This study investigates the strategies that learners of isiZulu use to understand and make themselves understood when they communicate in computer chatrooms. Chatrooms are viable tools for capturing linguistically rich interactions in conditions that are less restricted than the traditional classroom. The number and types of communication strategies that second language learners attempt, as well as their success in deploying them, have been a topic of interest to researchers in second language acquisition (SLA) because of their apparent role in the acquisition process. Strategies involve the efficient use of language to achieve successful communication in situations where there is some communicative deficiency, either in understanding or in self-expression. Examples of strategies are when learners ask for assistance from their chat partners, or when they check with their partners for confirmation of whether what they said is understood. This study explores differences in the strategies that intermediate learners of isiZulu use when the person they are chatting with is another isiZulu learner, compared to when their chat partner is a native speaker. The study also investigates whether the topic and type of interlocutor have any effect on communication strategy production. Eight learners were given cultural and personal topics to discuss alternately between their peers and native speakers. Given the tenet of the Interaction Hypothesis that language is best learned through interaction (Gass, 1997, 2003; Long, 1983, 1996), which is facilitated by communication strategies, exploring how strategies are utilized is important to the field of SLA as well as to African language pedagogy. The results of this study show no difference in the number, category and type of strategies used when chatting with peers versus native speakers about personal or cultural topics. The highest learners' use of CSs overall was to solve problems of self-expression when they chatted about cultural topics. This finding encourages the integration of culture and technology use in language classrooms. This study contributes to the small research base in technology and SLA for less commonly taught languages and, it is hoped, will promote the use of online chats and other communication technologies in the teaching of these languages.

<p>With the popularity of the gaming industry, game streaming appeared and became a global phenomenon with high participation in recent years. Game streaming platforms such as Twitch had millions of active users participated in the community by watching and chatting. Yet there was lack of investigation about how chat behaviors connected with the overall participation in game streaming community. This study aims to describe and analyze the roles taken on by viewers as they engaged in chat while watching game streaming and identify how these roles influenced participation. I designed a qualitative study with online observations on several Twitch channels streaming Overwatch. By analyzing the chatlogs collected, I identified four social roles among chatters: Lurker, Troll, Collaborator, and Moderator. A discourse analysis was applied to further investigate the interactions among these roles and how they shape the conversation in chatrooms. With these findings, I generated a four-role model that specific for chatters in Twitch personal channels. Limitations of this study and suggestions for future research were also provided.</p>

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New mass media impact on the nature of public communication and the use and gratification of existing mass media because each new medium is used and experienced differently. As a new mass medium, the Internet offers different forms of communication, such as Internet Relay Chat, Multi-User Dungeons and chatrooms. It has also combined traditional mass media, namely print, radio and television, into a single powerful medium. Due to the fact that the Internet is still an emerging medium, its long-term effects on the nature of public communication and traditional mass media warrants ongoing investigation. The first part (Part A) of this dissertation situates the Internet chronologically within the development of traditional mass media and their impact on public communication. Part B investigates Internet use among a group of professionals in South Africa. The objective is to identify how they use the Internet and the gratification they derive from it. / Communication Science / M.A. (Communication)

New mass media impact on the nature of public communication and the use and gratification of existing mass media because each new medium is used and experienced differently. As a new mass medium, the Internet offers different forms of communication, such as Internet Relay Chat, Multi-User Dungeons and chatrooms. It has also combined traditional mass media, namely print, radio and television, into a single powerful medium. Due to the fact that the Internet is still an emerging medium, its long-term effects on the nature of public communication and traditional mass media warrants ongoing investigation. The first part (Part A) of this dissertation situates the Internet chronologically within the development of traditional mass media and their impact on public communication. Part B investigates Internet use among a group of professionals in South Africa. The objective is to identify how they use the Internet and the gratification they derive from it. / Communication Science / M.A. (Communication)