Social Narratives Research Articles

"Mediatizált közösségek, identitásformáló narratívák és változó hagyományfogalom az információ korában"

Through the everyday use of information technologies (internet, mobile phones, etc.), the logic of the media increasingly determines our life, affects all elements of society and culture, and changes social subsystems such as the economy, politics, science and education. In its essence, pervasive mediatization is a meta-process that, by transforming the entire conditions of socialization and social life, also creates new social forms and enriches our image of the community-forming role of communication with previously unknown nuances. In this article, I try to highlight how the interweaving of personal, community, social and mass communication narratives conveyed in the framework of electronically mediated communication contributes to the development of a new concept of community and tradition, and how this new concept makes our community and social roles related to our communication processes more complex. This study argues that in the context of the narratives transmitted and received in the medium of new media, for the individual who is entwined through his multiplying communication relationships, a community no longer appears as a set of direct interpersonal relationships that take place in a given place, but rather as relationships of trust born through the use of different communication technologies in constant interaction with each other as a whole.

Social and Cultural Narratives of Aging Masculinities in Austria

Abstract: This paper summarizes findings from the Austrian research team of the MascAge Project involving online focus groups with Austrian men aged 65 and over and a case study in literary and cultural studies in the form of an analysis of David Schalko's novel Bad Regina (2021). Both analyses suggest that negotiations of (declining) power are central to understanding cultural and social constructions of aging masculinities in Austria in the early 2020s. This paper provides an insight into an interdisciplinary endeavor on current dimensions of aging men in Austria that contributes to a better understanding of current debates in Austrian Studies.

“We Will Die as Free People”

Research on the impact of COVID-19 on mobilization focuses extensively on the role of social media, conspiracy theories, and divisive narratives. However, individual perceptions remain insufficiently researched. This article argues that fantasmatic narratives are central to mobilization and aims to analyze changes in discourse during the pandemic as outcomes of shifts in fantasmatic logics. It applies the logics approach to the Lithuanian case to identify the main changes in fantasmatic logics of discourse that became apparent in response to government action. The article analyzes data from social media posts, gathered over a period of two months (June–August 2021), the period centered around the announcement of the “quarantine of the unvaccinated.” The analysis revealed significant changes in fantasmatic logics of discourse—the Other was no longer seen as corrupt for their own gain by the protesters, but as purely evil, which in turn led to openness to various conspiracy theories.

Beyond Hypoglossal Hype: Social Media Perspectives on the Inspire Upper Airway Stimulation System

In the landscape of sleep surgery, the Inspire® Upper Airway Stimulation (UAS) device has gained prominence as an increasingly popular treatment option for obstructive sleep apnea, prompting significant discourse across social media platforms. This study explores the social media narrative of the UAS device, particularly the nature of multimedia content, author demographics, and audience engagement on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Our analysis encompassed 423 public posts, revealing images (67.4%) and videos (28.1%) as the dominant content types, with over a third of posts authored by physicians. A notable 40% of posts were advertisements, whereas patient experiences comprised 34.5%. TikTok, although presenting a smaller sample size, showed a substantially higher engagement rate, with posts averaging 152.9 likes, compared with Instagram and Facebook at 32.7 and 41.2 likes, respectively. The findings underscore the need for otolaryngologists and healthcare professionals to provide clear, evidence-based information on digital platforms. Given social media’s expanding role in healthcare, medical professionals must foster digital literacy and safeguard the accuracy of health information online. In this study, we concluded that maintaining an evidence-based, transparent digital dialogue for medical innovations such as the UAS device necessitates collaborative efforts among physicians, health institutions, and technology companies.

The promise of digital Out-of-School programs for supporting youth in Under-resourced communities: Participatory principles for human rights-based virtual youth groups

ABSTRACT The Promise of Digital Out-of-School Programs for Supporting Youth in Under-Resourced Communities: Participatory Principles for Human Rights-based Virtual Youth Group Programming This study reports insights from a six-year phase (“Law Under Curious Minds”) of a 17-year project (Empowering Counseling Program Participatory Science Initiative) with youth experiencing low income residing in disinvested communities segregated by race in a metropolitan US city. The project offered over Zoom employed a semi-structured emergent curriculum to afford youth maximal self-determination in the intervention experiences. A human rights framework informed by critical pedagogy supported youths’ efforts to separate their identities and experiences in social systems from deficit-based social narratives. This paper provides guidelines for groupwork interventions including individually focused care, developing group identity to create a positive social space, and encouraging participation while respecting youths’ capacities for online self-revelation. The challenges and opportunities of digital out-of-school programs are described, with a focus on the potential for supporting youth excluded from mainstream opportunities by geographic distance, disability, or income.

Implementation of sustainable hospitality by improving brand equity in tourism industry: A study case

This study explores the connection between environmental sustainability narratives ("green narratives") and brand equity in the hospitality industry. It investigates how adopting and communicating sustainability practices affect customer-based brand equity (CBBE) using a comprehensive framework that integrates horizontal and vertical analysis and Kevin Lane Keller's CBBE model. The horizontal analysis measured how these efforts resonate with customers and influence brand perception. The vertical analysis examined the depth of sustainability initiatives, emphasizing their integration within the organization, such as eco-friendly layout, authentic local food, and excellent service. Keller's CBBE model guides the exploration of brand development stages, from identity to resonance, highlighting how green narratives impact brand recognition, significance, response, and resonance. Through this research, the author aims to uncover how green narratives shape customer perceptions and loyalty in the hospitality industry. The data for this study came from semi-structured interviews conducted as part of the qualitative research methodology. After that, the gathered data was investigated using Keller's model, vertical analysis, and horizontal analysis. Plataran's social media green narratives have a positive impact on brand equity because consumers respect and believe in companies that are committed to protecting the environment and cultural traditions. Brand resonance can be increased through active participation on social media, satisfaction surveys, loyalty plans, and creating a sense of community.

Conflicts With Novelty: Intelligibility Crisis and the Case of the Yugoslav Narrative

"This paper deals with the notion of intelligibility crisis in terms of conflict and harmony. Namely, we will analyze the notion of intelligibility from MacIntyre’s philosophical opus and apply it to the historical case. Intelligibility, according to MacIntyre, is the notion which provides us with contextual meaning and embeds our actions with sense within the specific tradition. Intelligibility crisis is the term that is coined to provide a descriptive account of the phenomenon when we cannot connect ourselves with a new social context in which we find ourselves in. To further elaborate on this and apply it onto an example, we shall use the historical case of the Yugoslavian nation. We will provide analysis between three different contextual narratives – pre-Yugoslav narrative, Yugoslav narrative, and post-Yugoslav narrative. After applying the notion of intelligibility crisis onto this historical case study, we will notice how people of one social narrative lose intelligibility by going into another social narrative. Furthermore, we shall consider the notions of conflicts and harmony as those that are connected to intelligibility. The main argument from the descriptive state of things which was offered would be the following – conflicting sentiments arise when we are not in harmony with the narrative within which we have attained intelligibility. Keywords: intelligibility crisis, Yugoslavia, social narratives, meaning, conflicts, harmony"

Danish public service online weather from 2005 to 2022: From meteorological data and information to leisurely commonality

This article combines two neglected elements within the history of online news: public service news sites and weather reporting, and it does so by utilising web archives, which – surprisingly – do not figure very prominently in journalism history. The two elements have – in isolation and in combination – at least in Denmark, become increasingly important as the online news sections of the two public service institutions Denmark’s Radio (DR) and TV2 consistently are among the most visited news sites and since reporting on the weather has gained in prominence and more recently, at least on DR TV, has become increasingly educational in its linking to issues of climate change. This article focusses on online news and conducts a historical analysis of the weather reporting on DR.dk from 2005 to 2022. The analysis seeks to balance the coding of journalistic texts with considerations of the online form of journalism, which here broadly means reading the webpage as a text. A key focus in the analysis is how meteorological data have been woven into cultural and social narratives, some of which are linked to climate change.

Unravelling Power Relations in Sexual Violence in the Penyalin Cahaya Movie: Sara Mills' Feminist Stylistic Analysis Framework

The number of sexual violence cases against women in Indonesia almost reached 9,000 cases from January to November 2021. This number is increasing every year as protection against victims, whom predominantly are women, remains weak. All this time, social stigma has labeled women as victims since they are weak and easily oppressed. However, the reality of sexual violence does not only affect women but also men, who have long been regarded as the ruling group. In the Penyalin Cahaya movie, the issue of sexual violence is packed with different perspectives. The image of women as victims, who have been portrayed as a second class, weak, and confined group, is not seen in this film. Conversely, men as victims choose to shut up and surrender. This research aims to reveal the representation of sexual violence victims experienced by men and women using the framework of the Feminist Stylistics Approach/FSA developed by Sara Mills. The research body consists of scenes depicting (1) forms of sexual violence, (2) the social narrative of the victims and power relations in handling cases of sexual violence in academic environments, and (3) the representation of victims who choose to remain silent to stay accepted by the society. The documentation techniques were used to look more deeply into the positions and actions taken by the victims to fight the stigma caused by sexual violence. The research results show (1) the negation against male victims of sexual violence, (2) that women’s appearance still becomes the main reason for her to be harassed and (3) academic institutions are weak in dealing with sexual violence cases.

Lost in translation? Religious elements and concepts in youth climate movements

Climate change represents the most significant challenge facing the global community. The issue in question has an impact on the younger generation, whose prospects may be jeopardised. Both younger and older generations are participating in climate movements. An illustrious instance is the School Strike for Climate, which was orchestrated by the adolescent environmentalist, Greta Thunberg. The climate movements exhibit a range of objectives, actions and focus. Various social movements construct narratives that appeal to the youth demographic. The presence of a coherent narrative aids in the formation of personal identity and the establishment of a shared sense of self among individuals. Collectively, they have the potential to advocate for equitable treatment of the environment. Climate activism, although not regarded as religious, employs religious language and concepts. Research examining the climate movements’ impact on churches has revealed the presence of religious effects. Upon conducting research on the involvement of young individuals in churches and climate movements, specifically with regard to their agency, it has been observed that climate movements are fundamentally grounded in religious language and ideals. This article analyses the religious concepts found within youth climate movements and further investigates the correlation between youth climate activism and religion through the analysis of religious rhetoric.Interdisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The interdisciplinary and multi-disciplinary nature of this contribution is spread across the fields of theology and religion. The sub-disciplines of the youth in general, youth ministry and youth work, religious rhetoric, climate change, climate justice and environmental consciousness within the academic discourse of sustainability are studied.

Socio-Cultural Dynamics and Their Implications on Gender-Based Violence: A Deep Dive into India's Diverse Contexts

This study aimed to explore the influence of socio-cultural factors on gender-based violence (GBV) within the multifaceted societal fabric of India. Recognizing the prevalence of GBV in various forms across the country, the research addressed the underlying social norms, practices, and cultural narratives that perpetuate this issue. Employing a mixed-method approach, the investigation included both qualitative and quantitative data, collecting insights through surveys, interviews, and case studies across different regions in India. The research problem revolved around understanding how deep-rooted cultural dynamics, such as caste systems, religious beliefs, and traditional gender roles, contribute to the persistence and acceptance of GBV. The methodology adopted was designed to offer a comprehensive overview of these complex interactions. Surveys measured the prevalence and attitudes towards GBV, while interviews with survivors, activists, and community leaders provided a deeper understanding of the lived experiences and societal pressures that influence GBV. Findings indicated that GBV in India is a multifaceted problem with roots in historical, cultural, and structural inequalities. There was a clear link between societal norms and the incidence of violence, with certain practices such as dowry and child marriage identified as significant contributors. Additionally, the study found that there is often a gap between existing laws and their implementation, further exacerbating the issue. The conclusion drawn emphasized that GBV in India cannot be viewed in isolation from its socio-cultural context. While legislation and policy efforts exist, they must be strengthened and coupled with societal change for effectiveness. Recommendations include the need for comprehensive educational programs to challenge and change harmful cultural norms, improved legal frameworks, and enforcement mechanisms, as well as increased support systems for survivors. The study advocates for a collaborative approach involving government, civil society, and local communities to address the root causes of GBV and promote gender equality. Keywords: Socio-Cultural Dynamics, GBV, Human rights, Deep Dive, Challenges, Barriers, Policies

East Tennessee older women’s perceptions of Medicare, Medicaid, and related health policies

Older women face unique challenges regarding health disparities. This study aims to provide an understanding of older women’s perceptions and situated experiences regarding the gendered health disparities they face, which are characterized by the policies related to older women’s health and the geopolitical and social norms in which they live. The purpose of this project is to provide policy and decision-makers with insights and a better understanding of older women’s experiences and perceptions of the policies that impact their health and healthcare. The data for this study was collected through semi-structured interviews with twelve women in Appalachian East Tennessee. Areas examined include: the women’s perceived impact of federal, state, and local policies on the participants, particularly of Medicare and Medicaid; the role of social norming and health narratives, particularly stigmatization, discrimination, and health marginalization of older women; and the role of place and place-based drivers on these areas. This study sought to determine if these factors impact the participants’ awareness or lack of awareness of policies related to older women. Findings showed that older women in East Tennessee lacked knowledge of health policies, that older women perceive systemic and individual discrimination in policymaking, clinical care, and health research, and that they perceive that place-based drivers have impacted their access to healthcare. These findings have implications for policymaking and intervention design in co-production with older women in order to mitigate older women’s health disparities.

Coastal narratives and Baltic ecotones: Painting beaches and boulders at the water’s edge

This paper evaluates Nils Kreuger’s and Teodors Ūders’ engagement with the sea on two sides of the Baltic coast, noting the diffusion of landscape, seascape, and coastline in paintings of Öland and Halland in Sweden, and the Dunte seaside in Latvia. Extending a discussion of artist encounters with coastal seaside communities reveals the ecological and cultural complexities characteristic of this environment. Kreuger’s paintings, while experimenting with tone, light, and form are rooted in the distinctive island landscape of Öland and the weather-beaten coastline of Halland. While for Ūders, the Dunte seaside presented a return to a ‘primeval’ nature, associating symbolism, impressionism, and realism with coastal life. In borrowing ideas from the natural sciences to describe visual culture, I contend with historic methods of ecological and agricultural cultivation, and contemporary ecocritical readings of art history, with regards to the Baltic coastal ecotone. The interaction with the sea and coast, on two sides of the Baltic, grapples with the regional identity, cultural specificity, and ecological variables of the shore; from woodland clearing and seaweed cultivation to the distinctiveness of the grasses, beaches, boulders, and water. This critical evaluation is not simply concerned with images of ecosystem damage and decline; rather these paintings are aware of the respective topographies, ecologies, and landscapes of the Swedish and Latvian Baltic coastline. As such, I consider these paintings not only within the social, historical, and visual narrative of Nordic and Baltic coastal art history, but as records of cultural and ecological memory.

Turning Up the Volume on Translation: Transforming Narratives in the Work of Mercè Rodoreda

This paper considers literary translation as a process that is both transformative and disruptive. Translation engenders movement, not only across languages, but it moves ideas from the centre to the periphery, and from the periphery to the centre. I argue that the translation of literature facilitates the movement and transfer of social narratives between languages and cultures, and in doing so, the very nature of these narratives is altered. Defining social narratives as “the stories we tell ourselves, not just those we tell other people, about the world(s) in which we live” (Baker 19), this paper considers how the properties of such narratives are transformed when translated for new audiences and readerships. Using the vocabulary of sound and volume, I identify and label social narratives on a spectrum of quiet and loud, moving away from previously used binary descriptions, in order to describe the power dynamics at play within world literature. I argue that the interaction between narratives in translation can be discussed in terms of amplification, muting, or silencing, in particular when considering the position and status of source and target languages. To demonstrate this new means with which to describe this process in translation, I take as a case study twentieth-century Catalan author Mercè Rodoreda’s novel La mort i la primavera (1986), and its English translation Death in Spring (2017), identifying how narratives interact and function across cultures, and how they may be made quieter or louder, in order to resonate with, or be ‘heard’ by new audiences.

How is Corruption Portrayed in the Brazilian Media? An Analysis of Corruption in News Portals and Twitter

Considering that the media influence the construction and deconstruction of reality to operate in social narratives. This article analyzes the representation of corruption in the Brazilian media, especially in news portals and on Twitter. The main aim of the study is to capture the representation of corruption in contrast with the news portals and social media, in order to map the recurrences, scandals, actors involved, convergences, and divergences between the two communication vehicles. Results show that there is a different representation of corruption in the two kinds of media, which despite dialogizing with each other through the news grid, have different approaches. In the portals, corruption refers to the denunciation of scandals involving political actors and investigations, whereas on Twitter the phenomenon stands for morality, religiosity, party disputes, 2022 elections, and old scandals. The relevance of the study occurs when addressing the different forms that corruption takes in both environments.

Stock Price Correlation Analysis with Twitter Sentiment Analysis Using The CNN-LSTM Method

The intricate interplay between stock prices, reflecting a company's intrinsic value, and multifaceted factors like economic conditions, corporate performance, and market sentiment, constitutes a vital research domain. Grounded in sentiment analysis, our study deciphers public opinions from vast textual data to gauge sentiment, leveraging Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) models. We focus on Bank Central Asia (BBCA), a prominent Indonesian banking institution, aiming to forecast stock price fluctuations by analyzing sentiment trends extracted from social media, especially Twitter. Meticulous experimentation, encompassing data segmentation, feature extraction, augmentation, and model refinement, yields significant enhancements in prediction accuracy. The CNN-LSTM model's performance improves from 73.41% to a robust 77.75% accuracy, with F1-scores rising from 73.00% to 75.42%. Importantly, strong correlations emerge between sentiment predictions and actual stock price movements, validated by Spearman correlation coefficients. Positive sentiment exhibits a substantial correlation of 0.745 with stock price changes, while negative sentiment exerts notable influence with a correlation coefficient of 0.691. In summary, our study advances the field of sentiment-driven stock price prediction, showcasing deep learning's effectiveness in extracting sentiment from social media narratives. The implications extend to understanding market dynamics and potentially integrating sentiment-aware strategies into financial decision-making. Future research directions could explore model transferability across financial contexts, real-time sentiment data integration, and interpretability techniques for enhanced practicality in sentiment-driven predictions.

Social justice narrative research: From articulation to intra-action and ethico-onto-epistemology.

Social justice narrative research: From articulation to intra-action and ethico-onto-epistemology.

The development of social capital in a peer-led mHealth cognitive behavioral antiretroviral therapy adherence intervention for HIV + adolescents and young adults

ABSTRACT Adherence Connection for Counseling, Education, and Support (ACCESS)-I is a peer-led mHealth antiretroviral therapy adherence intervention for adolescents and young adults living with HIV who are in treatment but have detectable viral loads. Participants received five online sessions with peer health coaches who followed a structured intervention manual. Peers maintained intervention fidelity but also engaged in casual discussion that was not directly related to ART adherence or HIV. We conducted a qualitative analysis of the casual interactions that occurred during the ACCESS I intervention. Sessions were transcribed and coded, and these casual interactions were then coded into 10 subcodes to document their content, and also coded for three types of social capital – emotional, informational, and instrumental. Emotional and Informational social capital codes were the most common, while instrumental codes were rare. Activities was the most common topic overall, while encouragement was more common in emotional social capital narratives and personal experience was more common in informational social capital narratives. These casual interactions may strengthen peer-participant relationships, building social capital that could then be used to encourage positive behavior change. Although social capital was not directly measured, these analyses illustrate the value of attending to seemingly casual interactions in peer-led interventions.

Humanising portrayals of children with psycho-social differences in children’s and young adult literature

ABSTRACT Children who are othered due to their psycho-social differences have a right to academic, social, and emotional inclusion in schools. Inclusion can be facilitated using children’s and young adult literature (C/YAL), yet characters with psycho-social differences are rarely represented and may be portrayed using a deficit perspective. This study centres on Humanising Pedagogy, creating classroom dialogue that explicitly names humanising constructs and interrupts deficit narratives. We developed Humanising Pedagogy constructs for a content analysis of C/YAL: social inclusion, reciprocal relationships, agency and autonomy, assets and strengths, and creative problem-solving. Using six books, we also identified examples of social barriers and deficit narratives that impeded the main characters’ full inclusion. Additional humanising constructs were identified by completing multiple rounds of analysis: hope, empathy, belonging, and creativity. Recommendations for educators are included.

When Epidemic Outbreaks Meet Social Media: Collective Illness Narratives on WeChat During COVID-19 Omicron Infection in China

ABSTRACT This study investigates the landscape of collective illness narratives on social media in China during December 2022 and January 2023, when nearly one billion people were infected with the COVID-19 Omicron virus. By analyzing 655 private social media posts, conducting in-depth interviews with 50 individuals, and organizing 6 focus group discussions with 24 participants, this study explores how COVID-19 Omicron infection became normalized and widely discussed on private social media platforms, notably WeChat Moments. This study unveils distinct features that arise when illness narratives and social media intersect and reveals how people exercised moral imagination and depathologized perception in social media illness narratives. The article provides narrative dynamics during the pandemic in a collective manner and sheds light on the reshaping of illness narratives in the era of social media, offering insights for future pandemic responses.