Digital Discourse Research Articles

Unveiling humour in digital discourse: the pragmatic functions of humorous stickers in Spanish WhatsApp chat groups

Unveiling humour in digital discourse: the pragmatic functions of humorous stickers in Spanish WhatsApp chat groups

Memetics across Generations

The following study focuses on the use of memes on social media, their prevalence in conversation and their usage based on the age of the contributors. The main question it asks is whether the use of memes in computer-mediated discourse is a momentary trend or whether it exhibits signs of continuous language evolution. A quantitative linguistic study is employed to answer this question within the scope of the study. The environment of the study, the social media platform analyzed, is Facebook. The article looks at popular pages on Facebook and user reactions to the posts made by their administrators. It identifies memetic responses among them to observe their prevalence within this digital discourse, then it compares them to the user age data available. Based on the quantitative results, the study shows whether the use of memes rises exponentially the lower the approximate age of the user. The most recent demographic studies of Facebook at the time the study was conducted are employed and compared to the quantitative results to surmise whether the result bears traits of digital language evolution. Within the scope of the study and the selected dataset, it demonstrates the aforementioned traits in younger generations and their prevalence on social media. The article provides an example, and a baseline data analysis, of how meme usage rises with younger generations, as well as insights into usage by older generations and discrepancies in digital language evolution markers.

(Im)politeness Strategies in Workplace Interviews –A Case Study of Characterization in The Pursuit of Happyness

The Pursuit of Happyness is a famous movie directed in 2006 about the life struggle of Chris Gardner. This paper would analyse an excerpt of The Pursuit of Happyness to explore how (im)politeness characterizes Chris Gardner with Brown and Levinson’s politeness model and Culpeper’s impoliteness model. The excerpt is the scene when Chris has just left the prison to attend the interview for a broker internship. This paper argues that impoliteness reflects Chris’s underprivileged background while the use of politeness characterizes honesty, respect, confidence, humor, and wit. Despite his inherent rudeness stemming from his attire, his lacklustre educational background, and his limited stock market expertise, Chris managed to project a positive image and win the interviewers over with well-executed politeness strategies. The well execution of politeness strategies allows one to gain favours from people of higher status without compromising one's morality. Although politeness theories are originated for real-life encounter in the Anglo-American world, they also play a vital role in characterisation in western popular culture. This paper aims to complement existing literature on the implementation of (im)politeness theories in digital discourse. Future research can focus on macro-analysis across multiple discourses, cross-cultural differences in characterisation, and discourse analysis with new politeness models.

Icelandic on Facebook: Linguistic practices in an informal communication space

Abstract This article is based on a PhD project that addressed the multilingual digital practices of native Icelandic speakers in so-called “computer-mediated communication” (CMC) and more specifically on Facebook. The research draws on new literacy studies as well as linguistic research on multilingualism in the context of digital environments to investigate the digital practices of Icelandic Facebook users. By applying both quantitative and qualitative research methods, the article argues for a mixed-method approach that allows for a more holistic analysis of digital discourse data. It is especially interested in the formal characteristics of Icelandic digital writing and tries to explore what linguistic resources users draw upon and how different communicative functions and contextual factors influence the users’ digital practices. Icelandic forms an interesting test case for the study of digital practices as Facebook constitutes an important communication space for Icelanders. However, the digital practices that can be observed on this social network site are characterised by informality and linguistic forms that may contrast with language regard and language ideology in Iceland.

Characterizing the Structure of Online Conversations Across Reddit

The proliferation of social media platforms has afforded social scientists unprecedented access to vast troves of data on human interactions, facilitating the study of online behavior at an unparalleled scale. These platforms typically structure conversations as threads, forming tree-like structures known as ''discussion trees.'' This paper examines the structural properties of online discussions on Reddit by analyzing both global (community-level) and local (post-level) attributes of these discussion trees. We conduct a comprehensive statistical analysis of a year's worth of Reddit data, encompassing a quarter of a million posts and several million comments. Our primary objective is to disentangle the relative impacts of global and local properties and evaluate how specific features shape discussion tree structures. The results reveal that both local and global features contribute significantly to explaining structural variation in discussion trees. However, local features, such as post content and sentiment, collectively have a greater impact, accounting for a larger proportion of variation in the width, depth, and size of discussion trees. Our analysis also uncovers considerable heterogeneity in the impact of various features on discussion structures. Notably, certain global features play crucial roles in determining specific discussion tree properties. These features include the subreddit's topic, age, popularity, and content redundancy. For instance, posts in subreddits focused on politics, sports, and current events tend to generate deeper and wider discussion trees. This research enhances our understanding of online conversation dynamics and offers valuable insights for both content creators and platform designers. By elucidating the factors that shape online discussions, our work contributes to ongoing efforts to improve the quality and effectiveness of digital discourse.

The influence of coordinated behavior on toxicity

In the intricate landscape of social media, genuine content dissemination may be altered by a number of threats. Coordinated Behavior (CB), defined as orchestrated efforts by entities to deceive or mislead users about their identity and intentions, emerges as a tactic to exploit or manipulate online discourse. This study delves into the relationship between CB and toxic conversation on X (formerly known as Twitter). Using a dataset of 11 million tweets from 1 million users preceding the 2019 UK general election, we show that users displaying CB typically disseminate less harmful content, irrespective of political affiliation. However, distinct toxicity patterns emerge among different coordinated cohorts. Compared to their non-CB counterparts, CB participants show marginally higher toxicity levels only when considering their original posts. We further show the effects of CB-driven toxic content on non-CB users, gauging its impact based on political leanings. Our findings suggest that CB only has a limited impact on the toxicity of digital discourse.

Multimodality of political digital discourse on Twitter social media

As a communication tool, social media has linguistic aspects ranging from letters to discourse, so it is important to be researched from a linguistic scientific point of view to find its meaning. This research aims to identify, elaborate, and analyze digital discourse on Twitter social media related to political elements. This research is based on the multimodal meaning related to communication modes in the form of signs such as writing, images, photos, videos, and other forms that have visual meaning in finding meaning in a communication in twitter posts. The method of this research is qualitative descriptive. The research data is in the form of posts on Twitter accounts that contain political elements. The data analysis technique in this study goes through the reduction and classification stage based on the use of communication modes in digital political discourse. Data collection techniques are carried out by documenting, listening, and taking notes. The results of the research are in the form of identification and explanation of how multimodal has meaning and meaning in digital political discourse on Twitter social media and the contribution of semiotic fashion in the form of writings, images, photos, videos, and other forms that have visual meaning in digital political discourse on Twitter social media as relevance regarding the views of the interests of discourse producers, digital discourse makers with certain semiotic modes to realize discourse, and interests aimed at the creation of political digital discourses such as identity politics, politics of struggle, and power politics.

Beyond virtual boundaries: the intersection of the metaverse technologies, tourism, and lifelong learning in China’s digital discourse

In the evolving landscape of digital education, the metaverse emerges as a revolutionary platform, particularly within the realm of tourism, viewed through the lens of lifelong learning. This study delves into the integration of the metaverse in the tourism and education sectors in China, aiming to uncover the intricate dynamics of public perceptions and the educational potential of this digital innovation. This research utilizes semantic network and sentiment analysis of social media discussions on China’s Weibo platform to provide a detailed understanding of sentiments toward the metaverse’s impact on tourism education. Semantic Network Analysis explores the complex dialog surrounding the metaverse in the context of lifelong learning. The findings reveal a balanced mix of enthusiasm for the immersive educational opportunities afforded by the metaverse and concerns regarding data privacy, digital addiction, and ethical considerations. It is evident from this duality that a balanced approach is necessary when the metaverse is integrated into tourism and learning while being sensitive to technological opportunities and ethical challenges. The metaverse could be an immersive, interactive learning environment endorsed by modern educational theories, supporting active learning through experience. The metaverse will provide valuable assistance to tourism education, which will help enhance this field through the simulation of real tourism for students to learn, which will foster cultural understanding and meet the demands of a globalized tourism industry. It further recommends that policies and practices should be formulated to ensure equal access, respect for the privacy of every participant, and the ethical use of the technology. This study contributes to the analysis of the potentials and challenges of the metaverse in the tourism and learning industry. It highlights the metaverse as an ‘emerging tool for lifelong learning’ and offers insights into how educators, policymakers, and industry leaders, all aiming at the integration of digital innovations in education, should exploit the metaverse.

Decoding the apple paradox: a critical discourse analysis of gender, technology, and nationalism in China’s digital space

This research explores the intricate nexus of gender, technology, nationalism, and misogyny within the context of China’s digital realm. Positioned against the backdrop of an internet celebrity’s accusation towards Apple, the study critically examines a uniquely crafted narrative that adds socio-cultural dimensions to Apple’s perceived network misrepresentations. Female iPhone users are strategically criticized as intellectually inferior influencers of societal contributions, reflecting prevalent discussions regarding 5G technology. The narrative further stigmatizes female iPhone users with implications of involvement in sex work, leading to significant brand implications. Rooted in the framework of Feminist Critical Discourse Analysis (FCDA) and assisted with the approach of corpus-assisted critical discourse analysis (CADA), this study deciphers the complex narrative, focusing on themes of cyber misogyny, economic stratification, and nationalism. The research further reveals how this criticism toward female iPhone users extends beyond mere resentment, unveiling deeper foundations of nationalism and threat perceptions toward traditional phallocentric dominance. The term “traitors” allocated to female iPhone users rationalizes the ongoing assaults as patriotic endeavors, bellwethering toxic nationalism that marginalizes minoritized individuals. This scholarly examination underscores social media platforms, with a focus on Douyin, as potent venues for reinforcing gender bias, particularly through their algorithmic recommendations, content moderation practices, and governance models. This delineation emphasizes the critical need for ongoing sociocultural and digital discourse to challenge and mitigate these dominant, biased narratives.

Unsuccessful and Successful Selfies in the Presentation of Anthropomorphic Metaphors in English-Language Digital Discourse

Introduction. This article is devoted to the analysis of the role of anthropomorphic metaphors in modern digital vocabulary using the example of the word «selfie». The relevance of the work is due to the growing interest of the scientific community in the evolution of digital vocabulary, which includes a variety of lexical units and expressions that reflect modern realities and sociocultural changes.Methodology and sources. The methodological study is based on the productivity of anthropometric cognitive tools in the formation of figurative expressions in English, with theinclusion of the word «selfie». This study is related to the conceptual theory of metaphors developed by famous linguists G. Lakoff and M. Johnson.Results and discussion. In the course of this study, attention is drawn to some expressive phrases associated with the concept of «selfie». Adjectives with negative and positive connotations were selected, then, based on the analysis of empirical material, structures were identified that architecturally represent the «adjective + selfie» model. On this basis, in the context of selfie, negative and positive metaphorical images were identified, which were analyzed in examples.Conclusion. Consideration of the semantics of the expressions under study allows us to better understand how digital vocabulary shows sociocultural trends and changes in society, provides a look at the evolution of language in the era of digitalization and emphasizes the role of digital vocabulary in the formation of new linguistic patterns that reflect the dynamics of sociocultural changes, emphasizing the role of digital vocabulary in the modern world.

Deciphering Digital Discourse: Detecting Cyberbullying Patterns in Filipino Tweets Using Machine Learning

The research addresses the escalating challenge of cyberbullying in the Philippines, a concern magnified by widespread social media use. A dataset of 146,661 tweets is analyzed using a pre-trained natural language processing model tailored to detect derogatory Filipino terms. The methodology is designed to preprocess data for clarity and analyze derogatory phrases, using the 23 key terms to indicate cyberbullying. Through quantitative analysis, specific patterns of derogatory term co-occurrence are uncovered. The research specifically focuses on Filipino digital discourse, uncovering patterns of derogatory language usage, which is unique to this context. Combining data mining and machine learning techniques, including Frequent Pattern (FP)-growth for pattern identification, cosine similarity for phrase correlation, and classification technique, the research achieves an accuracy rate of 97.91%. To assess the model’s reliability and precision, a 10-fold cross-validation is utilized. Moreover, by examining specific tweets, the analysis highlights the alignment between automated classifications and human judgment. The co-occurrence of derogatory terms, identified through methods like FP-growth and cosine similarity, reveals underlying cyberbullying narratives that are not immediately obvious. This approach validates the high accuracy of the models and emphasizes the importance of a comprehensive framework for detecting cyberbullying in a linguistically and culturally specific context. The findings substantiate the effectiveness of the targeted approach, providing essential insights for developing cyberbullying prevention strategies. Furthermore, the research enriches the literature on digital discourse analysis and online harassment prevention by addressing cyberbullying patterns and behaviors. Importantly, the research offers valuable guidance for policymakers in crafting more effective online safety measures in the Philippines.

Digital Discourse on the ChatGPT Controversy: Reflections on the Controversial Use of Artificial Intelligence Among Indonesian Youth

At the end of 2022, a nonprofit technology research institution funded by Altman and Musk released an AI-based chatbot, ChatGPT, which within just three months has shown utility across various industries, particularly in jobs like copywriting, news report writing, customer service, and legal document creation. Its ability to provide coherent and insightful answers, as well as serve as a brainstorming partner, has some college professors concerned that this machine may replace various human jobs (Stokel-Walker, 2022). One likely negative impact is students using this AI-based writing tool to complete academic assignments in the form of essays (Hutson, 2022). Another implication is that researchers (both students and lecturers) may be able to compose scientific texts, partially if not wholly, and escape the radar of AI-written text detection tools (Kim, 2022), as well as peer reviewers (Else, 2023). The methodology used is digital discourse, aiming to reveal how youth discourse influences the presence of the ChatGPT application and how the consumption practice of the application impacts their creativity and critical thinking skills. The findings of this study are expected to contribute to understanding the impact of AI-based chatbots on critical thinking abilities among young people as a basis for development strategies to enhance critical and creative thinking skills in the era of Artificial Intelligence.

Digital Communication in Japanese Companies: The Corporate Blog. Current Trends, Challenges, and Future Perspectives

The present article examines the digital communication patterns exerted by domestic Japanese companies through Japanese-language blogging practices: main characteristics, current trends, challenges, and future tendencies at the intersection of Japanese corporate culture, communication, and the digital realm. After a concise literature review of Japanese corporate identity and predominant cultural features of Japanese management, we will conduct a qualitative content analysis on a selected corpus of Japanese language corporate blogs to investigate the digital corporate discourse (content, types of public, communication strategies, and techniques) on a national level and to inquire into the extent of the impact exerted by the digital evolution of media platforms and the emergence of new AI tools. The implications of the present research are twofold. First, the database we manually compiled contains only Japanese language sources, thus surpassing the linguistic barrier many Western academics confront when researching Asian countries and media content in Asian languages. Examining the Japanese language digital discourse of domestic companies in a post-pandemic globalized context bridges the unceasing gap between the West and the East, thus decentring the focal point from the Western companies and shifting the attention from English-language digital communication. Second, connecting the Japanese-language business discourse with domestic blogging platforms represents another aspect of particular importance neglected by previous research.

Climate Imaginaries and the Linguistic Construction of Identities on Social Media

This article takes a linguistic approach to the construction of group identities in relation to climate imaginaries, which condition what climate futures are considered possible. It employs social identity theory along with methods from Sociolinguistics and Discourse Linguistics to analyse patterns of positioning and stance-taking in social media discourse (Twitter/X, Instagram). By identifying typical multimodal practices at a micro level, as well as introducing five functional meta categories (›awareness, advice, and agitation‹, ›ritualised appreciation‹, ›solidarity and allyship, ›voice and advocacy‹, and ›community demarcation‹), the research investigates how digital discourse reflects and shapes group identities related to climate change topics. It thereby offers insights into the role of language in co-producing climate imaginaries in digitally shared environments.

Analysis of Political Speeches by A Digital Discourse Biden's Election Speech as a Model

Analysis of Political Speeches by A Digital Discourse Biden's Election Speech as a Model

Shaming in digital discourses in Nigeria: Performative deliberation and agency in abba Kyari’s corruption allegation

This article examines the use of tweets, humorous texts, and memes for shaming purposes in the corruption case of Abba Kyari, a Nigerian police chief. Using insights from Arabella Lyon’s notions of agency and performative deliberation, the article argues that internet social media platforms such as Twitter have evolved into powerful cultural sites of protests and resistance for Nigerian users. Findings reveal that cultural forms of communication such as memes, humor, and tweets become tools of shaming used by Nigerian netizens to register online protests in the country. Further, the study reveals that social media platforms have made reallocation of power possible for ordinary Nigerians to have their say on political issues and to stage protests against political corruption and marginalization in society. The study orients Nigerians and others to online protest culture rhetoric in Nigeria and its social and political functions.

Impoliteness Triggers and Strategies in Students’ Complaints: A Socio-Pragmatic Analysis

This socio-pragmatic study aimed to unearth the impolite triggers and strategies used in students' complaints extracted from 100 online student complaints. Using Culpeper's Impoliteness Theory (1996, 2011, 2016), the study identified various impoliteness triggers, namely conventionalized and non-conventionalized impoliteness triggers. The former includes pointed criticisms, condescension, insults, unpalatable questions, dismissals, message enforcers, threats, silencers, negative expressives, redundant patterning, and fighting words. On the other hand, the latter involves non-conventionalized impoliteness triggers, which involve form-driven and bald-on-record impoliteness, red herrings, convention-driven impoliteness, rhetorical questions, and inflammatory expressions. In terms of impoliteness strategies, the study found the use of bald-on-record impoliteness, positive impoliteness, negative impoliteness, and sarcasm or mock impoliteness, with withhold impoliteness not observed in the online context. Understanding the linguistic patterns of impolite complaints in online contexts can help formulate strategies to mitigate conflict and promote more constructive interaction among students. This study may provide valuable insights for improving digital discourse and social interaction protocols.

Dismantle the monster: teachers, parents, and others position themselves figuratively vis-à-vis the Israeli education system in times of crisis

ABSTRACT This article explores the characteristics of naturalistic digital forum conversations, focusing on the Israeli education system in times of crisis. The existing professional literature suggests that (1) There have been numerous attempts to change this system, but they have not been successful; (2) Discourse analysts have often used micro and macrolevels of analysis to explore professional life and the construction of individual or group positioning in digital discourse; (3) Figurative language (e.g. metaphors, similes and metonymies) often organises the essence of the text. This article shows that the naturalistic digital forum enabled the study’s participants (teachers, parents, and others who care about education) to vent their feelings and thoughts, as well as to use organising figurative language to highlight how the teachers positioned themselves and how they were positioned by the parents. Finally, the article underscores the need to bring about a radical change in the Israeli education system.

CULTURAL KALEIDOSCOPE IN DIGITAL DISCOURSE: ‘CREATE’ AND ‘DESTROY’ DYNAMICS IN SOCIAL MEDIA PHRASEOLOGY

Language is vital in the intricate network of digital relationships because it serves as a bridge between different cultures and ideas. The study, "Cultural Kaleidoscope in Digital Discourse: Unraveling the Dynamics of 'Create' and 'Destroy' in Social Media Phraseology," investigates the complicated interaction between language, culture, and technology. The grammatical complexities of the phraseological formulations' make' and 'destroy,' as well as the intricate tapestry of cultural emotions they reflect, are examined in this paper. These structures serve as effective cultural exchange vehicles in the digital environment, reflecting social values, ideas, and attitudes. Users from all cultural backgrounds utilize 'create' to show their creativity, cleverness, and positive contributions, whilst 'destroy' serves as a catalyst for debates condemning old conventions and urging change.

Digesting Psychology: Metadiscourse as a Recontextualising Tool in the Digital Communication of Disciplinary Research

Abstract Metadiscourse was initially conceived as a tool to explore mainly academic, monologic, written texts. When applied to the study of digital discourse, metadiscourse may reveal itself as a rather frustrating exploratory framework, firstly because of the problematised interaction between writer and reader in an online context where audiences are not easily identifiable and, secondly, because of the multimodal character of digital texts. In the present study, the role played by interactive metadiscoursal resources in online communication has been explored. For such purposes, the focus has been placed on a corpus of digital research digests published on the website of the British Psychological Society, the most important representative body of the profession in the United Kingdom. The study revolves around the function of interactive metadiscourse as a recontextualising tool to facilitate the understanding of complex disciplinary knowledge for potentially less expert readers. Several interactive resources (code glosses, evidentials, transition markers, and frame markers) are identified, which strategically contribute to the mediation of specialised information and which also take advantage of the affordances offered by digital platforms.