This research aims to investigate the impact of social media influencer’s credibility dimensions (Trustworthiness, Attractiveness, and Expertise), in shaping consumer's behaviour (Purchasing intention of customers and customer's attitude towards the brand). This proposed theoretical framework is based on social learning theory and the theoretical implications of the previous literature which is related to social media influencer marketing. For this empirical study, the data has been collected from Pakistani consumers who are following social media influencers who share and endorse products related to the fashion industry. Data is collected from 149 individuals out of which 135 were valid respondents.  Results reveal that social media influencer's credibility dimension (Trustworthiness, Attractiveness, and Expertise) positively influence the customer’s attitude towards the brands as well as the purchase intentions of the customers. In addition, the study has significance for social media influencers in the fashion and style sector in terms of understanding the factors of followers' devotion to them and the noticeable effects of followers' allegiance on their behaviour. This study adds to the literature on social media influencer marketing by demonstrating the importance of follower’s perspective towards the social media influencers. Previous studies lack in providing the Pakistan perspective related to social media influencermarketing and this research attempts to fulfill that gap. Another important aspect of this study is that the pictures of influencers have been used to conduct this research.

Technological advancements and affordability enable voicing of social injustice, feelings of deprivation, and oppression. Spatial barriers no longer pose obstacles to connecting with like-minded (or dissimilar) others to define and refine ingroup and outgroup. Some scholars anticipate that the internet liberates the discussion of opinions, others claim social networking platforms play a role in the polarisation of the public by creating echo chambers. However, it is recognised that ideas, ideologies, and social movements spread across the internet at an unprecedented pace. Connecting with others with whom one shares deprivation in a support network offers a sense of belonging. Broad scholarly literature addresses opinion polarisation and potential radicalisation in online social media platforms. However, quantifying radicalisation trajectories in fringe online communities like the misogynist incels are still to be done. In this thesis I study the online presence of the incel community. Incels are mostly young men who feel stigmatised and need to hide their incel existence. Incels voice their feelings of deprivation of a relationship and sex with a willing partner. This unfulfilled masculinity and sense of entitlement to sex cause frustration and anger which are vented in online forums blaming primarily women and feminism. Calls for action to social change, even for violence is common. However, incels do not unanimously consider violence a solution, many demonstrate the tame side of the so-called blackpilled mindset, the acceptance of powerlessness, and nihilism. Regardless, some scholars view the community as potentially dangerous to society, labelling them as terrorists. This study investigates whether participating registered users of the Incels.is website display increasing tendency toward expressing utterances with the themes of misogyny, harassment, nihilism, and moral outrage in their posted messages, and whether users gradually become more aligned with the general perception of incels in previous scholarly work. In other words, this work tests whether active participation increases the frequency of utterances of misogyny, harassment, and moral outrage, thus demonstrating a radicalisation tendency or increased nihilism. To answer the research question, I first scraped the Incels.is website, and retained ~5.38M posts published over 4 years for analysis. Next, a subset of posts was manually labelled to train a supervised text classification model (BERT). Finally, the results of the classification task were complemented with Ordinary Least Squares regression (n = 4623). The analyses uncover temporal user-level radicalisation trajectories, and increased nihilism. More specifically, the duration of active participation (in days) and the number of posted messages positively predict the count of moral outrage, misogynistic, harassing, and nihilistic content.

The rapid expansion of technology has posed challenges in moderating hateful content on social media platforms, particularly in non-text formats like TikTok videos. This study addresses a significant gap in scholarly research by examining the intersection of TikTok and journalistic content within the Ethiopian diaspora community. The research aims to investigate the prevalence and characteristics of hate speech in ethnic-based social media platforms operated by the Ethiopian diaspora, focusing on two prominent platforms: Ethio 360 Media and Gadaa Media Network (Gadaa MN), representing the Amhara and Oromo ethnic groups, respectively. Employing content analysis methodology, the study examines a hundred TikTok video clips from these platforms, drawing upon the theoretical framework of Framing Theory. This framework encompasses Frame Amplification, Frame Transformation, and Frame Contest, allowing for the identification of distinct patterns in hate speech language and content presentation between the two platforms. Key findings highlight several significant insights: (1) Both Ethio 360 Media and Gadaa MN exhibit similarities in hate speech, particularly in incitement of violence or threats. However, Ethio 360 Media employs uniquely demeaning and dehumanizing language, absent in Gadaa MN's journalistic content; (2) Analysis of hate speech types reveals differences in prevalence and focus within journalistic content, with both platforms engaging in politics-based hate speech but disparities emerging in ethnicity-based hate speech; (3) Examination of targeted entities unveils differing framing strategies, with both platforms targeting the Ethiopian government but diverging in their approaches toward other entities such as the Oromo ethnic group and educational institution; (4) Analysis of news coverage genres indicates variations in content presentation, with Ethio 360 Media relying more on commentary while Gadaa MN focuses predominantly on straight newscasts; (5) Exploration of news coverage areas reveals distinct content focuses between the two platforms, with Ethio 360 Media covering Ethiopia as a whole and various regions within the country, while Gadaa MN primarily focuses on the Oromia Region, occasionally covering foreign countries or regions.

This research analyzed three Latina social media celebrities’ self-presentations on Instagram and focused on whether or not the content they published potentially challenges or simply perpetuates stereotypical tropes of Latinas found in mainstream media. This qualitative study took an Ideological Critical approach through a textual analysis that was informed by Feminist Theory. More specifically the research focused on: What were Latina social media celebrities self-presentations on Instagram that characterize what a Latina is? How were Latina social media celebrities self-presentations different from or similar to, mainstream stereotypical tropes for Latinas? Lastly, how do the Latina social media celebrities’ self-presentations compare and contrast, what type of themes emerged?

The impact of international mobility and globalization on universities has led to a greater need for students. Thus, throughout students stay in their destinatio ncountry, prospective students access a variety of sources of information and make simultaneous decisions about where to travel; decision making is required at everystage of the travel process (pre-travel, during travel, and post travel). Previous to the advent of social media dominate traditional sources of information, such as print media, educational fairs and university websites. The social media websites such as social networking (Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn,), microblogging (Twitter,Tumblr), photo sharing (Snapchat, Instagram, Pinterest), Video sharing (YouTube,Facebook Live, Periscope, Vimeo) become an alternative source of university information as many young people and students engage, work and participate in this online community. The purpose of this thesis is to research the influence of social media on the decision-making process of Ethiopian educational tourists in Poland, as well as how other factors (such as others’ comments, replies, and tour reviews) influence the process of their travel decision making. The data collection tool was a survey that included demographic questions, closed ended questions, multiple choice questions, a rating scale (Likert 5 scale model), and a few open-ended questions. The survey questionnaire was completed by 137 international students. The study's findings indicate that social media has a sizable influence and role as a source of information for Ethiopian educational tourists in Poland at every stage of their travel decisionmaking process, and that other factors (such as others' comments, replies, and tourreviews) influenced their decision-making process as well. Overall, this study helps to gather insights into Ethiopian educational tourists' decision-making behavior in Poland. Due to the fact that the research will contribute cross-national knowledge about educational tourists' behavior during the travel decision-making process in a destination, it will have a significant impact on promoting domestic travel and tourism in Poland.

This research investigates the impact of social identity on employee engagement with companyowned social media platforms and how employees' identification with their organization influences their willingness to engage with these platforms. Drawing on Social Identity theory (SIT), this study explores how constructs like social categorization, social identification, and social comparison shape employee behaviors on company-owned social media (CoSM). A qualitative methodology was employed, involving 15 semi-structured interviews with employees from Northvolt, a Swedish battery manufacturer. Participants ranged from Quality Control Associates to Team Leaders, providing a comprehensive view across different roles within the company. Data was analyzed using thematic analysis to identify patterns and insights relevant to the research questions. Findings indicate that social identity significantly influences employee engagement on CoSM through themes such as Professionalism and Representation, Sense of Belonging and Unity, In-group Favoritism and Fairness, and Shared Values and Mission Alignment. Employees align their social media activities with professional and company values, contributing to a sense of belonging and unity while navigating the dynamics of in-group favoritism and shared organizational values. The study also reveals that employees' identification with their organization affects their willingness to engage with CoSM platforms, driven by themes such as Commitment to Organizational Goals, Influence of Leadership Actions, Job Satisfaction and Loyalty, and Personal Values and Organizational Fit. Engagement on CoSM reflects and reinforces commitment to organizational goals, influenced by leadership behaviors and aligned with personal values and organizational mission. The research highlights the practical implications of using CoSM for enhancing employee engagement, suggesting that organizations can leverage these platforms to foster a cohesive and committed workforce. Theoretical implications emphasize the role of SIT in understanding digital interactions within organizational contexts. Limitations include the focus on a single organization and the qualitative nature of the study, suggesting avenues for future research to explore diverse organizational settings and quantitative analyses. / Denna forskning undersöker effekten av social identitet på anställdas engagemang med företagsägda sociala medieplattformar och hur anställdas identifiering med sin organisation påverkar deras vilja att engagera sig i dessa plattformar. Med utgångspunkt i teorin om social identitet undersöker denna studie hur konstruktioner som social kategorisering, social identifikation och social jämförelse formar anställdas beteenden på CoSM. En kvalitativ metod användes, 15 semistrukturerade intervjuer med anställda från Northvolt, en svensk batteritillverkare. Deltagarna var allt från kvalitetskontrollmedarbetare till teamledare, vilket gav en heltäckande bild av olika roller inom företaget. Data analyserades med hjälp av tematisk analys för att identifiera mönster och insikter som är relevanta för forskningsfrågorna. Resultaten tyder på att social identitet i hög grad påverkar medarbetarnas engagemang på CoSM genom teman som Professionalism och representation, känsla av tillhörighet och enighet, favorisering och rättvisa inom gruppen samt gemensamma värderingar och uppdragsanpassning. Anställda anpassar sina aktiviteter i sociala medier till professionella värderingar och företagsvärderingar, vilket bidrar till en känsla av tillhörighet och enighet samtidigt som de navigerar i dynamiken i gruppfavorisering och delade organisatoriska värderingar. Studien visar också att medarbetarnas identifikation med sin organisation påverkar deras vilja att engagera sig med CoSM-plattformar, som drivs av teman som engagemang för organisatoriska mål, inflytande av ledarskapshandlingar, arbetstillfredsställelse och lojalitet samt personliga värderingar och organisatorisk passform. Engagemang i CoSM återspeglar och förstärker engagemanget för organisatoriska mål, influerat av ledarskapsbeteenden och i linje med personliga värderingar och organisationens uppdrag. Forskningen belyser de praktiska konsekvenserna av att använda CoSM för att öka medarbetarnas engagemang, vilket tyder på att organisationer kan utnyttja dessa plattformar för att främja en sammanhållen och engagerad arbetsstyrka. Teoretiska implikationer betonar SIT:s roll för att förstå digitala interaktioner inom organisatoriska sammanhang. Begränsningar inkluderar fokus på en enda organisation och studiens kvalitativa karaktär, vilket föreslår vägar för framtida forskning för att utforska olika organisatoriska inställningar och kvantitativa analyser

This study examines the intricate dynamics of online anonymity in the context of Fishbrain, a platform for fishing enthusiasts. By conducting semi-structured interviews with ten Fishbrain users, I scrutinized the experiences and understanding of online anonymity through a deductive thematic analysis approach. This research was further underpinned by a comprehensive platform analysis. Using Eklund et al.'s framework [15], I studied six themes that encompass both macro and micro-regulating structures that govern online anonymity. The research findings highlight the pivotal role of these structures, revealing that users frequently balance the advantages of disclosing personal information against potential risks. This study accentuates the need to consider a spectrum of factors—commercial, legal, and technological structures, alongside the factual, social group, and physical facets of anonymity—when investigating online anonymity. This research expands the existing body of knowledge on online anonymity and provides valuable insights for platforms like Fishbrain to better address their users' concerns and customize their features and policies effectively.