Public Communication Research Articles

Advocating for population health: The role of public health practitioners in the age of artificial intelligence.

Over the past decade, artificial intelligence (AI) has begun to transform Canadian organizations, driven by the promise of improved efficiency, better decision-making, and enhanced client experience. While AI holds great opportunities, there are also near-term impacts on the determinants of health and population health equity that are already emerging. If adoption is unregulated, there is a substantial risk that health inequities could be exacerbated through intended or unintended biases embedded in AI systems. New economic opportunities could be disproportionately leveraged by already privileged workers and owners of AI systems, reinforcing prevailing power dynamics. AI could also detrimentally affect population well-being by replacing human interactions rather than fostering social connectedness. Furthermore, AI-powered health misinformation could undermine effective public health communication. To respond to these challenges, public health must assess and report on the health equity impacts of AI, inform implementation to reduce health inequities, and facilitate intersectoral partnerships to foster development of policies and regulatory frameworks to mitigate risks. This commentary highlights AI's near-term risks for population health to inform a public health response.

Appreciation for Agriculture in Public Communication. A Content Analysis of the Influence of the First Lockdown on Reporting About Agriculture in the Mass Media

The call for greater societal appreciation of agriculture has been a recurring theme in recent years, both within and outside the sector. The following article examines the extent to which social value communication can be found in media articles compared to other evaluative statements about agriculture and the effects that occurred at the beginning of the Coronavirus crisis. Using quantitative analysis and based on a theoretical concept of recognition, statements of social esteem and disrespect are collected and contrasted with acceptable and critical statements in issues of the mainstream, regional and farming press in 2019 and 2020 and evaluated in terms of their authorship and references to agricultural issues. In this context, it can be shown that even before the Coronavirus crisis, the level of social esteem accorded to agriculture in public communication was higher than the level of disrespect. It then increased during the first pandemic lockdown, combined with a significantly higher number of references to the issue of security of supply. At the same time, it is clear that the type of statement most often published in the media is not a direct expression of social esteem or disrespect, but rather a perception of disrespect for agriculture. The sources of these statements most often come from the agricultural sector itself.

Digitale Öffentlichkeit(en). Linguistische Perspektiven

Abstract In this thematic volume we ask how digitalization and mediatization are transforming public communication and its conceptual understanding. This introductory text delves into the historical shift from oral and body media to written media in societal communication, highlighting the evolution through telecommunication mass media to the replacement of analog communication by digital forms. It addresses the lack of consensus on the definition of ‘publics’ and public communication, underscoring the multidimensional, heterogeneous, and fluid nature of these concepts. We ask how digitalization and mediatization processes raise questions about fundamental changes in publics due to new technological-communicative possibilities. Furthermore, we discuss the concept of publics as communicatively constructed and maintained, shaped by media and community ideologies. We propose a continuum model for digital/digitized publics, ranging from dyadic communication to multi-party communication. It emphasizes four key aspects for linguistic engagement with digital publics: communicative construction, technical and social affordances, multiplicity of addressing, and practices of digital community formation. With this model and the contributions following the introduction we contribute to a nuanced understanding of digital publics, considering their scale, complexity, and the dynamics of content creation and audience interaction.

Drama in STEAM education: Possible approaches and connections to drama-based activities in STEAM education

AbstractDrama in Education (DiE) has been a well-known teaching technique for an active learning approach for students. It utilizes different forms of conventions to enhance a student's learning experience in the classroom, offering alternatives instead of the traditional teaching approaches. Drama can encourage students to learn and think critically and improve public speaking, communication, and confidence. The article portrays the use of drama activities in STEAM education by depicting the benefits and challenges. This study uses a qualitative approach to collect data, including relevant literature, descriptions of drama activities, and observation. The findings display that drama in STEAM education can improve and stimulate students' learning and knowledge in a particular subject. This study aimed to view 19 higher education students' perspectives of drama activities in STEAM. Two activities were completed during this pilot study and observations were made throughout the process. Furthermore, drama in STEAM stimulated the students, were more enthusiastic about exploring, examining and learning, socializing with their groupmates, and the confidence to perform.

A Lightweight, Efficient, and Physically Secure Key Agreement Authentication Protocol for Vehicular Networks

In the contemporary era, Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs) have emerged as a vital technology in intelligent transportation systems, substantially enhancing the overall travel experience by providing advanced services to vehicles while ensuring driver safety. Despite the notable improvements, the inherent complexity of VANETs presents persistent security challenges, encompassing issues such as privacy preservation for vehicles, message authentication, and constraints in computational power and network bandwidth. Various authentication protocols have been designed for VANETs. However, many of these protocols exhibit significant vulnerabilities, rendering them insecure and unreliable in the face of diverse security threats, such as denial of service, replay, forgery, and impersonation attacks. Moreover, some existing schemes encounter limitations, including high computational complexity and the introduction of additional communication overhead and computational costs. To tackle these concerns, we designed a lightweight and secure identity authentication protocol based on elliptic curve cryptography with the objective of furnishing an effective and secure data transmission mechanism across a public communication channel for the Internet of Vehicles. In addition, we introduce Physically Unclonable Functions (PUFs) to ensure physical layer security during the communication process. A detailed security analysis demonstrates that the proposed protocol is resilient against various attacks. Through a comparative analysis with existing relevant protocols, in scenarios with a high density of vehicles, the algorithm demonstrates significantly lower computational costs and communication overhead than the related protocols, indicating that the proposed protocol is lightweight and efficient. Consequently, the empirical findings indicate that our protocol surpasses others in terms of reliability, user convenience, and practicality for ensuring secure data transmission within VANETs.

EXPRESS: The Rivalry Reference Effect: Referencing Rival (vs. Non-Rival) Competitors in Public Brand Messages Increases Consumer Engagement

Brands often make references to competitors in their public communications. Yet not all competitors are equal—over time, certain pairs of brands may develop special rivalry relationships. This research examines whether these relationships can alter the effects of interbrand communications. Drawing on rivalry theory (Kilduff, Elfenbein and Staw 2010), the authors distinguish between brand rivalry, a special competitive relationship between brands based in a shared history, and competition, a situation where brands merely have currently opposing goals. A series of studies using complementary methods (two archival studies using large-scale Twitter data and three pre-registered experiments) provide evidence for the “rivalry reference effect”, across multiple brands and product categories. That is, referencing a rival (vs. a non-rival) competitor in a public brand message increases consumer engagement. The effect is mediated by increased story embeddedness, defined as the perception that the reference is embedded within an ongoing story. The authors also show positive downstream effects on purchase intentions, and test two moderators: brand preference (loyal vs. neutral consumers) and message valence (negative vs. positive). This research highlights the potential appeal of brand rivalry to consumers, illustrating how and under what conditions brands can use their rivalries to their advantage.

What can public health communicators learn from Reddit? A perspective for the next pandemic

What can public health communicators learn from Reddit? A perspective for the next pandemic

Prevention of alcohol exposed pregnancies in Europe: the FAR SEAS guidelines

IntroductionDrinking during pregnancy is the leading cause of birth defects and child developmental disorders in Europe. The adverse effects of drinking during pregnancy may include physical, behavioural and cognitive problems, known collectively as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). Evidence-based comprehensive recommendations at the European level on how to implement preventive and treatment policies to reduce alcohol-exposed pregnancies are needed. FAR SEAS, a tendered service contract (number 20,187,106) awarded by the European Commission, aimed at developing guidelines to respond to this knowledge gap.MethodsFAR SEAS recommendations were built on (1) a two-phase review of interventions, (2) an international expert consultation, and (3) a pilot study on prevention of FASD conducted in the Mazovia region of Poland. The review of interventions included nineteen electronic open access databases, several repositories of grey literature and a key informant consultation covering most European Union (EU) countries and an additional guidelines search. After triangulating sources, 94 records were collected. Experts contributed in the design of the research questions, addressing the gaps in the literature and reviewing the recommendations formulated. The Polish pilot added nuances from real world practice to the formulated recommendations, resulting in the final set of guidelines for dissemination.ResultsThe FAR SEAS Guidelines comprise 23 recommendations grouped into different topics areas of policies, communication strategies, screening, brief intervention and referral to treatment, treatment and social services. The recommendations highlight the need to respect women’s autonomy and avoid discrimination and stigmatization; using universal screening for women of childbearing age, including detection of other psychosocial risks (such as domestic violence); and individualized, comprehensive and multidisciplinary supportive interventions for those who require it, such as those with alcohol use disorders, including women’s partners. Policies to prevent FASD should be multicomponent, and public health communication should combine information about the risks together with self-efficacy messages to promote changes.ConclusionsThe FAR SEAS guidelines are a tool to support policy-makers and service managers in implementing effective programmes to reduce prenatal alcohol exposure among general and at-risk population groups. FASD prevention has to involve comprehensive and multi-level evidence-based policies and practice, with services and activities tailored to the needs of women at differing levels of risk, and with due attention to reducing stigma.

Children's books for research-based outreach and science communication pedagogy

Abstract. Academics are encouraged to integrate scientific research with the public, but methods of doing so are often transient and insubstantial. Students and future scientists also require training and exposure to the importance of public outreach and science communication within STEM fields. Here, I describe two projects that provide a template for using children's books as an efficient and impactful means of science communication. The first part describes an international research project that culminates in the writing, illustration, and distribution of a children's book. Farzana’s Journey is a children's book based on multidisciplinary research on the pairing of the physical and human systems in coastal Bangladesh. Written, illustrated, and freely distributed in the Bengali language, the book is a place-based tool to teach rural Bangladesh communities about the natural world and our scientific findings. Through the development and distribution of the book, we encouraged collaboration and public outreach with scientists, artists, and students concerned with enhancing educational and social opportunities in rural communities. We also ensure a physical tie to the community after the project's culmination. The book sparks children’s curiosity in the local environment while also demonstrating a means for sustainable educational outreach with impoverished, remote communities. The second part of the paper provides an overview of how this type of science communication can be taught to early-career scientists. Students in an intensive learning undergraduate course produce children's books about a scientific concept or process. I describe the curricular context and layout of the course, the assessment of deliverables, and the impacts of the science storytelling process as a model for teaching communication literacy. Together, these efforts demonstrate the potential impact of children's books on science communication efforts among students, early-career scientists, and local communities.

Mechanisms of mental illness anti-stigma messaging matter: Leveraging mental health communication inequities among latinx populations to understand what works and what we can do better

BackgroundSince 1950, public communication about the neurobiological-psychosocial basis of mental illness from the diathesis-stress model has promoted reception to treatment yet violent/dangerous stereotypes have increased during this period. Moreover, public mental health communication efforts have predominantly diffused in English-language media, excluding Spanish/Latinx media and its consumers from these efforts. To inform future mental health communication strategies, this study leverages high versus low diffusion of public mental health communication across English and Spanish/Latinx media to examine public mental health communication effects on stigma and treatment beliefs via neurobiological-psychosocial beliefs. MethodsA quota sample of 2058 U.S.-based Latinx residents ages 13–86 with diverse language/cultural media preferences was recruited to self-complete a survey about mental health information acquisition in 2021. Assessments ascertained frequency of Spanish/Latinx and English media use and mental health content scanning and seeking (α = 0.86–0.94); and items from the General Social Survey about mental illness neurobiological-psychosocial causal beliefs (α = 0.72)—genetics, brain chemistry, environment, stress; treatment beliefs—mental illness improves with treatment or on its own; and stigma beliefs—violent/dangerous and bad character stereotypes and unwillingness to socialize with a person with mental illness. Structural equation models estimated total, direct, and indirect effects of Spanish/Latinx and English media exposures on treatment and stigma beliefs via neurobiological-psychosocial beliefs, net individual/family factors. ResultsSpanish/Latinx media reduced, while English media increased, neurobiological-psychosocial beliefs (p < 0.01). Neurobiological-psychosocial beliefs, in turn, increased treatment and stigma beliefs (p < 0.01), simultaneously. Indirect pathways were also significant (p < 0.05). Proportion mediated on treatment beliefs was one-third for Spanish/Latinx and two-thirds for English media. Proportion mediated on rejection beliefs for all media exposures averaged ≥1. ConclusionsWhile consumers of Spanish/Latinx media report lower neurobiological-psychosocial knowledge that impedes treatment beliefs, consumers of English media report greater neurobiological-psychosocial and treatment knowledge and, consequently, more stigma. Innovation in public mental health communication is needed to counter stigma and health inequity.

Strategic Communication for Local Public Health Services in Portugal: A Delphi Study

Introduction: Strategic communication plays a decisive role in public health planning and project implementation. However, Portuguese Local Public Health Units, which are responsible for community interventions, still lack guidance models, tools, specialized resources, and training in health communication. The aim of this study was to develop a conceptual model of strategic organizational communication for local public health services, in Portugal.Methods: This study presents a conceptual model of strategic organizational communication for Local Public Health Units, which was developed through a three-round, modified Delphi online panel. Thirty-seven Portuguese specialists in public health, communication, and community members were invited to analyse a proposed framework, based on an up-to-date literature review. High retention rates were observed in all rounds (first = 22 valid participations;second = 21 valid participations; third = 18 valid participations).Results: Most participants believed that Portuguese Public Health Units were not prepared to communicate effectively and that they would benefit from adequate planning and identification of a communication lead or team. Websites and social media were also identified as essential for effective communication. The validated conceptual model integrated different partners in health and in the community, with emphasis on the relationships with the national network of health authorities, other Public Health Units, primary health care units, municipalities, and schools. The preferred channels identified for communicating with these partners included interpersonal relationships, email, and mobile phone. No consensus was obtained for preferred communication channels between Local Public Health Units and the media.Conclusion: Strategic planning based on the proposed conceptual model involving different stakeholders, has potential to improve the effectiveness of internal and external communication and facilitate the implementation of public health programs and projects. The proposed model needs to be validated in Local Public Health Units, considering the potential human, material, and financial constraints.

Quo vadis Indonesian public relations profession: dilemma on the rise of AI

The debate over AI has focused on its contrast with human employment. Simple perspectives are inadequate in public communication fields like Public Relations (PR). The conversation must shift from discussing AI's impact on human jobs to how AI will shape public communication as AI becomes more important in PR. To examine AI's effects on Public Relations, this study uses a literature review focusing on authority and public voice. Due to the risks of AI misuse, data discrimination, and data poisoning, public relations must carefully consider the implications of AI integration. Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Public Relations is studied using a literature review as its main method. Experts are consulted to identify AI's most significant challenges and opportunities in public relations. Public relations (PR) are affected by Artificial Intelligence (AI), which presents both opportunities and challenges. AI can boost public communication, but it also risks data misuse and discrimination. Ethical issues arise when AI represents the public's voice. This study provides useful insights into how Indonesia's Public Relations profession should approach Artificial Intelligence. PR professionals can overcome technical and ethical challenges and revolutionise public communication with AI integration. Therefore, ethical PR practice and the use of AI are becoming increasingly important.

An Empirical Investigation into the Leadership Traits of Prime Minister Narendra Modi: A Conceptual Framework

The purpose of this empirical research is i) to find out what unique traits make PM Modi an inspiring leader, ii) to assess if respondents' perceptions differ significantly, and iii) to create a conceptual framework of leadership  traits so that we can better comprehend PM Modi's leadership styles. The study includes 19 leadership traits relevant to PM Modi's leadership styles, extracted from previous articles and expert discussions. This  study collected quantitative data from LinkedIn connections using a random sampling procedure. A self-designed questionnaire was sent to 700 people from various backgrounds to rate their agreement or disagreement with 19 leadership traits. The study was conducted in March and February 2024, with 29% of the responses (203) available for analysis. The study reveals that the top ten leadership traits in ranking order include strong 'network building, ''self-motivation,’ ‘global perspective,’ ‘visionary leadership,’ ‘determination and result-orientation,’ ‘public direction communication skills,’ ‘proactive approach,’ ‘being organized (detailed-oriented),’ ‘integrity in the workplace,’ and ‘creative thoughts and thinking.’ The results of the Mann-Whitney test revealed differences in respondents' assessments of PM Modi's leadership abilities in India and other countries. There are significant differences in the perceptions of educators and other groups regarding the five leadership traits that may be linked to the lack of trust in Indian society and culture. Additionally, the factor analysis produced a five-factor model: visionary and transformative; humanistic and value-driven; decisive and result-oriented; social influencer and opinion leader; and flexibility, adaptability, and dynamic. It appears that PM Modi's personality and leadership style are a perfect fit for the extended version of the Greatman hypothesis, which is the trait theory.

The Hunters of the Alpine Ice

The Hunters of the Alpine Ice exhibition originated from a research collaboration between territorial archaeologists and the first nation Mountain Dene, or Shúhtagot’ine, of the community of Tulita, in Canada’s Northwest Territories (NWT). The exhibit was part of the public communications component of the NWT Ice Patch Study, which was an International Polar Year (2007–2008) research project.

Healthcare provider Communication and Data-Informed Message Strategies for Encouraging Older Adults to Stay up to Date on COVID-19 Vaccination.

Older adults are a high in risk of severe COVID-19 disease outcomes and experience "vaccine hesitancy." Guided by health communication models such as the Reasoned Action Approach and the Extended Parallel Process Model, online surveys designed to inform statewide public health communication efforts were administered in West Virginia, a primarily rural and fully Appalachian state, in Winter 2021 (n = 272) and Fall 2022 (n = 248). Adults ages 50+ years (N = 520) reported attitudes, intentions, and behaviors regarding COVID-19 vaccination and their related patient-provider communication. Vaccine usefulness/safety, perceived effectiveness, and subjective norms predicted behavior while perceived severity, efficacy, and usefulness/safety predicted intention to get a booster, specifically the updated Fall 2022 Omicron (bivalent) booster. As patient-provider communication (which a minority reported receiving) was a strong predictor of behavioral outcomes, characteristics of effective healthcare provider communication and considerations for public message construction are discussed.

Humor, Politics and the Global North: A Systematic Literature Review of Internet Memes

Internet users commonly use the phrase “Internet meme” to refer to a diverse range of online content, such as jokes, gossip, and videos in online communication (Shifman, 2013). Internet memes play a crucial role in influencing public discussions and activism in the digital era. Studies reveal their potential for spreading false information (Wells, 2018), trigger sociopolitical activism (Nabea, 2021), encourage contemporary protest movements, public communication and serve several sociocultural functions of society (McGowan, 2016; Tammi & Rautio, 2022). Thus, conducting a systematic review of Internet memes can shed light on their role in political activism and various sociocultural functions of the digital society. The review can also help in identifying unexplored opportunities for promoting media literacy and investigating misinformation, disinformation, and hate speech. Therefore, a systematic review of Internet memes is conducted following Okoli’s (2015) framework. The findings highlight the research gap in terms of examining their economic functions, research design, and regional research output on Internet memes. The findings also highlight the need for general awareness and clarity about the concept of the Internet meme phenomenon and its different types.

A Snapshot of COVID-19 Vaccine Discourse Related to Ethnic Minority Communities in the United Kingdom Between January and April 2022: Mixed Methods Analysis.

Existing literature highlights the role of social media as a key source of information for the public during the COVID-19 pandemic and its influence on vaccination attempts. Yet there is little research exploring its role in the public discourse specifically among ethnic minority communities, who have the highest rates of vaccine hesitancy (delay or refusal of vaccination despite availability of services). This study aims to understand the discourse related to minority communities on social media platforms Twitter and YouTube. Social media data from the United Kingdom was extracted from Twitter and YouTube using the software Netlytics and YouTube Data Tools to provide a "snapshot" of the discourse between January and April 2022. A mixed method approach was used where qualitative data were contextualized into codes. Network analysis was applied to provide insight into the most frequent and weighted keywords and topics of conversations. A total of 260 tweets and 156 comments from 4 YouTube videos were included in our analysis. Our data suggests that the most popular topics of conversation during the period sampled were related to communication strategies adopted during the booster vaccine rollout. These were noted to be divisive in nature and linked to wider conversations around racism and historical mistrust toward institutions. Our study suggests a shift in narrative from concerns about the COVID-19 vaccine itself, toward the strategies used in vaccination implementation, in particular the targeting of ethnic minority groups through vaccination campaigns. The implications for public health communication during crisis management in a pandemic context include acknowledging wider experiences of discrimination when addressing ethnic minority communities.

Глокализации коммуникативного взаимодействия: лингвоюридический аспект

The article examines the issues of glocalization and regulation of communicative interaction based on the material of the speech act of defamation. It is shown that countries, when legislating public relations in this area, proceed from the interests dictated by their own information security policy. Using the example of some post-Soviet states, which historically have common sources of law, evidence is presented of the refusal of states to unify legal norms in the field of regulating public communication activity: the speech act of defamation as an illegal and criminally punishable act is excluded from the legislation of Estonia; in Azerbaijan, Latvia, Lithuania, Tajikistan it does not have the status of a serious crime, unlike The Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation. However, this approach does not exclude the emergence of problems, primarily of a methodological nature. As an actual example, fragments of Belarusian legislation are analyzed, which reveal a terminological lacuna in understanding the categories of honor, dignity and business reputation as a triad of intangible subject rights, the attempt on which is realized through a speech act of defamation. The relevance of the legal linguistic interpretation of the designated content of the concepts is substantiated: honor as moral and ethical qualities of a person in the assessment of others; the introverted phenomenon of dignity as a social self-esteem of a person; business reputation as a set of professional and/or service qualities of a person. Based on the material of the Belarusian legislation, a meaningful detailing of the signs of the implementation of a speech act of defamation is given according to the parameters 1) factual nature, 2) object composition, 3) type of information and 4) channel of information dissemination.

Long-term assessment of social amplification of risk during COVID-19: challenges to public health agencies amid misinformation and vaccine stance

AbstractThis study employs the Social Amplification of Risk Framework to investigate the stance on COVID-19 vaccines and the spread of misinformation on Twitter in Finland. Analyzing over 1.6 million tweets and manually annotating 4150 samples, the research highlights the challenges faced by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) in steering online vaccination communication. Using BERT models, Botometer, and additional computational methods, the study classifies text, identifies bot-like accounts, and detects malicious bots. Social network analysis further uncovers the underlying social structures and key actors in Twitter discussions during the pandemic. The THL remained a primary source of COVID-19 information throughout the pandemic, maintaining its influence despite challenges posed by malicious bots spreading misinformation and adopting negative vaccine stances. However, THL ceased its Twitter activity at the end of 2022 because its posts were being exploited to gain visibility and traction for misinformation and negative vaccine stance. The study also identifies key influencers in online vaccine discussions, suggesting avenues for improving public health communication. Overall, the research underscores the need to understand social media dynamics to counter misinformation and foster accurate public communication on COVID-19 and vaccination.

Governance, policy, and health systems responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand: a qualitative study.

Since 2020, Thailand has experienced four waves of COVID-19. By 31 January 2022, there were 2.4 million cumulative cases and 22,176 deaths nationwide. This study assessed the governance and policy responses adapted to different sizes of the pandemic outbreaks and other challenges. A qualitative study was applied, including literature reviews and in-depth interviews with 17 multi-sectoral actors purposively identified from those who were responsible for pandemic control and vaccine rollout. We applied deductive approaches using health systems building blocks, and inductive approaches using analysis of in-depth interview content, where key content formed sub-themes, and different sub-themes formed the themes of the study. Three themes emerged from this study. First, the large scale of COVID-19 infections, especially the Delta strain in 2021, challenged the functioning of the health system's capacity to respond to cases and maintain essential health services. The Bangkok local government insufficiently performed due to its limited capacity, ineffective multi-sectoral collaboration, and high levels of vulnerability in the population. However, adequate financing, universal health coverage, and health workforce professionalism and commitment were key enabling factors that supported the health system. Second, the population's vulnerability exacerbated infection spread, and protracted political conflicts and political interference resulted in the politicization of pandemic control measures and vaccine roll-out; all were key barriers to effective pandemic control. Third, various innovations and adaptive capacities minimized the supply-side gaps, while social capital and civil society engagement boosted community resilience. This study identifies key governance gaps including in public communication, managing infodemics, and inadequate coordination with Bangkok local government, and between public and private sectors on pandemic control and health service provisions. The Bangkok government had limited capacity in light of high levels of population vulnerability. These gaps were widened by political conflicts and interference. Key strengths are universal health coverage with full funding support, and health workforce commitment, innovations, and capacity to adapt interventions to the unfolding emergency. Existing social capital and civil society action increases community resilience and minimizes negative impacts on the population.