Informal Social Interactions Research Articles

Tackling nomophobia: the influence of support systems and organizational practices

ABSTRACT This study investigates the growing issue of nomophobia, characterized by the anxiety of being without a mobile phone, in the workplace. Utilizing the broaden-and-build theory, this research examines the impact of supportive leadership, co-worker support, Human Resource Management (HRM) practices, and affective commitment on reducing nomophobia among employees. Data were collected from 393 employees across various educational organizations. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was employed to test the proposed hypotheses. The findings reveal that supportive leadership significantly reduces nomophobia by enhancing HRM practices and affective commitment. However, contrary to expectations, co-worker support was found to increase nomophobia, suggesting that informal communication and social interactions via mobile devices might exacerbate smartphone dependency. HRM practices emerged as a critical factor in mitigating nomophobia, more so than affective commitment. This study contributes to the literature by highlighting the complex dynamics of workplace relationships and offering practical insights for organizations aiming to reduce nomophobia and improve employee well-being.

Enhancing Real-world Language Skills through Clil: A Study on Language Mastery and Everyday Applications

The study investigates how Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) enhances language proficiency and its practical application in professional, social and cultural contexts. The research aims to explore how CLIL impacts real-world language use by integrating subject-specific content with language learning. Using a mixed-methods approach involving 270 students, 12 educators and 3 curriculum developers across three educational institutions, data was gathered through classroom observations, semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. Key findings indicate that CLIL significantly improves students' communication confidence, particularly in professional and social settings and fosters greater intercultural competence. Students reported higher confidence in using language in everyday situations, including formal communication and informal social interactions. However, challenges such as the need for enhanced teacher training and alignment of resources and curricula were also identified. These findings provide important insights for educators and policymakers by demonstrating the potential of CLIL to transform language education, making it more relevant and applicable to real-life contexts. With adequate support and resources, CLIL can enhance language proficiency and intercultural skills, equipping learners to thrive in diverse social and professional environments.

A social network analysis approach to assess COVID19-related disruption to substance use treatment and informal social interactions among people who use drugs in Scotland.

To assess the extent of Coronavirus-related disruption to health and social care treatment and social interactions among people with lived or living experience of substance use in Scotland, and explore potential reasons for variations in disruption. Cross sectional mixed methods interview, incorporating a social network 'egonet interview' approach asking about whether participants had interactions with a range of substance use, health, social care or third sector organisations, or informal social interactions. Five Alcohol and Drug Partnership Areas in Scotland. 57 (42% women) participants were involved in the study, on average 42 years old. Five-point Likert scale reporting whether interactions with a range of services and people had gotten much better, better, no different (or no change), worse, or much worse since COVID19 and lockdown. Ratings were nested within participants (Individuals provided multiple ratings) and some ratings were also nested within treatment service (services received multiple ratings). The nested structure was accounted for using cross classified ordinal logistic multilevel models. While the overall average suggested only a slight negative change in interactions (mean rating 2.93), there were substantial variations according to type of interaction, and between individuals. Reported change was more often negative for mental health services (Adjusted OR = 0.93 95% CI 0.17,0.90), and positive for pharmacies (3.03 95% CI 1.36, 5.93). The models found between-participant variation of around 10%, and negligible between-service variation of around 1% in ratings. Ratings didn't vary by individual age or gender but there was variation between areas. Substance use treatment service adaptations due to COVID19 lockdown led to both positive and negative service user experiences. Social network methods provide an effective way to describe complex system-wide interaction patterns, and to measure variations at the individual, service, and area level.

Kedwibahasaan Anak Sekolah Dasar dan Implikasinya terhadap Pembelajaran Bahasa Indonesia di Kelas IV

This research explores bilingualism among fourth-grade students at SDN 42 Buntu Sarek, focusing on Luwu-Indonesian conversations. Utilizing a qualitative descriptive method with observation, interviews, and documentation as data collection techniques, the study reveals the complex dynamics of bilingualism within and outside the classroom. Inside the classroom, students predominantly use Indonesian for formal interactions, while outside the classroom, Luwu language dominates informal social interactions. Environmental factors, including family, peers, and media, play a significant role in shaping students' speech patterns. The use of a mixed language has a positive impact on language skills development, enriching vocabulary. However, challenges arise in deepening proficiency in one language, leading to potential identity doubts, particularly in formal Indonesian contexts. Addressing these challenges requires educational strategies supporting understanding and language skill development in both languages.

Creating opportunities and spaces for social interactions in online contexts: Academic discourse socialization of L2 international graduate students

Addressing potential research paucity on L2 international graduate students’ academic discourse socialization in online contexts, this study investigated students in graduate programs in the United States. The study focused on how graduate students perceive the impacts of online learning on their academic discourse socialization experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Adopting a qualitative approach, four participants’ perceptions were investigated through semi-structured interviews. The findings reveal that while digital tools, including Zoom, created some spaces for academic discourse socialization for L2 international graduate students during the pandemic, the tools also disrupted their learning in some areas. Importantly, the lack of informal social interactions in online contexts affected graduate students’ learning and participation in their communities of practice. This study suggests that in addition to in-class Zoom interactions, informal interactions are important for L2 international graduate students’ academic discourse socialization in online contexts. Pedagogical implications on incorporating Zoom and other digital tools to facilitate academic discourse socialization in online contexts are provided.

Learner Experiences of Community of Inquiry Mode (CoI) in WhatsApp for English Language Learning

This study employed a mixed-methods design to investigate the experiences of ESL students during their English language learning interactions through the WhatsApp platform. The primary objective was to examine the presence of social, cognitive, and teaching presences in the WhatsApp interactions using the Community of Inquiry (CoI) model. A survey was administered to 349 undergraduate students in Malaysia to collect the quantitative data, which was then triangulated through interviews with 20 students. The interviews were categorized based on Braun and Clarke’s reflective thematic analysis. The survey related to social presence indicates a strong interaction among students and a notable decrease in students’ inclination for informal and humorous social interactions with their teachers. The findings related to teaching presence view instructors as actively engaging students in their learning process. However, they also pointed out that out less sharing of critical knowledge is taking place. On the other hand, the cognitive presence category was associated with the development of meaningful interaction The educational implications seek to provide guidance to educators and institutions on maximizing the utilization of WhatsApp, for the learning of English as a Second Language (ESL). This involves considering the social, cognitive, and teaching presences highlighted in the study.

Patterns of Medical Residents' Preferences for Organizational Socialization Strategies to Facilitate Their Transitions: A Q-study.

To facilitate various transitions of medical residents, healthcare team members and departments may employ various organizational socialization strategies, including formal and informal onboarding methods. However, residents' preferences for these organizational socialization strategies to ease their transition can vary. This study identifies patterns (viewpoints) in these preferences. Using Q-methodology, we asked a purposeful sample of early-career residents to rank a set of statements into a quasi-normal distributed grid. Statements were based on previous qualitative interviews and organizational socialization theory. Participants responded to the question, 'What are your preferences regarding strategies other health care professionals, departments, or hospitals should use to optimize your next transition?' Participants then explained their sorting choices in a post-sort questionnaire. We identified different viewpoints based on by-person (inverted) factor analysis and Varimax rotation. We interpreted the viewpoints using distinguishing and consensus statements, enriched by residents' comments. Fifty-one residents ranked 42 statements, among whom 36 residents displayed four distinct viewpoints: Dependent residents (n = 10) favored a task-oriented approach, clear guidance, and formal colleague relationships; Social Capitalizing residents (n = 9) preferred structure in the onboarding period and informal workplace social interactions; Autonomous residents (n = 12) prioritized a loosely structured onboarding period, independence, responsibility, and informal social interactions; and Development-oriented residents (n = 5) desired a balanced onboarding period that allowed independence, exploration, and development. This identification of four viewpoints highlights the inadequacy of one-size-fits-all approaches to resident transition. Healthcare professionals and departments should tailor their socialization strategies to residents' preferences for support, structure, and formal/informal social interaction.

Informal Social Interactions, Academic Achievement and Behavior: Evidence from Peers on the School Bus

Informal Social Interactions, Academic Achievement and Behavior: Evidence from Peers on the School Bus

Informal Social Interactions, Academic Achievement and Behaviour: Evidence from Peers on the School Bus

Informal Social Interactions, Academic Achievement and Behaviour: Evidence from Peers on the School Bus

Unveiling the power of social interactions: A systematic review of student experiences in informal learning space

The purpose of this study is to examine the role that social interaction plays in informal learning environments on the part of students, it provides implications for understanding student experiences in informal learning spaces and for policymakers to incorporate more opportunities for social interaction in informal learning spaces. The PRISMA statement was followed when conducting a systematic search of Scopus and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases to identify relevant studies published within the past decade. Search strategies for informal learning spaces and social interactions included a combination of keywords and controlled vocabulary. On the basis of predefined inclusion criteria, twelve studies were selected for analysis, including articles published in English and Chinese, scientific articles published in peer-reviewed journals, and studies that examined student experiences in informal learning spaces and social interaction. Among the findings of this study are a description of informal learning spaces, a conceptualization of social interaction, as well as the positive impact of social interaction on student learning and engagement. Based on the results of the study, educators and policymakers need to create environments that foster social interactions that are inclusive and engaging. The study identifies gaps in the literature and suggests directions for future research, including the exploration of a broader range of informal learning spaces and the investigation of specific design elements that optimize student experiences.

Social Connectedness in a Locked-Down World: A Phenomenological Study of Older Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Background: Whilst qualitative research has previously been conducted on older people’s personal resilience and wellbeing during COVID-19, there are fewer empirical studies on the impact it had on social connectedness for this age group. In this paper we seek to examine older people’s social connectedness to others during the pandemic, their personal experiences of seeking out those connections, and whether there are any identifiable pre-existing factors that enabled them to minimise the impact of enforced isolation. Methods: Using a phenomenological methodology, we conducted in-depth interviews with 13 older people between March and May 2021. These interviews explored the participant’s lived experiences of staying socially connected to others during the enforced lockdowns and various restrictions. Results: Our findings reveal strong themes of personal resilience, sense of coherence and other protective factors, but also highlight the benefits of establishing connections to friends, family, organised groups and community prior to the pandemic. Conclusion: Older people’s ability to stay socially connected is influenced by personal resilience and a positive mindset; pre-existing social ties to others and maintaining a personal sense of coherence and a sense of belonging to people or places. Our findings shed light on the importance of informal social interactions, what it means to feel lonely in older age and indicate that for some the pandemic restrictions may even have offered a welcome space in which to process significant life events.

Interior designers’ strategies for creating social office space

The rise of remote working has highlighted the importance of office spaces that support employees’ social well-being. However, there is a lack of explicit knowledge on how to design such spaces. In order to address this gap, this study explored the strategies employed by practitioners in designing social office spaces. In-depth interviews with fifteen experienced interior designers were analysed using means-end chain theory. This revealed the designers’ common aim to encourage informal social interactions through creating attractive, spacious, recognisable, and spatially integrated breakout spaces. Additionally, communicating group identity, promoting visibility, and offering a cosy atmosphere aimed to foster a sense of connectedness among employees. These findings not only enable more deliberate design decisions but also serve as valuable insights for less experienced designers. Moreover, the framework of design components, affordances and design objectives that emerged from this study can enhance communication between designers and stakeholders involved in office projects.

Students' Perception of Servant Leadership by Physical Therapy Faculty Mentors Is Associated With Interprofessional Socialization.

Promoting interprofessional collaborative practice (IPCP) is necessary. Consequently, investigating strategies associated with increased interprofessional socialization, the beliefs, behaviors, and attitudes underlying socialization toward IPCP is suggested. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship, in the presence of control variables, between students' perception of servant leadership by physical therapy faculty mentors and interprofessional socialization. Although faculty mentors are associated with influencing students' socialization process and servant leadership is suggested to support collaborative care, investigations exploring these concepts within physical therapy education are limited. Three cohorts of students (60 each) at an entry-level physical therapist education program in the Midwest of the United States. One hundred seventy individuals completed an anonymous paper-based composite survey, with 117 identifying the presence of an informal physical therapy faculty mentor. This cross-sectional survey study, inclusive of student demographic control variables, examined the relationship between interprofessional socialization and perceptions of physical therapy faculty mentors, as measured by the Interprofessional Socialization and Valuing Scale (ISVS-21) and the Servant Leadership Measure (SL-7), respectively. Multiple linear regression was used to obtain the semi-partial correlation (sr) between the SL-7 and the ISVS-21, with significance accepted at P < .05. Upon necessary assumptions being met, 114 participants were included with an analysis of variance identifying the model to be significant (F(8,105) = 2.59, P = .01). Multiple linear regression analysis found that the SL-7, in the presence of control variables, was associated with a significant proportion of ISVS-21 scores (R2 = 0.17, F(8,105) = 2.59, P = .01). Notably, only the SL-7 demonstrated a significant contribution to ISVS-21 estimates (β = 0.358, P < .001), with a significant and positive sr of 0.34 (P < .001). Perceptions of servant leadership by faculty mentors were positively correlated with interprofessional socialization. Findings bolster the theoretical link between servant leadership and interprofessional socialization, servant leadership in the development of faculty and mentorship programs, and the relevance of informal social interactions.

Democratizing accounting technologies: A case of a performance evaluation system for academics

AbstractThis paper explores how a country's constitutionally imposed democracy in an academic performance evaluation system was designed and practiced. Building upon agonistic democracy and deliberative democracy perspectives, a qualitative inductive case study in a Vietnamese public university involved 52 interviews, direct observations, and the analysis of archival documents. The findings revealed three dimensions of democracy in the university's performance evaluation system, namely, democratic context, democratic discourse, and democratic outcomes. The university enforced democracy in its performance evaluation system for academics in line with the country's constitutional obligation. In such an explicit democratic context, there happened democratic discourse (debating academics’ performance in public forums) and implicit discourse (informal social interactions). The outcome of this democracy at the practice level resulted from temporary consensus supported by shared cultural values within the country's socio‐political context with an understanding that it will change as with any change in the macro or micro contexts. These findings contribute to the literature by providing insights into how individuals pursue democracy in an accounting tool legally built to promote democracy through their multiple voices and collective wisdom. Thus, democratizing accounting technologies and processes, such as an academic performance evaluation system, can effectively promote democracy in multi‐cultural workplaces across the globe.

So, What Do You Do? Exploring Identity Claiming By Entrepreneurs

The way we respond to the casual question: “What do you do for a living?” involves making claims about work-related identity. As individuals often have multiple identities, including at work, deciding which identities to claim over others may not be straightforward. We explored how 29 entrepreneurs across Canada, the United States, and Australia respond to this question. Contrary to what would be predicted from prior research, these informants largely resist claiming the label of “entrepreneur” in informal social interactions. Instead, informants claimed labels based either on roles they held or occupations in which they currently or previously worked. Several also claimed labels that were “self-effacing” and downplayed their role in their organization. In exploring the rationale for these claiming decisions, we found that the broader social context—including cultural meanings of being an entrepreneur and conversational norms—played a key role in determining individual identity claiming. We also identified two motives underlying these contextual factors: the need to be comprehensible and the need to avoid creating distance between themselves and their interaction partner. We discuss the implications of these findings for both the research on identity claiming and entrepreneurship.

A part of, yet apart from the team: Substantive membership and belonging of trans and nonbinary athletes.

Increasingly, bills and policies prohibit the participation of trans women in competitive sport. The current sociopolitical moment begs the following question: how do interpersonal interactional moments function alongside formal policies and rules to shape trans athletes' experiences of belonging in sport? Although formal institutional rules govern trans athletes' ability to compete in sport, informal social sanctioning also denies these athletes equitable, or even de facto, membership in sport. I draw upon two case studies to explore trans athletes' experiences of membership in elite "women's" sport. I apply Evelyn Nakano Glenn's work on citizenship to consider how trans athletes' experiences of belonging are influenced by both formal rules imposed by organizations as well as informal social interactions with members of their sporting communities. Inclusion is not synonymous with membership. Trans athletes render visible the ways in which this system functions to contain the diversity of humanity's gender expression.

Forgotten Factors in Knowledge Conversion and Routines: A Fuzzy Analysis of Employee Knowledge Management in Exporting Companies in Boyacá

The department of Boyacá accounts for only 0.93% of national exports, which means that the participation of exporting companies in the region is low. One of the most important factors within these organizations is the knowledge of the collaborators, since it is an asset that contributes to the daily activities carried out within an organization. Hence, the objective of this research was to analyze the incidence of the forgotten factors in knowledge management through the conversion of knowledge and the routines of the personnel in Boyacá’s exporting companies, by means of causal analysis using fuzzy methodologies. The participants are exporting activity collaborators in the companies, who were consulted as sources of information for the Boyacá chamber of commerce. For the treatment, the forgotten effects theory, the experton method, and the adequacy coefficient are used. The information collected is processed using FuzzyLog software. The findings highlight that there are forgotten factors between the knowledge conversion and routines related to informal communication and social interactions. It is worth noting that it is important to carry out a more in-depth analysis of each of the individual knowledge spiral pillars in exporting companies in different regions of the country, focusing on social interactions (linguistic expression) and informal communication (electronic meetings).

Online communities and discontinuance of information technology-enabled on-demand workers: Impacts of informal social interactions through dual commitments

The on-demand economy (or gig economy) is touted “the future of work” characterized by heterogeneous laborers “on the cloud.” Turnover intention (TI) models have been developed to describe employees in the conventional settings and thus may be insufficient for understanding on-demand workers. This study aims to fill this important gap and beyond. We derive a model of discontinuance intention (DI) where job satisfaction is a prominent mediator of the effect of reward fairness. We further theorize and test how and why on-demand workers’ dual commitments toward their online communities arising from workers’ informal social interactions (ISI) may create boundary conditions for the mediating role of job satisfaction. Data were collected from a large sample of 1493 on-demand workers over a four-year span and facilitated the analysis of a moderated mediation model. Results indicate that job satisfaction largely mediates a negative relationship between workers’ perceptions that their rewards are just (i.e., fairness of rewards) and their intention to discontinue work for the on-demand firm. Moreover, workers’ dual commitments toward their online peer communities (OPCs) disrupted this mediating effect. More interestingly, the dual commitments did not moderate the mediation path equally. Overall, our theoretical model and empirical results delineate how discontinuance intention can be affected by a parsimonious set of antecedents in the context of the on-demand economy.

Association between change in social participation and improved cognitive function among older adults in China: A national prospective cohort study.

We aimed to assess the association between change in social participation and long-term improved cognitive function among older adults. Data were obtained from 9648 participants aged ≥60years in the 2011, 2014 and 2018 waves of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey, a national prospective cohort study. Cox regression models were used to calculate adjusted risk ratios (aRRs). Social participation was increased in 20.5% of the participants, decreased in 37.8% of the participants and stable in 41.7% of the participants from the 2011 wave to the 2014-2018 waves. The improved cognitive function rate was 17.9% at follow-up. Compared to individuals with decreased social participation from the 2011 wave to the 2014-2018 waves, individuals with unchanged total social participation were 59% (aRR=1.59, 95% CI: 1.35-1.87) more likely to have improved cognitive function in the 2014-2018 waves, and individuals with increased social participation were 61% (aRR=1.61, 95% CI: 1.43-1.82) more likely to have improved cognitive function, regardless of the baseline social participation status. As for the three forms of social participation, compared with the participants with decreased social participation, those with increased participation in organised social activities, increased participation in group leisure-time activities, unchanged informal social interactions and increased informal social interactions were 24% (aRR=1.24, 95% CI: 1.02-1.51), 49% (aRR=1.49, 95% CI: 1.21-1.84), 55% (aRR=1.55, 95% CI: 1.37-1.76) and 57% (aRR=1.57, 95% CI: 1.34-1.84) more likely to have improved cognitive function (all p<0.05) respectively. The results were stable in the sensitivity analysis. Our findings highlight the importance of promoting social participation from a multidimensional perspective (duration, frequency and forms) to improve cognitive function among older adults, for policy makers and healthcare workers in the community.

Passing Stigma: Negotiations of Welfare Categories as Street Level Governmentality

Stigma is not the automatic outcome of power differentials, but a distinctive moral inscription generated through cultural evaluations and governmental processes. Research on welfare recipients records how the unemployed displace stigma onto other welfare recipients, positioning other(ed) claimants as the ‘real unemployed’ or ‘scroungers’. Theoretically we adapt Butler’s analysis of the psychic processes whereby subjects are formed by disavowal of discourses which abjectify them. Arguably, this is functional for the governmentalising processes of generating jobseeking, with a latent function of reinforcing activation policies. Drawing on qualitative interviews, we trace how Irish individuals negotiate the stigma attributed to or foisted upon Welfare claimants, in welfare offices and informal social interactions and in job interviews – how they attempt to ‘pass’ as good JobSeekers and pass stigma on to others. Curiously, many welfare claimants suggest governmental interventions for distinguishing and discriminating between the deserving and undeserving adopting the stigmatising perspective.