practitioners can make sense of parents’ needs and emotional responses to their experience of loss in order to ease it. As Norwood (122) has it, metaphor, like poetry, “can make unknown known and the unspeakable speakable”. This is also in line with the most recent promotion of a relationship-centered and patient-centred notion of care (Bensing; Pluut).

New objects of research in algorithmic aesthetics: dance performance and choreographic art practice

The article explores the way in which new objects of study, such as dance performance and art–practice, emerge in algorithmic aesthetics. The advent of digital communicative practices shapes new means of formalization of dance performance scripts, which nowadays have various technological solutions, including algorithmic ones. Classical aesthetics is unable to describe the technological modernization of artistic expression. The author offers a general framework of algorithmic aesthetics to study of dance performance and art practice.

COLLABORATIVE ESSENCE: REVEALING THE ORGANIZATION'S DNA IN THE ERA OF PANDEMIC HOME OFFICE

With the constant growth of home office before, during and after the pandemic, the study aims to address the relevance and difference between organizational culture and communication, analyze the advantages and disadvantages of this action, highlighting the importance of organizational culture for adapting to remote work, considering that internal communication and employee engagement are fundamental to the success of the model. The study also noted the need for new communication practices, companies need to adapt their processes and invest in technology to maintain productivity and team interaction. Thus, it is possible to state that home office is a trend that is here to stay, and that its popularity is expected to grow even more in the coming years. Although there are advantages and disadvantages, as in any modality, companies are realizing the benefits, both for employees and for the business itself, and have adapted to offer the necessary conditions for remote work.

How do GPs communicate the urgent suspected cancer referral pathway to patients? A qualitative study of GP-patient consultations.

The UK National Institute for Health and Care (NICE) recommends that GPs inform patients referred onto the Urgent Suspected Cancer (USC) pathway about what to expect from the service. However, there is a lack of evidence on patient experience and information needs at the point of referral. It is a challenge for GPs to communicate the reasons for referral and provide reassurance. This study aimed to examine how GPs communicate a potential cancer diagnosis and USC referral in practice. This is a secondary analysis of a dataset of 23 audio-recorded GP-patient consultations, selected from a larger dataset of 200 consultations collected in Surrey and London, UK in 2017-2018. The consultations were selected based on inclusion criteria related to cancer discussions. This is a qualitative analysis of video recordings of face to face patient consultations. We found that most GPs informed patients that they might have cancer and engaged in reassurance using personalised risk statements. Some GPs avoided all mention of cancer, using symptom-led language instead. GPs focused on communicating practical rather than support-based information. While most GPs informed patients that they would be seen by a specialist within two weeks, few discussed patients' support needs during the referral period. Clear communication about cancer in primary care is promoted in UK policy, and has an important role driving patient investigations attendance. The study highlights the need for further research on communication practices around cancer referral to improve patient understanding and experience. Our recommendations for enhanced communication may improve patient outcomes by optimising routes to diagnosis via primary care.

Authentic conflicts in post-Yugoslavia: A model of a post-war generation’s communication system

Abstract The Yugoslav wars of secession in the 1990s left traces of the past among the societies living in the successor states. Those traces can be found within the collective memory of these societies, and are transmitted through various communication channels to the next generation. Today, this post-war and post-Yugoslav generation, born during or shortly after the violent conflicts, are young adults dealing with the recent past. Based on findings from life-story interviews that are examined and interpreted using the approach of sequence analysis, I elaborated a model of the transregional post-Yugoslavs’ communication system regarding the wars. I identified three communication practices on war-related topics by actively reflecting on the “Other,” which I present in this paper. During their adolescent years, post-Yugoslavs created their own narratives, and thus their own, authentic communication strategies in response to the “invisible war,” which still continues today, according to the post-Yugoslav generation.

The timeliness of constructionist theory in the process of journalistic content production in the digital age

This research explores the relevance of constructionist theory in the production of journalistic content in the digital age. Constructionist theory posits that reality is socially constructed and shaped by the discursive practices of the media, gaining significance within a media landscape profoundly transformed by digitization, the proliferation of social networks, and the use of algorithms. The investigation employs a qualitative methodology, utilizing a systematic literature review of publications from 2013 to 2023, aiming to map the principal theoretical and empirical approaches that discuss the impact of new technologies and communicative practices on contemporary journalism. The findings indicate that the digital era has intensified the constructionist nature of news production, given the multiplicity of voices and agents involved in the mediation process, including an actively participating public in the creation and dissemination of content. It was further observed that digital platforms, by personalizing news consumption through algorithms, create fragmented realities and filter bubbles, challenging the notion of a shared news reality. Moreover, the emergence of misinformation and “fake news” underscores the importance of a constructionist approach to understanding how news narratives are continuously negotiated and reconstructed. It is concluded that constructionist theory remains a valid analytical framework for understanding the dynamics of journalistic production in the digital age, particularly in a context where the boundaries between news producers and consumers have become increasingly fluid.

Intercultural Communication Practices in Chinese Firms in Lusaka, Zambia: Perspectives of Zambian Employees

This article highlights the Intercultural Communication Practices in Chinese Multinational Companies (MNCs) in Zambia with a particular focus on Zambian employees’ perspectives. It explores communication practices in Chinese firms in Lusaka, understanding Zambian workers’ perceptions of communication with Chinese counterparts, and identifying barriers to effective communication. Employing a Phenomenological approach, two (02) Chinese MNCs in Zambia were studied: China Jiangsu International and Avic International (Zambia) Limited. Ten employees were interviewed. The findings indicate the use of interpreters, oral communication, and gestures for daily activities exchange. While some found these practices effective, others faced challenges due to intercultural differences. Barriers include lack of respect for elders, disregard for pleasantries, and impatience among Chinese employees. The study concludes that Chinese MNCs lack adequate attention to intercultural communication strategies, thus recommending the implementation of deliberate improvement measures.

Attitudes and Experiences Regarding Communication About Maternal Vaccination: Qualitative Findings from Non-Hispanic Black Pregnant People.

Comprehensive prenatal care incorporates recommended vaccines to help protect the mother, the pregnancy, and the infant from adverse health outcomes and severe illness from vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs). However, vaccinations during pregnancy remain underutilized, often influenced by concerns about vaccine safety and low perception of disease risk. Self-reported vaccine hesitancy among pregnant people in the United States has significantly increased in the last few years, and influenza and Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis) vaccination rates have declined. Furthermore, the number of vaccines routinely recommended during pregnancy has expanded. Communication strategies tailored to pregnant people may help build vaccine confidence among pregnant people and their health care providers. While characteristics and perceptions associated with hesitancy to vaccinate during pregnancy are documented in existing literature, more information is needed on promising communication practices preferred by subgroups of pregnant persons, particularly Black pregnant people who have higher rates of illness from VPDs and greater risk of pregnancy-related complications. This article summarizes literature on the current landscape of prenatal vaccination, discusses qualitative findings from focus groups with non-Hispanic Black pregnant people, and describes promising practices for communicating with this group about vaccination. Promising practices include specifying the benefits of vaccination for both the pregnant person and the infant, outlining potential risks, and emphasizing the overall importance of vaccination during pregnancy, while also acknowledging that many non-Hispanic Black pregnant people may have health concerns they perceive as superseding vaccination.

Communication Strategies of Indonesian Secondary School Teachers to Establish Interpersonal Relationships with Students; A Literature Review

The quality of teacher-student relationships has a profound impact on the learning process and outcomes, particularly in culturally diverse contexts like Indonesia. In Indonesian secondary schools, where cultural characteristics such as power distance and collectivism shape interactions, enhancing teacher-student relationships through effective communication strategies is crucial. This study aims to identify and analyze communication strategies that are most appropriate for fostering interpersonal relationships in Indonesian secondary schools. Using a qualitative literature review method, following PRISMA guidelines, this study synthesizes 22 communication behaviors from existing literature, which were categorized into four main themes: care, immediacy, clarity, and disclosure. Notably, while the strategies of care, immediacy, and clarity align with previous research and are adapted to the Indonesian cultural context, the study found a significant lack of teacher disclosure, a critical strategy for building close interpersonal relationships. This gap suggests that cultural factors such as high power distance may inhibit the use of disclosure as a relational tool in Indonesian classrooms. The study’s findings provide practical implications for teachers aiming to improve their communication practices, suggesting that culturally appropriate strategies, particularly in balancing authority and relational closeness, are necessary to foster stronger interpersonal connections with students.

Millennials’ use of social media and its impact on communication skills

ABSTRACT The current research endeavors to investigate the possible correlation between social media usage and self-perception of success in both written and oral communication among the Millennial cohort. The sample comprised 429 individuals aged between 18 and 25, who were subjected to a survey that aimed to elicit their self-perception of communication practices and media usage. Statistical analyses of the data revealed that there is no discernible association between the number of social media sites used, frequency of checking, or frequency of posting on social media, and the oral and written communication skills of Millennials. Notably, the number of friends on social media was also found to have no influence on perceived written skills. Nevertheless, the study found significant impacts of social media usage and interactions on some facets of oral communication, such as vocal confidence, articulation, and eye contact. Given that Millennials constitute one of the largest generational cohort in history, their influence on both the society and the business realm is profound.