I denna studie undersöktes hur ett interaktivt hjälpverktyg i form av ett användarstöd kunde bidra med hjälp vid användningen av en ny digital plattform. Undersökningen fokuserade på skillnaden mellan ett passivt och ett aktivt tillvägagångssätt och mer specifikt vilken effekt ett användarstöd av varje art hade på användaren och dess upplevelse. För att besvara frågeställningen genomfördes ett kontrollerat experiment med två grupper samt en passiv och en aktiv prototyp. Användarstödet och dess innehåll baserades på principer från områden som interaktivitet, konceptuella modeller, message design och feedback, koncept som tidigare forskning anser vara fördelaktiga i digitala instruktionsmiljöer. Den aktiva versionen var annorlunda på så sätt att användaren fick kontinuerlig återkoppling på sin inaktivitet. Datan samlades in med hjälp av indirekt observation och ett kvalitativt frågeformulär. Resultatet visade att användarstödet hjälpte användarna i utförandet av en angiven uppgift, men majoriteten av testpersonerna fann hela upplevelsen förvirrande och svårbegriplig. Den passiva gruppen visade på en ökad förståelse för plattformen, men den aktiva gruppen uttryckte själva att de fått mer kunskap än den passiva. Den aktiva prototypen bidrog till kortvarig irritation för testpersonerna, men det påverkade inte den övergripande upplevelsen avsevärt.

No description available.

No description available.

An Interactive Course Organizer (ICO) is an artifact that contains text and visual representation of a traditional course syllabus, it integrates visual elements, such as timelines, drawings, charts, graphs, maps, or pictures to show the sequencing and organization of major course topics while offering the user an actively controlled progression of the amount of course information covered. The goal of this research was to develop a theoretically- and empirically- grounded guidelines to design and develop of ICOs. It is anticipated that these guidelines can assist course developers and instructional designers in designing ICOs. This study employed a design and developmental research methodology with four phases: analysis, design, development and validation. Findings from literature review investigations in course syllabi, instructional message design, visual literacy, and interactivity theories and research as well as expert review informed the building of the guidelines. / Doctor of Philosophy / Interactive Course Organizer (ICO) is a tool that acts as a course syllabus. It combines both text and visual representation of a traditional course syllabus, and integrates visual elements, such as timelines, drawings, charts, graphs, maps, or pictures to help learners visually see the interrelationships between different parts of the course and how they all fit together. Its purpose is to provide visuals to assist learners in seeing the course and how it is organized "big picture". And by adding the interactivity feature, learners will navigate, access, and view the course content. It is a course framework to help students understand what it is they will be learning in the course. This research aimed to develop a theoretically- and empirically- grounded guidelines to design and develop of ICOs. It is anticipated that these guidelines can assist course developers and instructional designers in designing ICOs. This study employed a design and developmental research methodology with four phases: analysis, design, development and validation. Findings from literature review investigations in course syllabi, instructional message design, visual literacy, and interactivity theories and research as well as expert review informed the building of the guidelines.

Background. Obesity has been associated with a number of negative health consequences (e.g., hypertension/heart disease, type-2 diabetes, osteoarthritis, and respiratory illnesses). Despite health communication campaigns to reduce overweight/obesity by encouraging lifestyle changes (e.g., eating healthier foods and exercising), the rates of overweight and obesity levels have continued to rise. Studies indicate that the rate of overweight and obesity in the U.S. is highest among Blacks. Messages targeted toward “Blacks” (African-Americans) in the United States treat this segment of the population as a homogenous group and fail to account for within-group cultural differences. Cultural values and beliefs related to food, physical activity, and ideal body size may contribute to overweight and obesity. Objective. This study was designed to gain a deeper understanding of the similarities and differences between African-American and Afro-Caribbean immigrant women living in the Metro Atlanta, Georgia, in terms of the role that culture and social environments play in forming obesity-related—food, physical activity, and body image—attitudes, values, and behaviors. Method. A social cognitive theory (SCT) framework informed the design of semi-structured interview guides. Study participants were comprised of 13 African-American women and 12 Afro-Caribbean women who recently immigrated to the United States from English-speaking countries. All participants were living in Atlanta, Georgia at the time of the study. They were recruited through convenience and snowball sampling and interviewed between October 5 and December 26, 2014. Data from audio-recorded in-depth interviews were transcribed and analyzed using textual analysis software package NVivo9. Results. African-American and Afro-Caribbean participants were similar in terms of some food-, physical activity- and body-image related attitudes and behaviors. Health-related concerns and matrilineal influence affected the food-related behaviors of both groups of participants. Physical activity and body image-related attitudes and behaviors of women in both groups were affected by the norms of their childhood and current social environments. Although a healthy physical activity lifestyle was important to women in both groups, not all women were consistently physically active. The study also revealed some differences between African-American and Afro-Caribbean participants. In general, the African-American women described the food-related norms of their childhood environments in negative terms and were more likely to have changed their food-related behaviors for health reasons. The Afro-Caribbean women described their childhood food-related norms in positive terms, and thus, strove to maintain healthy behaviors from their childhood. The norms of the current social environments of African-Americans, but the childhood social environments of Afro-Caribbean participants, influenced them more toward healthier food-, physical activity- and body image-related attitudes and behaviors. In terms of body ideals, Afro-Caribbean women typically identified a smaller “ideal body size” than African-American women. African-Americans from the South, or those with parents from the South tended to choose larger figures than women from the North. Conclusion. Consistent with other SCT studies, this study found attitudes and behaviors that were consistent with those modeled within the participants’ social environments. There are more cultural differences than similarities between African-American and Afro-Caribbean women. The similarities and differences revealed in this study have implications for the design of culturally relevant obesity-related messages.

Background. Obesity has been associated with a number of negative health consequences (e.g., hypertension/heart disease, type-2 diabetes, osteoarthritis, and respiratory illnesses). Despite health communication campaigns to reduce overweight/obesity by encouraging lifestyle changes (e.g., eating healthier foods and exercising), the rates of overweight and obesity levels have continued to rise. Studies indicate that the rate of overweight and obesity in the U.S. is highest among Blacks. Messages targeted toward “Blacks” (African-Americans) in the United States treat this segment of the population as a homogenous group and fail to account for within-group cultural differences. Cultural values and beliefs related to food, physical activity, and ideal body size may contribute to overweight and obesity. Objective. This study was designed to gain a deeper understanding of the similarities and differences between African-American and Afro-Caribbean immigrant women living in the Metro Atlanta, Georgia, in terms of the role that culture and social environments play in forming obesity-related—food, physical activity, and body image—attitudes, values, and behaviors. Method. A social cognitive theory (SCT) framework informed the design of semi-structured interview guides. Study participants were comprised of 13 African-American women and 12 Afro-Caribbean women who recently immigrated to the United States from English-speaking countries. All participants were living in Atlanta, Georgia at the time of the study. They were recruited through convenience and snowball sampling and interviewed between October 5 and December 26, 2014. Data from audio-recorded in-depth interviews were transcribed and analyzed using textual analysis software package NVivo9. Results. African-American and Afro-Caribbean participants were similar in terms of some food-, physical activity- and body-image related attitudes and behaviors. Health-related concerns and matrilineal influence affected the food-related behaviors of both groups of participants. Physical activity and body image-related attitudes and behaviors of women in both groups were affected by the norms of their childhood and current social environments. Although a healthy physical activity lifestyle was important to women in both groups, not all women were consistently physically active. The study also revealed some differences between African-American and Afro-Caribbean participants. In general, the African-American women described the food-related norms of their childhood environments in negative terms and were more likely to have changed their food-related behaviors for health reasons. The Afro-Caribbean women described their childhood food-related norms in positive terms, and thus, strove to maintain healthy behaviors from their childhood. The norms of the current social environments of African-Americans, but the childhood social environments of Afro-Caribbean participants, influenced them more toward healthier food-, physical activity- and body image-related attitudes and behaviors. In terms of body ideals, Afro-Caribbean women typically identified a smaller “ideal body size” than African-American women. African-Americans from the South, or those with parents from the South tended to choose larger figures than women from the North. Conclusion. Consistent with other SCT studies, this study found attitudes and behaviors that were consistent with those modeled within the participants’ social environments. There are more cultural differences than similarities between African-American and Afro-Caribbean women. The similarities and differences revealed in this study have implications for the design of culturally relevant obesity-related messages.

During a public health crisis, officials need to communicate with the public quickly and accurately. Social networking sites (SNS) have been identified as an appropriate channel for this type of communication; however, few studies have examined what makes SNS messages effective. Further limiting research in this area is a lack of attention to theoretical constructs that may explain message effectiveness in SNS. In this dissertation, I propose that diffusion of innovations (DOI) be used to understand SNS and message success on SNS. In doing so, I compare traditional message success (persuasion) to message success on SNS platforms (amplification) and provide a brief overview of relevant message design constructs. I then conduct a study to analyze Twitter messages from state and local health departments and federal government agencies charged with communicating to the public during a public health crisis to test these theoretical claims and identify message elements that increase SNS message amplification. The context of the study is the fall 2014 Ebola crisis in the United States. The messages are first classified using content analysis methods to identify message design elements related to content, structure, and style. The success of those elements, in terms of the influence they have on messages amplification, is then evaluated using negative binomial regression. The results suggest that specific content (hazard information, response instruction, and official action), effective structure (word and image graphics), and key style choices (using figurative language, one hashtag or a keyword hashtag, and the first person) improve the amplification value of a message. Other choices, like mentioning another user, reduce the amplification value. These findings add to the evidence that suggests that DOI enhances scholars’ understanding of communication on SNS. In addition, the results demonstrate that messages can be conceptualized as innovations, and, as such, their characteristics influence the likelihood that they will be diffused through SNS platforms. The results suggest that those charged with communicating during a public health crisis use specific message strategies for SNS messages. These strategies include recommendations related to message content, message structure, and message style. Finally, the results suggest that scholars should continue research to understand the relationship between message design and message amplification in order to improve our knowledge of communication on SNS and help practitioners identify effective communication practices on this new and important channel. Research should also examine the relationship between persuasion and amplification in order to understand how amplification influences attitudes, behavioral intentions, and behavior in both those who amplify the message and in those who receive the message as a result of that amplification.

科學概念若能有效地普及於社會大眾，可以加速跨領域知識的整合創新、提高國家的創新經濟產能，並促進社會間的對話與發展想像。因此「科學普及」（以下簡稱「科普」）是全球許多國家推動知識工程的基礎。 所謂「科普」，是把科學研究的結果用一種比較含糊的轉譯方式提供給大眾，目的在於對公眾進行教育（educate）、說服（persuade）與溝通（communicate），讓大眾能學習理解科學的內涵（learned）、具有科學思辨的能力（competent）並能夠以科學精神參與社會事務（function-in-society）；傳播媒介則是科普最好的載具。然而，科普的工作一直都有傳播內容過於生硬難懂、望之生畏的困境，無法真正達到普及的效果；學者們認為主要包含科普內容文本、讀者理解以及科學家參與推廣等層面的問題。 本文藉由量化的研究方法初探「科普讀物的圖文呈現形式」在傳播效果上對讀者「認知資訊負荷」、「態度」及「理解」的影響。同時，將讀者的「涉入感」與「先備知識」納入變項，探究讀者「涉入感」與「先備知識」的差異對於科普讀物傳播效果的影響程度。 研究者以「奈米保養化妝品」為實驗科普訊息主題，針對臺灣大學及淡江大學合計507 名的大學生，進行不同形式的科普讀物訊息實驗，並以問卷量測受試者對科普訊息主題的涉入感、先備知識，以及閱讀實驗科普訊息之後，對該訊息內容的認知資訊負荷、態度及理解程度。經過資料整理及統計分析，得到本次實驗相關結果與發現如下： 一、 本次實驗中的科普訊息使用不同圖文呈現形式，但在依變項的傳播效果上並沒有顯著的差異，顯示科普訊息的文字與圖像其實可以各自獨立。 二、 科普訊息的涉入感及先備知識均高度影響閱讀科普訊息時的認知資訊負荷、態度與理解程度；認知資訊負荷較小的科普文本，其傳播效果較好。 三、 不同性別的閱聽人，在閱讀科普訊息的認知資訊負荷、態度及理解程度上均沒有顯著的差異，打破一般認為女性不擅長科學的刻版印象。 四、 理工背景學生在閱讀科普訊息時的認知資訊負荷明顯較小，在理解程度及態度上較非理工背景的學生表現僅為稍佳。 此外，本研究發現，新世代的資訊使用行為可能受網路閱讀行為的影響，因此對科普訊息的取用方式，已轉向使用篇幅短、取用彈性大的訊息內容服務；傳統科普傳播講究循序漸近、結構完整的知識傳遞方式，如何因應新世代的資訊使用行為而調整，是未來所有科普傳播工作者思考創新發展的重要方向。 / Popular science, sometimes called science popularization or literature of science, is to transfer and translate the concepts or results of scientific researches to the public in a comparatively vague manner. It aims at educating, persuading and communicating, so that the public could be learned in understanding science, be competent in scientific thinking and be able to function in the society with a scientific spirit. The mass media is absolutely the best channel for popular science. However, most contents of popular science are very difficult to understand, and this has put popular science in a dilemma and couldn’t be “popularized” at all. Scholars believe there’re three main factors influencing the achievement of popular science: the content design, the comprehension of readers, and the participation of scientists. This article based on quantitative methods attempts to make a preliminary inquiry into the communication effect of popular science reading materials with different presentation of graphs. The audience’s “cognitive loading”, “attitude” and “understanding of the science concepts” are observed and their “sense of involvement” and “prior knowledge “ are taken into account as variables. The experiments were conducted at 2 universities in Taiwan in June, 2010. There’re 507 students exposed to 3 different types of nanoscience reading. The result indicates: 1) The communication effect of popular science’s texts and pictures could be independent from each other. 2) Audience’s sense of involvement and prior knowledge both significantly influence their cognitive load, attitude and comprehension. 3) Audience of different genders shows no significant difference in understanding popular science messages.

從選舉研究或是形象研究皆顯示，形象的塑造有助於政治人物從政之路的推動與發展，形象對於選民投票行為有決定性的影響力，在在顯示形象對政治人物的重要性不言可喻。 本研究探討連戰從準備參選2000年總統選舉，至2004年二度參加總統大選期間在《中國時報》、《聯合報》及《自由時報》的形象轉變，藉以探索政治人物形象之形塑與呈現、選舉形塑形象與媒體建構形象之差距、政治人物扭轉媒體形象建構之訊息設計與表現、以及探索政治人物形象轉變之效果。 研究發現：政治人物搶佔媒體重要版面，純新聞形式為訊息傳達利基；政治人物選舉失利亦失去政治舞台，媒體曝光率隨之衰退；政治人物媒體形象不等於選票；連戰在政黨形象上失利；政策政見牛肉可為政治人物形象加分。 觀察政治人物形象轉變的歷程是有價值的，將有助於政治人物與民眾瞭解形象轉變在政治傳播活動中產生的影響力。本研究希望透過個案研究方式，瞭解研究對象在媒體上形象塑造與呈現，以及形象轉變相關問題，嘗試解析政治人物運用形象轉變的傳播效果，增進對於形象領域的理解，建立可供參考的方案。 / It shows from both the research of election or image, image creation can help political figures enter politics. Image is indeed an influential factor of voting behavior. The designers and constructors perceive time as equal and important elements. Therefore, the media (newspaper) has such a big influence on political figures in forming the image of public figures. This study examines the image change of Lien Chan during his campaign for presidency from 2000 to 2004 in China Times, United Daily News and The Liberty Times. In order to understand the construction and the presentation of political figures image, and the gap between construction of election image and media image, the press image change of political figures in message design construct and present changing political figures’ image as well. This research found that the political figures’ media image is a long-lasting process which will affect greatly how the voters perceive the candidates. During the period of elections, such a portrait no doubt will affect the voter’s final choice. To investigate the process of political figures’ image change can make figure change more understandable by both politicians and the public. Through this case study, we can understand some issues about image specifically in the field of image change for political figure thus giving some suggestions.