Many schools, classrooms, and homes naively embrace the frequent use technology assuming its newness and apparent helpfulness must be utilized to live in the modern age. However, many fail to ask what effect the frequency and form of technological use is having on the Christian formation of adolescents. If one of the primary goals of Christian education is to promote Christian formation, this must be considered by all Christian educators as well. This research serves to demonstrate the effects of both the frequency and form of digital media use among adolescents and provide practical implications for Christian educators and families alike. Chapter 1 details the problem evident within American culture that has seen the use (and subsequent overuse) of digital media--specifically among adolescents. This chapter serves to demonstrate the need for research. Chapter 2 looks at the current literature base in regard to the frequency and form of digital media use among adolescents. Additionally, attention is given to the concept of Christian formation both in definition and in process. Finally, the relationship of digital media use to adolescent Christian formation is addressed based upon the precedent literature. The overall research design can be found in chapter 3 as it looks at the purpose, design overview, population, delimitations, and instrumentation. The use of the Faith Maturity Scale (FMS) was utilized alongside an additional quantitative look at the frequency and form of digital media use among adolescents. Special attention was given to students in Christian schools in the United States. Chapter 4 presents the research findings demonstrating nearly no correlation between the frequency and form of digital media use and the Christian formation of adolescents. Each area demonstrated no significant correlation coefficient worth noting. Specific areas worth noting specifically within the FMS are discussed as possibilities for future study. Chapter 5 analyzes the present dating noting the need for Christians to use various tools within God's creation (such as digital media) for good purposes just as was mandated in the Garden of Eden (Gen 1:28). The tools given are not what prohibit Christian formation. Rather, the applications of these tools by the human heart have the ability to produce both good and evil (Jer 17:9).

This research analyses the impact of transformation and hybridization processes at the intersection of art, science and technology. These forms of transformation and hybridization are the result of contemporary interactions between classic and digital media. It discusses the concept of 'remediation' presented by Bolter and proposes the concept of 'digital ekphrasis,' which is based on Manovich' s analyses of the interactions between classic and digital media. This is a model which, borrowed from semiotic structures, encompasses the technical as well as aesthetic and philosophical transformations of contemporary media. The thesis rejects Baudrillard's and Virilio's proposed concepts of 'digital black hole' as the only possible form of evolution of contemporary digital media. It proposes a different concept for the evolutionary model of contemporary hybridization processes based on contemporary forms of hybridizations that are rooted in aesthetic, philosophical and technological developments. This concept is argued as emancipated from the 'religious' idea of a 'divine originated' perfect image that Baudrillard and Virilio consider to be deteriorated from contemporary hybridization experimentation. The thesis proposes, through historical examples in the fine arts, the importance of transmedia migrations and experimentations as the framework for a philosophical, aesthetic and technological evolutionary concept of humanity freed from the restrictions of religious imperatives.

The increasing importance of media, especially digital media, in society has been studied widely, from identity formation to activist movements. In international relations studies digital media’s impact has focused considerably on public diplomacy 2.0. This focus has caused a more holistic view of digital diplomacy to be neglected. This study explores how digital media’s impacts as a part of mediatization are seen within the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. Semi-structured interviews with 11 officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were conducted. These led to the creation of three thematic fields. The first one looks into how the agency of the Ministry is seen to be impacted by digitalization. The second section looks into how community building is seen as essential. And the third part investigated how the ministry evaluates the impacts of digitalization on other ministries of foreign affairs in the light of its own experience. The finding is that the ministry is expanding into a new digital sphere and that in the process of so doing the Ministry is not a tabula rasa, but it mirrors the cultural and political context of the country within the online sphere.

This paper addresses many concepts and concerns related to the previously underexplored topic of CGI and narrative in Hollywood children’s films. Through an analysis of scenes from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Golden Compass, The Spiderwick Chronicles, and Inkheart it demonstrates that CGI spectacle does not exist in opposition to narrative progression as some scholars have suggested. Instead, by drawing on theorists like Lefebvre and Furstenau (2002), this investigation asserts that belief in fictional realism is paramount to spectatorship. It is shown that CGI can be used in a way that respects realism in the Bazin tradition and continuity editing in order to allow the spectator to believe in the fictional reality of narrative events. This belief is then connected to the emotional engagement of the spectator by drawing on ideas from Smith’s (1994) structure of sympathy. The ultimate goal of this paper is to present a conceptualization of CGI that creates a stronger distinction between reality and film realism than previous literature has suggested.

The digital media landscape has fundamentally changed the way audiences consume and share content, creating many opportunities and challenges for news companies and organizations of all types (private, public and non-profit). This research investigates how the latter have gained the ability to produce and distribute journalistic-like content through their owned channels, thus circumventing journalists and engaging with their audiences directly. It shows how digital media have altered the manner in which news about organizations is disseminated, and, subsequently, the roles of PR practitioners and journalists. Through a series of interviews with seasoned experts in these two competing and collaborating fields, this project provides insights regarding the erosion of journalists’ gatekeeping role and the advent of PR practitioners as content creators. It supports prior research regarding the value of reciprocity between journalists and PR practitioners and offers orientations as to the future of these two professions in the context of the digital media landscape.

A model for ‘techno-vernacular’ creative production as an area of practice that investigates the characteristics of this production and its application in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) learning was proposed. This dissertation consists of a study involving four workshops conducted between 2013 and 2014 that sought to examine the impact of the following combined methods a) culturally situated design, which connects vernacular art and crafts with standards-based STEM principles and allows users to simulate and develop their own creations; b) art-based learning, which is effective in stimulating the development of 21st century skills such as creativity, learning, and innovation; and c) educational applications of new technologies on UEG learning in STEAM. Findings show that this combination led to an increase in interest and motivation among UEGs. This study demonstrates the connection between technical literacy, diversity, and culture through TVC taxonomy and a learning ecology for teaching STEAM. This research aims to make a significant contribution to interdisciplinary education by bringing the culturally situated design and arts-based learning communities to STEAM through the learning sciences and to further scientific understanding of UEG interest and motivation as a model to inform future research.

During the last 30 years computer and videogames have grown into a large entertainment industry of economic as well as cultural and social importance. As a distinctive field of academic inquiry begins to evolve in the form of Game Studies, the majority of approaches can be identified as emerging either from a background of literary theory which motivates a concentration on narrative structures or from a dedicated focus on the rules of video and computer games. However, one of the most evident properties of those games is their shared participation in a variety of spatial illusions. Although most researchers share the view that issues related to mediated space are among the most significant factors characterising the new medium, as of yet, no coherent conceptual exploration of space and spatial representation in video and computer games has been undertaken. This thesis focuses on the novel spatial paradigms emerging from computer and video games. It aims to develop an original theoretical framework that takes the hybrid nature of the medium into account. The goal of this work is to extend the present range of methodologies directed towards the analysis of digital games. In order to reveal the roots of the spatial apparatus at work an overview of the most significant conceptions of space in western thought is given. Henri Lefebvre's reading of space as a triad of perceived, conceived and lived space is adopted. This serves to account for the multifaceted nature of the subject, enables the integration of divergent spatial conceptions as part of a coherent framework, and highlights the importance of experiential notions of spatiality. Starting from Michel Foucault's notion of the heterotopia, game-space is posited as the dynamic interplay between different spatial modalities. As constitutive elements of the dynamic spatial system mobilized by digital games the following modalities are advanced: the physical space of the player, the space emerging from the narrative, the rules, the audiovisual representation and the kinaesthetic link between player and game. These different modalities are examined in detail in the light of a selected range of exemplary games. Based on a discussion of film theory in this context an original model that serves to distinguish between different visual representational strategies is presented. A chapter is dedicated to the analysis of the crucial and often overlooked role of sound for the generation of spatial illusions. It is argued that sound has to be regarded as the privileged element that enables the active use of representational space in three dimensions. Finally the proposed model is mobilised to explore how the work of contemporary artists relates to the spatial paradigms set forth by digital games. The critical dimension of artistic work in this context is outlined. The thesis concludes with a discussion of the impact of the prevalent modes of spatial practice in computer and video games on wider areas of everyday life.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on January 31, 2008) Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (MArch (Prof)) -- University of Pretoria, 2008. / Abstract in English. Includes bibliographical references.