This research outlines studies about the relationship between social integration process of Japanese immigrants in Sweden and how social media assists in this process. The purpose of this research includes: To find out the reasons of migration to Sweden for six Japanese immigrants, any difficulties that they faced at the beginning of their immigration process and/or any positive qualities that they found in living in Sweden, whether they have accessed social media since they have moved in, if they do so, how the social media has been used and also, whether the social media has had a role to play in contributing to help their social integration process. In addition, it has been considered whether the participants have plans to return to Japan. In Sweden, there is relatively small Japanese migrant population. This social science research paper is the first in Sweden which explores the immigration process of Japanese migrants into Sweden. This research will help to deepen the understanding of Japanese migrants’ experiences and contributes in assisting the social services community as well as other migrants.

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The blog is a typical content production platform after BBS and QQ. Despite the launches of the Micro-blog, WeChat, and other emerging social media applications, blogs possess the basic features and mode of operation of social media in general. To study the environment of the blog, the relationship between bloggers, followers, online media and the changes in blogging practices have important theoretical and practical significance. These reveal the influential factors of contemporary online content production; reflect the logic of practices of content producers, the relationships between content producers and consumers, and development trends; and have theoretical and practical significance. Scholars have mainly focused on typical problems in the blogosphere, such as blogging behaviour and the influential factors impacting this. It is important to position the blog into a social context and comprehensively analyse it. Except political and economic field mentioned in this Bourdieu's field theory, this research added media ecology as an additional macro environment factor. Meanwhile, motivations theory and Uses and Gratifications theory were used to support micro-level analysis. This research holistically and systematically investigated the social environment, blogging practices and key relationships within the blogosphere by employing interviews and content analysis of blog posts. It reflected on the features and patterns of content production, dissemination and consumption. Moreover, it provided a new paradigm in studying content production in the social media era. This study found that as key content producers, bloggers' practices are not only influenced by political and economic factors but also constrained by the Internet and media technology. The features of the relationships between bloggers and the political field centre on dialogue and compromise, the relationships between bloggers and economic field involve support and integration, and the relationships between bloggers and media ecology are essentially interdependence and symbiosis. This study pointed out that the field is constantly changing and full of choices and the change of the field itself determines changes in blogging practices. It is a dynamic relationship. The motivations for blogging impact on blogging strategies. Extrinsic stimulation, intrinsic motivations and emotional reasons all influence blogging practices and strategies. The changes of blogging practices are influenced by the macro environment and the agency of bloggers. The basic blogging strategy is to assess the gain and loss. The research sorted out the relationships between the three main groups in the blogosphere, i.e. bloggers, followers, and online media. Blogger-to-blogger relationships are moving from competition towards cooperative relationships. Blogger-to-follower relationships have developed from a "writer-reader" relationship to "producer-customer" relationship. Blogger-to-online-media is transiting from dependence to the diversification of content operations. The primary contributions of this work are as follows. First, it has extended the application of field theory. When analysing the field of cultural production, Bourdieu only discusses political and economic influences. However, this study considers media ecology as the most important and direct factor. Second, it has revealed the paradigm of text-based content production by analysing blogging practices. The blogosphere is dynamic. Bloggers exert their agencies in response to the environment. The common features of the blogosphere and even the field of content production itself are changing from simple to complex and from simplification to diversification. Third, it has perfected the application of the concept of "cultural capital". Bourdieu noted that cultural capital is basically represented by educational qualification. This study found that in contemporary online content production, prior experience of working in media should be regarded as a vital indicator of cultural capital and assessing content production as it directly influences bloggers' content production. Fourth, it has emphasised the relationship between content producers and consumers. Field theory only focuses on the relationship among cultural producers and between cultural producers and brokers (publishers). However, the relationship between content producers and consumers is an essential interdependent and contradictory relationship. Therefore, by adding this relationship, this study holistically elucidated relational paradigms within the blogosphere. Key words: blogging practices, motivations, social milieu, dynamic relationships, capital. 博客是继BBS、QQ之后出现的具有社交功能的内容生产平台。虽然微博、微信等社交媒体应用相继出现，但博客已具备了社交媒体的基本特征和运作模式，在社群中有一定的影响力。本论文主要研究博客生存、发展环境，博主与博主、博主与粉丝、博主与平台之间的关系及互动，以及博主行为变化的规律，并对当下内容生产的影响因素、生产者的行为逻辑、生产者及受众间的相互关系及其发展趋势进行分析，具有重要的理论价值和现实意义。学界围绕博客使用的行为特征及其影响因素等问题，进行了有价值的探讨，其中多是针对博客的某一具体议题进行分析。而将博客作为内容生产媒介，并放在社会大背景下，进行全方位、多角度分析的研究，并不多见。本研究以布尔迪厄的场域理论为基础，除了本理论强调的政治场域和经济场域以外，还加上媒介生态作为宏观环境的因素，加上动机理论及使用与满足等相关理论作为微观理论。通过深度访谈法及内容分析法，访谈博主、分析博文、检阅文献，对博客所处的宏观社会环境、博客的写作行为、场域内的主要关系进行了较为全面、系统及深入地研究，分析内容生产、传播、消费的特征和规律，进而为社交媒体下的内容生产研究提供新的范式。本研究发现，博主作为内容生产的主体，其写作内容不仅受到社会政治、经济场域的影响，同时还受互联网和媒体技术场域的制约。主要关系特征表现为：与政治场域的对话与妥协，与经济场域的支撑与融合，以及与媒介生态的依存与共生。本研究指出，场域是一个不断变化且充满不定项选择的空间。场域的发展变化，决定博主写作行为的演化，是一个动态关系。博主的不同动机决定相应的行为策略。从场域刺激到情感内化是博主选择写作主题和决策的过程，这一过程既受客观环境的影响，又受主观能动性的制约，权衡得失是基本策略。研究也发现，在博客场域的三大主体,即博主、粉丝与平台的关系方面，博客主之间的关系由单纯的竞争关系向竞争与合作关系发展；博客主与粉丝的关系由单纯的"作者--读者"关系向"生产者--客户"关系转化；博客主与在线媒体的关系由单纯的依赖关系向多元化运作过渡。本文主要贡献有以下几点：一、拓展了场域理论。传统的场域理论在研究文化产业场域时，仅考虑到政治和经济两大因素，而本文将媒介生态作为一个重要的直接的因素来考量。二、通过分析博客场域，揭示了基于文字的内容生产的发展范式。博客场域具有动态变化的特征，博客的写作行为具有能动性。由简单到复杂，由单一到多元，是博客乃至所有内容生产场域的共同特征。三、完善了布迪厄"文化资本"概念的内涵。布尔迪厄强调文化资本主要是以教育资质为形式的制度化资本。而本研究发现，在当下的网络内容生产中，不仅要考虑到学历，媒介工作的经历，也是评估内容生产、文化资本的一个重要指标，直接影响博主的内容生产与传播。四、强调了内容的生产者与消费者的主体关系。场域理论仅关注了文化生产者之间、文化生产者与中间商（出版社）的关系。而内容的生产者与消费者是内容生产场域或传播领域最基本的依存及矛盾关系。因此，本文增加了这一主体关系，使得场域内各主体关系的分析更加全面。关键词：博客行为，动机，社会环境，动态关系，资本

abstract: The landscape of higher education is constantly evolving. Similar to a wave that washes ashore and transforms the shoreline, the same is occurring with higher education and its "shoreline". With the influx of technology and social media on college and university campuses, higher education institutions have had to grapple with whether or not to implement the technology (e.g. mobile devices) and the social mediums (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) that accompany these technologies into the academic and social college experiences of the tech-savvy students enrolling in higher education institutions. Higher education's new shoreline is largely being produced by the new paradigms of technology and social media adopted by the Net Generation college student. The forces of the evolving nature of technology are having an enormous impact on higher education practitioners. The prolific transcendence of Smartphones, tablets, and social mediums and the expansion of broadband (e.g. Wi-Fi) are changing student expectations of how higher education practitioners engage, communicate, and connect with the Net Generation college student. The assumption that many higher education practitioners have of social media is that social media primarily consists of Facebook and Twitter. Arguably Facebook and Twitter comprise the primary social avenues students traverse when communicating with friends and family but additionally, these sites can also be utilized for academic and social purposes advantageous to colleges and universities in enhancing the college student experience. The purpose of this study is to understand and describe how the Net Generation college student uses social media in their academic and social college experiences. Through the use of a descriptive analysis, this action research study described how the Net Generation college student uses social media in their academic and social college student experiences. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ed.D. Higher and Postsecondary Education 2012

Master of Science / Department of Journalism and Mass Communications / Barbara DeSanto / Rugby was created in 1876 and since then has expanded from the colleges of England to a globally played sport. Rugby, along with many other sports such as lacrosse and cricket, has found difficulties in obtaining mainstream media attention in the United States. This series of in-depth interviews explore how U.S. rugby may be able to utilize social media to elevate rugby to mainstream media status. This study will use in-depth interviews to understand the strategies of Division 1 Men’s U.S. Rugby social media officials and media strategists from the Professional Rugby Organization (PRO). These in-depth interviews will first identify what strategies rugby has used, then will evaluate which strategies efficiency. Second, the in-depth interviews of the club-level social media chairs will also be asked about his or her background in social media strategy. The information collected will be used to make recommendations as to what professional rugby and club-level rugby strategies should be used on social media. The information will also be used to identify what level social media rugby chairs should be educated or trained in using social media, if any. This study also explored the outcomes of the social media efforts for the advancement of rugby in the U.S. as well as emerging sports in the future.

The purpose of this study was to investigate how users of a special collection library of an academic institution in South Africa sought information and how social media could play a role in library service provision. Data for the empirical component was collected in September 2015. The study used a mixed methods approach to collect quantitative data which was analysed using Excel spreadsheets and qualitative data which was analysed using thematic analysis. A total of 36 self-administered printed questionnaires were used to solicit information on how users of the special collection library sought information for academic purposes using social media. Information was collected on the concerns, barriers and motivations that influence or deter users from using social media for academic purposes. Semi-structured interviews involving 11 participants were used to collect information on the views, experiences, thoughts and opinions of participants as regards the role that social media can play in providing library services. The study used purposive sampling in selecting participants for both the quantitative and qualitative study. Participants were users visiting the Special Collection Library at Institution A (a tertiary institution in South Africa), as well as users recommended by librarians of the Special Collection Library at Institution A. The participants included researchers, academics, undergraduate and postgraduate students at the academic institution as well as outside users (users not enrolled at Institution A or not staff members). The key findings include: (a) The most preferred social media tool used for academic purposes was Twitter, used mainly for sharing information and notification purposes. (b) Most preferred features of social media were those that provided for more engaging communication. (c) Users preferred more subject specific information on social media. (d) The concern listed as very significant by the largest number of participants was breach of privacy. Based on the findings of this study, recommendations were made for the library to give greater support to diversity of expression of knowledge and foster participation with the user as content creator and not just a consumer of knowledge. Also, the library should consider using strategies that promote the discoverability of the special collections. Such strategies include: using the social media tool of the users’ preference (for example Twitter in this case) to raise awareness of the collections (such as, maps and artefacts) that are unique to the library; using social media such as WhatsApp to post reference lists related to particular topics that refer users to the special collection resources such as manuscripts and artefacts. Using WhatsApp also provides opportunity to start conversations/chats around special collection resources. Training should be developed and provided to librarians and users that focus on those features that promote the display of special collections resources such as the uploading of photographs. Recommendations were made for further research. / Mini Dissertation (MIT)-University of Pretoria, 2016. / Information Science / MIT / Unrestricted

This study aimed to provide researchers in the development of media studies with research into understanding the star as the object of desire in a contemporary context, using Robert Pattinson as the star and The Twilight Saga, which made him famous, as an example of the effects that the use of social and online media have on audiences in terms of their perception and identification of a particular star. This study drew from literature and theories such as stardom, star as the object of desire, audience theory, fantasy, desire and escapism as well as theory on globalisation, the mass media and online and social media. Whilst social and online media have been in existence for a number of years, there is little research that has been performed in order to determine whether or not the use of social and online media directly affect users’ understanding and perception of certain stars and films. There has also been little research performed in order to gain an understanding of fantasy and desire, in terms of films and film stars, outside the constraints of the cinema. This study examined this notion, noting that The Twilight Saga has been successful production worldwide, in order to discover whether or not the use of social and online media perpetuates obsession in the fans and audience members. The first part of the study that was conducted, applied certain theories discussed and developed in the literature review, to Robert Pattinson and The Twilight Saga in order to obtain a better understanding of the star and the film series in terms of cinema, stardom, fantasy and escapism and online and social media. A comparative case study of six online articles, from prominent online sources featuring Pattinson, was then conducted in order to investigate Pattinson’s image and status in the online community. Finally, a content analysis of various online and social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube was performed in order to find out what type of information and imagery was being generated about Pattinson and the Saga as well as to investigate how fans and followers engaged with the different media channels and what kinds of comments they were making about the star and the Saga. It was found that Pattinson, the character he plays in the film series, Edward Cullen, and The Twilight Saga have a large presence on key social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, with a vast amount of followers and fans; Facebook and Twitter being the most popular and interactive media avenues. It was also found that Pattinson, Edward and The Twilight Saga, through the avid use of the social media tools, elicited and incited signs of obsession, fantasy and desire within an extensive amount of fans and followers, outside the constraints of the cinema

Recent studies have shown an increasing impact of online social networks such as Twitter on sports media. The following study aims to provide insight about communication patterns of athletes during the Olympic Games 2012 in London. Drawing on literature from traditional fields such as social capital (Field 2003), the 'uses and gratifications' approach (Katz, Blumler and Gurevitch 1974), self- presentation (Goffmann 1971) and recent studies about social media in sports (Kassing and Sanderson 2012), a Twitter-analysis of ten athletes was conducted during the Olympic Games 2012 in London. Following a content analysis of 1042 tweets (including 246 pictures), the research findings of this study reveal that athletes predominantly use Twitter as a platform for self- presentation. Furthermore, the analysis showed the possibility for fans to use Twitter in order to overcome the parasocial orbit (Kassing and Sanderson 2012) of virtual space and engage in actual social interaction with athletes. It is concluded that linkages of athletes with various stakeholders and the official framework of social media guidelines by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), result in self- restricting communication patterns of the athletes during the Olympic Games 2012.

Bullying is a national public health problem that is affecting millions of youth in Canada. With the proliferation of technology, bullying has permeated private spaces and is no longer limited to just school grounds. Due to the ease of accessibility of technology among youth, bullying is able to circumvent traditional safety barriers provided within the homes of youth which compounds concerns for parents. Since cyberbullying is still at an early stage, there is a need for research that explores the past experiences of students who have directly or indirectly encountered cyberbullying. Therefore, this study explores the experiences with cyberbullying of students at the University of Ottawa, who are between the ages of 18-23. The researcher conducted ten interviews guided by the transcendental approach to phenomenological reduction method. The study also sought to understand why cyberbullying happens and how adolescents who have directly or indirectly encountered cyberbullying respond. The findings revealed that online risk behaviour, perceived predictors of victimisation, response to cyber abuse, and justification for avoiding help-seeking behaviour appear to be linked to the severity of a user’s cyberbullying experience.

The aim of this research was to explore the user participation behaviours in the emerging structure of organisational social media platforms; a term coined and defined in this thesis. This emerging community structure originates from technical discussion forums and knowledge repository systems, and appears to be concerned with solving user problems, generating professional and technical content, and facilitating interaction in the external organisational domain. This research has explored three such platforms in the software and technology sector; namely, the SAP Community Network, the Oracle Community site, and Microsoft's professional platforms, MSDN and TechNet. Qualitative open-ended interviews were conducted and analysed under the interpretive paradigm, to generate a theoretically-grounded account on the use of social media tools in this context, the benefits and value outcomes gained, the underlined reasons and motivations that drive participation, and the emerging impact of active contribution as external users gain recognition. It was found that organisational social media platforms enable the development of rich technical content, personalised experience and thought leadership, creating in this way an environment for problem solving, professional development and expert recognition. The voluntary participation observed is evidently underlined with a combination of altruistic attitudes (e.g. satisfaction, enjoyment and a pro-sharing attitude), reciprocal helping behaviours (e.g. paying it forward, and sharing knowledge and experience) and personal gain expectations (e.g. visibility, recognition and career advancement). The individual platform users appear to acquire participation roles based on their technical expertise (newbie, knowledgeable and expert) and on the level of engagement they wish to undertake (lurker, contributor, community influencer and recognised user). A group of highly active users is formed in this way at the top tier of participation that establishes channels for professional credibility, product feedback and external advocacy through a close relationship with organisational members. These findings suggest that organisational social media platforms can constitute a new interface with the external environment and a potential business model, under which flexible forms of communication and interaction affect the support infrastructure changing the way in which customer service can be delivered, product and sales advocacy can be established, and innovation and product development can be achieved; complementing in this way internal processes with external activity.