Fitness relates to several life aspects, such as health and exercise. Because of its vast popularity, it is often referred to as a ‘fitness trend’ where the body has a central role. Due to technological advances, fitness has found its way into mobile applications and Social Network Sites (SNSs), prompting the linguistic analysis of these environments. This study investigates how female fitness is discussed by female personal trainers (PTs) online. A mixed approach of quantitative methodology (Corpus Linguistics) and qualitative textual analysis (Discourse Analysis) was adopted. Following Baker’s corpus-driven approach (2006), a specialised corpus was compiled with a total of 440 posts (51,779 tokens) from the Instagram accounts of three female professional PTs. Various patterns were presented under four themes: mind and body, physical strength, empowerment, and the FITNESS IS A JOURNEY metaphor. The most salient patterns discussed were health, aesthetics, weight-loss, and body-representation. There was strong evidence of other trends (‘fitspiration’, ‘HAES’, and ‘body positivity’) which promote a positive body image and strength (physical and mental) as a health indicator. In sum, the findings provide a female PT’s perspective on fitness and show how female fitness is promoted by encouraging positive narratives around fitness, the body and ourselves.

The use of Facebook is increasing rapidly and its pedagogical uses are endless. University students are part of a new generation, working with ease and confidence in this social environment. This article explores the use of Facebook as an additional communication tool in an undergraduate taxation module presented at the University of Pretoria and evaluates students’ perceptions of the effectiveness of such a tool. A Facebook group was created to enhance interaction between students and lecturers and students and their peers. Participation was voluntary, and the students completed a survey at the end of the semester to evaluate their experience in the group. The results of the study show that, although the use of a Facebook group as a communication tool cannot replace the formal learning management system of the university, respondents’ perception of the use of the tool was that Facebook could be used as an additional academic communication tool in all of their subjects. It is the lecturers’ responsibility to learn how to use this tool and incorporate it effectively into their teaching strategies. Copyright 2012, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Hill, T 2012, Facebook as a tool for communication with under graduate taxation students, MCom dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd < http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-03092012-111246 / > F12/4/166/gm / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Taxation / MCom / Unrestricted

This paper assesses the relationship between Social Networking Sites (SNS) and the effect of its excessive use on a user’s spelling capabilities and academic performance by using a single-factor, multi-level between subjects design (One-way ANOVA). The One way Anova was applied to SNS use (independent variable) and spelling and academic performance (dependent variables). Furthermore, the independent variable consists of three levels, a few times a month or never, a few times a week and every day. Out of a possible 107 respondents a total of 56 respondents, distributed across the various groups, completed the test. A spelling test together with the academic records was used as an instrument to measure their spelling capabilities. The findings suggest that students that make excessive use of SNS performed worse in the spelling test than students that do not make use of SNS or make use of SNS a few times a month. In addition, it is established that the SNS use has no effect on spelling. Conclusions from this study are that social networking sites have many various impacts on the youth, some being positive and others negative. Although the end result was that SNS do not “significantly” affect your spelling capabilities it is suggested that further research be carried out on this topic on a larger and more representative sample. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / tm2015 / Psychology / MA / Unrestricted

Recent technological developments have changed the lifestyle of people around the world. The business sector is not an exception, and companies frequently adjust to such changes by investing in their online presence. Furthermore, the internet provides consumers with different channels to find and share their purchase experiences, and such digital interactions result in bringing forth the electronic word of mouth (eWOM). Although eWOM is an essential aspect of the overall marketing mix of modern firms, its research is heavily limited to the developed world. Thus, a qualitative study of 10 millennials from Pakistan was designed to understand how three eWOM components, i.e., Valence, Channels, and Length, affect consumer purchase intentions. The data was collected through semi-structured online interviews, and the findings show that each component has a significant impact on purchase intentions. The result confirms factors such as communicator credibility, trustworthiness, and Valence ratio as essential characteristics of the eWOM components. This study contributes to further understanding of global consumers and help companies to identify eWOM components useful for promoting and selling their products in the Pakistani market.

博士(技術・革新的経営) / Doctor of Philosophy in Technology and Innovative Management / 同志社大学 / Doshisha University

This empirical investigation sheds new light on a neglected topic of research on mobile phone use among the youth population of refugees that can help understand better how vulnerable youth can maximize the use of available resources in an active attempt to reduce their distresses and overwrite a better future for themselves and their families. Therefore, in light of James Coleman's social capital theory, I examined the use of mobile phones and social networking sites among 64 young Syrian refugees aged between 14 and 25 years old living in Lebanon. / 博士(グローバル社会研究) / Doctor of Philosophy in Global Society Studies / 同志社大学 / Doshisha University

Social network sites (SNS) were developed during the 90’s and got popularized in the mid 2010’s. SNSs are social platforms, where users can create a profile, add a network of contacts and communicate online. The LGBTQ+ community relies heavily on SNSs for information, exploration of identity, social support and community, but due to their marginalized status, they are more prone to victimization online. Whereas anonymity can protect users from bodily harm, it can’t protect against harassment and hatred, which is why it’s important to emphasize on user-centered design for marginalized communities within HCI. The objective with this study is to define design suggestions for future SNSs, based on the values of LGBTQ+ users. Two focus groups recruited from the local LGBTQ+ community in Berlin, consisting of seven participants in total, gathered in person. The focus groups discussed open ended questions around the topics of: safety, anonymity, accountability, social support and community online, seen from a queer perspective. The results of this study had correlations with prior research within HCI research and paints a picture of the differences between the “digital well- being” norm and the severity of the threats affecting the digital wellbeing of marginalized users. In conclusion, HCI and digital well-being research needs to be elaborated on, in regards to marginalized communities and their benefits and challenges of SNSs use and how that could be incorporated in a value sensitive design approach for future development.

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Idag publiceras stora mängder bilder, och framförallt selfies, i olika sociala nätverk. Uppsatsensyftar till förstå företags användande av fenomenet selfiekampanjer på sociala medier.Varumärkesspridningen och marknadsföringsstrategin undersöks, dessutom studerasdeltagarnas beteendemönster vid publiceringen av bilder. En fallstudie koncentrerad till en avStadiums selfiekampanjer, kampanjen #whatsyourdistance på Instagram, har genomförts.Undersökningen innefattade en kortare telefonintervju med en av nyckelpersonerna bakomkampanjen samt en kvalitativ innehållsanalys av de bilder som fungerat som tävlingsbidrag.Arbetet visar bland annat att Stadium använt ett aktuellt fenomen för att få människor attpublicera bilder och därigenom sprida Stadiums varumärke. Stadium har också anpassatselfiekampanjen så att den genomförs i enlighet med deltagarnas aktiviteter i det vardagligalivet. Dessutom påvisas att deltagarna huvudsakligen har följt anvisningarna för kampanjen,men har en tendens till antingen bristande kunskaper i plattformens teknik eller problem medtolkandet av instruktionerna för tävlingsmedverkan. / Today a large amount of images, and especially selfies, are published in different socialnetwork. The essay aims to understand companies use of the phenomenon selfie campaigns onsocial media. The brand proliferation and marketing strategy are studied, furthermore theparticipants’ behavior patterns when uploading images are examined. A case study concentratedon one of Stadium’s selfie campaigns, the campaign #whatsyourdistance, have beenimplemented. The study included a short telephone interview with one of the key personsbehind the campaign, as well as a qualitative content analysis of the images that served asentries. The work shows, among other things, that Stadium used a current phenomenon in orderto get people to post pictures, and thereby disseminate Stadium’s brand. Stadium has alsoadapted the selfie campaign so that it is carried out in accordance to the participants’ activitiesin their everyday life. In addition, it is shown that the participants mainly followed theinstructions for the campaign, but has a tendency to have a deficient knowledge of theplatform’s technology or problems with the interpretation of instructions for participation.