Problem: What are the motives behind positively charged user-generated content on Instagram? Purpose: The study aims to identify and analyze existing and potential users' motives for creating and distributing positively charged content on Instagram from a user perspective. Method: The study was conducted based on a qualitative method and applied the hermeneutical - phenomenological approach. Eleven semi-structured interviews were conducted with female users of Instagram aged between 21-30 years. Theory: The study builds on previous research on user-generated content, electronicword-of-mouth, selective attention, Lazarsfeld’s two-step flow of communication model, Uses & Gratification, motivation and Katz’ functional theory, and Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Empirics and analysis: The empirical data consists of the eleven completed in-depth interviews that were analyzed based on the selected theories. Conclusion: The study has concluded that the underlying motives behind creating positively charged user-generated content on Instagram are: (1) social interaction, (2) entertainment and (3) the need to be seen.

寬頻網路發展的日趨成熟，讓即時通訊成為許多網路族開機後必使用之軟體，本研究乃運用「使用與滿足」理論，探討即時通訊使用者的使用動機、使用行為、使用滿足，以及三者之間的關係。 經由資料分析發現，使用者在使用即時通訊上，有三大使用動機因素，分別為「同儕交流動機」、「新奇娛樂動機」、「生活便利動機」；有三大使用活動因素，分別為「影音導向活動」、「訊息導向活動」、「文件導向活動」；有三大使用滿足因素，分別為「情緒管理滿足」、「關係維繫滿足」、「問題解決滿足」。本研究以使用動機因素為基礎，將樣本資料進行集群分析，結果獲得三大使用族群：「無的導向群」、「交際導向群」、「功能導向群」，再以統計檢定三大族群在「人口變項」、「使用行為」、「使用選擇」及「使用滿足」上的特徵差異描述。本研究亦發現即時通訊的兩大主流為MSN、Yahoo，兩者之使用人數即佔了有效樣本98.7%。 本研究的結果發現，三大族群在「使用動機」、「使用行為」上均有顯著的差異，但在「使用選擇」上則無顯示出特別的選擇偏好；三大族群的「使用動機」、「使用行為」與其「使用滿足」均有正向的關係，亦即是使用動機、使用行為表現得愈強烈，其所獲得之使用滿足也就愈強烈；另外，三大族群中選擇使用MSN、Yahoo的使用者，在「使用滿足」上亦呈現出不同的滿足情形。

Denna studie undersöker hur olika beröringspunkter påverkar kundengagemanget inom dagligvaruhandeln. Då trenden går mot att se till kundens helhetsupplevelse inom ett företags ekosystem snarare än det enskilda köpet blir kundengagemang och omnikanal två begrepp som kan ses som högst aktuella att studera när företag idag ska utforma sin beröringspunktarkitektur. Beröringspunkter är alla de kontaktpunkter, såväl fysiska som digitala, mellan ett varumärke och en kund. Dessa beröringspunkter verkar tillsammans och bidrar alla genom omnikanalsperspektivet till en sammansatt kundupplevelse. Skapandet av denna upplevelse kallas tjänstedesign och inbegriper att noggrannt orkestrera den beröringspunktsarkitektur i vilket kunden befinner sig under sin kundresa. Vidare undersöker denna studie ovannämnda process i ljuset av Process Virtualization Theory (PVT) vilken verkar som ett verktyg för att förstå i vilken utsträckning en beröringspunkt lämpar sig för digitalisering. Därtill appliceras Uses and Gratification Theory (UGT) för att förstå de bakomliggande faktorer som påverkar kundengagemang. Mot bakgrund av detta teoretiska ramverk utförs tretton stycken semistrukturerade intervjuer med card sorting för att undersöka vilka attityder och beteende som finns relaterade till de olika beröringspunkterna för ett specifikt företag inom den svenska dagligvaruhandeln. Resultatet visar att de viktigaste beröringspunkterna för kundengagemang är erbjudanden, rabatter och medlemskap samt den fysiska butiken. Den sistnämnda inbegriper butikens atmosfär, utbud och geografiska läge. Dessa beröringspunkter är den huvudsakliga anledningen till att en kund väljer att handla hos en viss butik. Det finns även andra faktorer som påverkar valet och olika faktorer spelar olika stor roll beroende på situation, dock antyder resultaten att de andra faktorerna oftast endast spelar en sekundär roll. Resultaten kan även till stor del förklaras av de två ovannämnda modellerna. För att öka sitt kundengagemang som företag inom dagligvaruhandeln förslås slutligen att det bör investeras i digitala lösningar som förstärker upplevelsen kring beröringspunkter i omnikanaler, i den usträckning PVT-modeller antyder att det skulle vara lämpligt. Dessa lösningar bör även inkorporera de motivationsfaktorer som UGT-modellen föreslår i de viktigaste beröringspunkterna. Ett användande av dessa lösningar som digitala verktyg skulle möjligtvis kunna leda till att den fysiska och digitala världen bättre kan mötas genom en omnikanal vilket slutligen bidrar till en mer sammansatt och positiv kundupplevelse genom hela kundresan. / This paper examines the importance of different touchpoints within a customer journey for increased customer engagement, focusing specifically on the grocery market. Because of the trend within the commerce industry to consider at customer’s overall experience as oppose to the individual purchase, customer engagement and omnichannel are therefore highly relevant approaches for a company to consider when forming their touchpoint architecture.  Touchpoints can be physical as well as digital points of contact between a brand and a customer. These touchpoints normally work in joint co-operation with each other, through omnichannels, for a complete customer experience. This complete experience is formed through the process of service design which includes a thoroughly designed touchpoint architecture in which the customer travels as part of her customer journey. Furthermore, this paper examines to which extent a process can be digitalised through applying the Process Virtualization Theory (PVT) model. In order to understand the customer engagement process and the reasons behind customer engagement the Uses and Gratification Theory (UGT) model is also applied. With this theoretic background in place thirteen semi-structured interviews with a card sorting exercise was conducted to examine the attitudes and behaviours related to, and associated with, a company’s touchpoints within the Swedish grocery market industry. The customer research presented in this paper shows that the most important touchpoints for customer engagement are store offers and discounts, a grocery store’s atmosphere and supply and finally store location. These touchpoints are the main reasons to why customers choose to engage with a grocery store brand as they are perceived as the most important reasons a specific brand is chosen. There are other reasons too, and often the choice of brand is also determined by convenience and time available. However, the study shows that these reasons are only secondary to the former reasons. These results are supported by the two models mentioned above. In order to increase customer engagement a brand should therefore put resources into digital solutions, to the extent possible according to the PVT model, to reinforce the motivational factors from the UGT-model in these touchpoints. This way the physical and digital world would meet through omnichannel as the solutions would assist customers in their customer journey to make their overall experience better.

I den här studien undersöks hur användningen av sociala medier ser ut, när socialt kommunikativa gymnasieungdomar med stor social tillhörighet, umgås. Studien ämnar ta reda på hur användningen ser ut, av vilka anledningar socialt kommunikativa ungdomar med social tillhörighet använder sociala medier och hur umgängesklimatet påverkas när sociala medier används under fysiskt pågående umgänge.  Idén till studien grundar sig i en observation av ungdomar med ovan presenterade egenskaper, som under tiden de umgås med sina vänner frekvent använder sociala medier. En kvalitativ intervjustudie genomförs med utgångspunkt i den medie- och kommunikationsvetenskapliga teorin Uses and gratification theory samt Social identity theory, som är en välanvänd teori bland tidigare genomförd forskning inom sociala medier. Fem djupintervjuer genomförs således och vid avkodning av intervjumaterialet utkristalliseras tre huvudspår, utifrån frågeställningarna och fem underkategorier: ”Hur använder socialt kommunikativa ungdomar, med social tillhörighet, sociala medier när de umgås med sina vänner?”, ”Av vilka anledningar använder kommunikativa ungdomar med social trygghet sociala medier?” med tillhörande underkategorier, identitetsskapande, Fear of missing out, brist på underhållning, sociala medier som tillflykt samt vanebeteende och slutligen ”Hur påverkas umgängesklimatet när sociala medier används?” Resultatet visar, bland annat, att ungdomarna ofta väljer att använda sociala medier för att ta paus och hämta ny energi för att sedan orka vara sociala, i det pågående umgänget, igen.

Esports som åskådarsport har fått en betydande publik under det senaste decenniet, det lockarnästan en halv miljard människor över hela världen och har även fått stöttning från storakända företag. Anledningen till varför människor tittar på esport är dock fortfarande inte välundersökt. Uses and Gratifications är en metod som fokuserar på åskådare och betraktar demsom aktiva konsumenter. Utifrån Uses and Gratifications teorier är syftet till denna kvalitativastudie att ta reda på vilka faktorer som kan påverka människors motivation att se på esport,samt hur esport definieras av och konsumeras av människor. Tio personer som är intresseradeav esport deltog i semi-strukturerade intervjuer, och resultatet visade att hedonisktillfredsställelse, social tillfredsställelse, funktionell tillfredsställelse och teknologisktillfredsställelse kan alla ha inverkan på konsumtionen av esport. Respondenterna ser esportsom ett bra sätt att passera tid och bli underhållna, de får social tillfredsställelse när deinteragerar med likasinnade personer. I spel kan de dokumentera och visa sina framsteg, ochpresentera och dela information om sig själva i relation till esport. De flesta respondenternaser fram emot esports framtid. / Esports as a spectator sport has gained a significant audience during the last decade, attractingalmost half a billion viewers worldwide and input from large well-known companies, but thereason as to why people watch esports is still not well studied. Adopting uses and gratificationapproaches - which is an approach that focuses on the audience and view them as activeconsumers, the aim of this qualitative study is to learn about what factors influence peoples’motive to watch esports, as well as how esports is being defined by people and how it isconsumed. Ten people who are interested in esports participated in semi-structured interviews.The result showed that hedonic gratification, social gratification, utilitarian gratification andtechnology gratification all can have impact on the consumption of esports. The respondentsconsider esports as a good way to pass time and to be entertained. They gain socialsatisfaction when interacting with likeminded people. In games, they are able to documentand show their progress, and to present and share information about themselves in relation toesports. Most of the respondents look forward to the future of esports.

Den här studiens ambition är att bredda kunskapen kring användarens motiv till att konsumera en iPhone. Särskild uppmärksamhet har riktats kring behov som motiverar till användning samt iPhones roll i användarens konstruktion av jaget och den sociala identiteten. Syftet med studien är att undersöka en grupp användares motiv till att använda en specifik typ av smartphone, en med ett starkt varumärke, för att förstå bakomliggande motiv till användningen. Smartphones, i synnerhet iPhone, har under de senaste åren blivit ett populärt kommunikationsmedel bland många. Därför är det är det av vikt att bedriva forskning kring ämnet för att skapa förståelse för varför vi använder viss teknologi och i synnerhet hur användaren uppfattar denna teknologi. Genom kvalitativ forskningsstrategi med fokusgruppsintervju som metod svarar denna studie på frågor som: vilka motiv finns det till att använda en iPhone, vilken betydelse har iPhone för människan vid konstruktionen av jaget och den sociala identiteten samt vilka behov ligger bakom användarens motiv till att använda en iPhone? De motiv som var mest framträdande i studien kan sammanfattas i följande teman: konstruktionen av jaget, tillgång till information, social interaktion, underhållningsvärdet och det så kallade iPhone-behovet. Vid konstruktionen av jaget fungerar iPhone både som en symbolisk ägodel och som ett hjälpmedel. Den fungerar som en materiell förlängning av ens jag och ens sociala identitet. En användare av iPhone kan tillhöra tre olika typer av klaner: Apple-entusiaster, mediaeliten och ekonomisk välfärd. Den lättillgängliga och snabba tillgång till information som iPhone erbjuder samt möjligheten till social interaktion är starka motiv till användning. När det gäller underhållningsvärdet i att konsumera en iPhone så framgår det i studien att människan konsumerar en iPhone för att få leka av sig och bli underhållen. Avslutningsvis framträder fenomenet iPhone-behovet i studien. Det uppfattas av användaren som ett helt nytt behov som personen ifråga upplever att de anammar i och med konsumtionen av en iPhone. Användarna upplever att iPhone skapar ett nytt behov och beroende. Dock handlar det inte om ett nytt behov, utan snarare en förstärkning eller förlängning av några mänskliga grundläggande behov. / This studies ambition is to broaden the knowledge of the users motive to consume an iPhone. Particular attention has been focused around the need to justify the use and the iPhones role in the user's construction of the self and the social identity. The purpose of this study is to investigate a group of users motives for using a specific type of smartphone, one with a strong brand, to understand the underlying reasons for the use. Smartphones, especially the iPhone, has in recent years become a very popular means of communication. Therefore, it is important to conduct research on the topic to get a deeper understanding of why we use certain technology and in particular how the user perceive this technology. Through a qualitative strategy of research with focusgroup-interview as a method, this study answers questions like: what motives are there to use an iPhone, what impact have iPhone on humans in their construction of the self and the social identity, and what needs are behind the users motive to use an iPhone? The subjects which were most prominent can be summarized in following themes: the construction of self, access to information, social interaction, entertainment value and the so-called iPhone-need. In the design of the ego, iPhone functions both as a symbolic possession and as an aid. It is a tangible extension of one's self and one's social identity. A user of the iPhone can belong to three different kinds of clans: Apple-enthusiasts, media elite and the economical prosperous. The easy and quick access to information that the iPhone offers, and the opportunities for social interaction are strong incentives to the use of the phone. When it comes to the entertainment value in the consumption of an iPhone it appears in the study that humans consume an iPhone to simple play and to be entertained. The consumer uses the iPhone to explore their playfulness. Finally, an emerging phenomenon in the study is the iPhone-need. It is perceived as an entirely new needs by the users when they consume the iPhone. Users feel that the iPhone creates a new need and dependence. However, it is not a new need, but rather a reinforcement or extension of some of the basic needs of humans.

The aim of this study is to seek fundamental uses and gratifications of a social networking website, Facebook as a case, and the possible advantages and the challenges of utilization of Facebook for instructional activities. The research study encompassed four main steps / the analysis of uses &amp / gratifications of Facebook, the analysis of Facebook utilization possibilities for instruction, the interviewing for two preceding steps, and the realization and analysis of a course on Facebook. In the study both qualitative and quantitative data were gathered through questionnaires, interviews and open-ended questions. The qualitative data was analyzed according to qualitative data analysis techniques and quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS software. The results showed that Facebook which is perceived as a usable tool has a potential utilization for instructional activities. As quite new context, the participants seemed concerned about participating any learning activity on Facebook. Most of the participants in all steps of the study emphasized that Facebook should be a supplementary material for instructional activities. It is concluded that individual differences and alternative methods must be studied for better integration of Facebook into education.

Social games have become popular on social media such as Facebook and MySpace. While there are plenty of market reports regarding social media, the related academic research is limited. This study applies Homans’ cost‐reward structure from Social Exchange Theory to investigate how social games change people’s social behavior on social media. The concepts of rewards are drawn from the gratifications of social media use, and the concepts of costs are drawn form the symptoms of media addiction. In a survey of 323 college students, participants’ perceived rewards and costs of Facebook use and game play are measured. The results indicate social game players perceived significantly higher costs of Facebook use than non‐players. In addition, costs of Facebook use and costs of game play also play important roles to influence social game players’ willingness to play more social games. Discussion and limitations are provided. / text

Titel: The ZAZI campaign’s Facebook page- A field study of the use of Facebook in the ZAZI campaign Level: Bachelor thesis, C-level Area: Media and Communication Studies Author: Alexandra Svedström, V14MKand Supervisor: Associate professor Eva Åsén Ekstrand, Department of Media and Communication Studies Date: The field study will be conducted during March - May in 2014 Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the motives and attitudes of a group of South African women and men (aged between 20 to 30 years) have towards responding to the questions set on the ZAZI campaign’s Facebook page that may involve private and sensitive information. It also seeks to examine whether the questions that ZAZI campaign sets are consistent with the informant’s attitudes and motives. Rationale: The result may be used to improve the campaign whose ultimate goal is to prevent the spread of HIV / AIDS by strengthening women's self-efficacy and confidence. Questions: What are the selected informant’s motives for using Facebook in general? What attitudes and motives do the selected South African Facebook users have toward commenting on the questions on the ZAZI campaigns Facebook page? How are the selected informants’ attitudes and motives consistent with the type of questions the campaign set? Method: Content analysis and focus groups. Result: The study indicate that the motives for writing on the ZAZI campaign's Facebook page differs depending on socio-economic status and that the campaign should vary the content of the questions so all women's motives become satisfied. The page appears, for those groups with a lack of socio-economic status, to serve as a platform that encourages and create conversations about private matters. Keywords: Health campaign, Facebook, Internet, social media, South Africa, focus groups, ZAZI campaign, uses and gratification, self-efficacy, HIV

Thesis (MPhil (Journalism))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / Magazine publishers are under increasing pressure to extend their business strategies beyond the traditional printed products. A culture of instant gratification of media needs, pervasive social networking and the immediacy of content delivery, which are all provided by the World Wide Web, aggravate fears that readers will ultimately abandon the printed media in favour of the Internet as the primary content provider. These fears are rooted in the assumption that consumers choose the media they use based on preconceived ideas as to how these media will fulfil their needs. If the Internet succeeds in supplanting or displacing printed media, it could potentially destroy the traditional magazine model whereby publishers simultaneously generate revenue from the sale of media content to their audience and the sale of the audience’s attention to their advertisers. Therefore it is imperative that magazine publishers develop a relevant and efficient strategy to maintain their position as “intermediary” between advertisers and the media audience. To develop such a strategy, they need to understand what media uses consumers have for the Internet and what gratifications they expect to receive. Once this is understood, publishers could develop their online and offline strategies to service these uses and gratifications. This thesis contains qualitative research conducted in a phenomenological paradigm through the application of two descriptive surveys. The first survey focused on the experiences and attitudes of visitors to the website of WegSleep, an Afrikaans South African niche magazine for the caravanning and camping community, whilst the second compares similarities between the seven most visited magazine websites in South Africa during 2008. A correlation of the findings leads to the conclusion that although the Internet could potentially emulate all media, readers do not employ the Internet for exactly the same purposes as printed media. Whilst some displacement does take place, magazines are still better at serving readers’ affective and escapist needs. Conversely, the Internet is the preferred medium with regard to information gathering and cognitive media needs as well as personal integrative needs. Social integrative needs appear to be non medium specific. A complementary combination of the printed product and the online offering could therefore provide gratification of all media needs and promote brand loyalty instead of medium loyalty.