Thesis (Ph. D.)--Carleton University, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 368-393). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1955. / Typescript. Abstracted in Dissertation abstracts, v. 16 (1956) no. 3, p. 594-595. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1966. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.R.)--St. John's Seminary, 1986. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 59-64).

Les figurants sont omniprésents mais invisibles au cinéma. S’ils sont partout pour incarner la foule ou le peuple, on ne les voit paradoxalement pas à cause de leur insignifiance manifeste, dans un récit basé sur le modèle de la rationalité causale. Cependant, dans le cinéma de Jean Renoir, les figurants nous dévoilent la modernité des anonymes. Il s’agit de la « politisation de l’art » proposée par Walter Benjamin, qui trouve sa source non seulement dans la singularité de la trivialité des romans de Flaubert, mais surtout dans les révoltes trimillénaires de la Mimésis, selon Erich Auerbach, contre la domination du modèle hiérarchique d’Aristote. Au travers de la mise en scène de l’insignifiance dans son cinéma, se révèle la méthode de l’égalité du cinéaste. Malgré le fait que les figurants soient un parfait exemple au cinéma de l’« exclusion inclusive » analysée par Giorgio Agamben, la mise en scène des figurants dans les films de Jean Renoir manifeste une praxis de la singularité quelconque. / The extras are omnipresent but invisible. If they are everywhere in films because of their indispensability to incarnate the people, we don’t see them paradoxically because of their insignificance in the narration of the model of cause/effect theorized by Aristotle. However, in the films of Jean Renoir, the extras show us the with the modernity of the anonymous. It is part of the “politicization of art” theorized by Walter Benjamin, which recalls its source not only with the singularity of the triviality in the novels of Gustave Flaubert, but especially in the revolts of Mimesis, according to Erich Auerbach, against the domination of the hierarchical model of Aristotle through three thousand years. Through the splendor of insignificance in his films, there is a method of the equality of Jean Renoir. Although the extras are the perfect example in the fiction films of the “inclusive exclusion” observed by Giorgio Agamben, the mise-en-scène of extras in the films of Jean Renoir demonstrates the praxis of the singularity of anyone.

Abstract Introduction Word-of-mouth (WOM) is based on personal recommendations where the sender is known by the consumer, thus, the persuasive nature of WOM is attributed to trust between the sender and the receiver of a message. Electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) however, eliminates the consumer’s ability to judge the credibility of sender and message. Nevertheless, a high amount of people read online reviews about products and therefore make use of eWOM. Online reviews can be anonymous or can offer additional personal details of the sender and can have an influence on the credibility of the message, which in turn, can induce different attitudes towards specific products. Purpose This study aims to identify as well as understand the relationship between anonymous and semi anonymous eWOM and its corresponding characteristics in regards to the attitudes of consumers towards a laptop computer. Methodology A qualitative research method was conducted with the intention to understand the relationship between anonymous and semi anonymous eWOM towards consumers attitude. Primary data was collected, as the authors of this study were not able to locate research studies concerning the difference between anonymous and semi-anonymous eWOM and its relationship towards consumer’s attitudes. For this reason, four focus groups were carried out with students from the Jönköping University. During a pilot study, differences between male and female participants became visible therefore the focus groups were separated between men and women with the intention of collecting significant data. Conclusion The research was successful as it led to identify a relationship between the personal attributes of an online reviewer and the consumer attitudes towards a laptop. By reading online reviews and thus, observing the opinion of other people as well as using comparisons of different laptops, consumers form attitudes towards laptops. Moreover, it appears that consumers’ attitudes are more likely to be influenced by the message if it is perceived as credible. Several personal attributes of a reviewer such as name, photograph of a person, pseudonym, age, gender, country of residence and profession were identified to have an influence on the credibility of a message, whether they might increase or decrease the credibility. Additionally, it became visible, that women are relatively more likely to be influenced by personal attributes of a reviewer than men.

The present dissertation explores the collective identity of the Anonymous movement. This movement is characterised by the heterogeneity of its activities, from meme-crafting to pranks to activist actions, with a wide range of goals and tactics. Such heterogeneity raises the question as to why such a diverse group of people makes the decision to act under the same name. To answer this question, the concept of collective identity is applied, which describes how participants collectively construct the definition of their group. This dissertation is based on a three-year ethnography. The main findings show that the collective identity of Anonymous rests on five sets of self-defining concepts related to: 1) Anonymous’ counterculture of offense and parrhesia, 2) its personification into two personae (the ‘trickster’ and the ‘hero’) that have differing goals, means, and relationships with the environment, 3) a horizontal organisation and a democratic decision-making process, 4) practices of anonymity and an ethics of self-effacement, and 5) its self-definition as a universal entity, inclusive, and unbounded. The collective identity construction process is marked by tensions due to the incompatibility of some of these concepts, but also due to differences between these collective identity definitions and actual practices. As a consequence, they have to be constantly reaffirmed through social actions and discourses. Not all individuals who reclaim themselves as Anonymous recognise the totality of these collective identity definitions, but they all accept a number of them that are sufficient to legitimate their own belonging to the movement, and most of the time to be recognised by others as such. The different groups constituting Anonymous are therefore symbolically linked through a web of collective identity definitions rather than an encompassing and unified collective identity. This ‘connective identity’ gives the movement a heterogeneous composition while at the same time permitting it to retain a sense of identity that explains the use of a collective name.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Auburn University, 2009. / Abstract. Includes bibliographic references (p.112-125).

This study examines how a couple of Swedish daily newspapers construct the hacker network Anonymous, with an aim to discuss its possible effects. The question was: In which ways is the network Anonymous constructed in a few Swedish newspapers?                       26 articles from four chosen newspaper were analysed, but because of many similarities in content, only 10 were chosen for deep analysis. With Fairclough's model of critical discourse analysis as chosen method, constructions varying from the images of heroes to villains were found as a result. The most common construction was that of Anonymous as a threat, which was most often exaggerated compared to what actions were actually described in the texts. In the secondly most common discourse, "guilty by association", Anonymous would be mentioned in a context, like in the report of a crime, without any apparent reason. Though labelled with other words, what the texts often described were actions that lived up to the criteria of civil disobedience, but in a digital context. Some texts described a protest movement that might get more legitimized, or continue as a guerrilla group. In some cases Anonymous were given power by getting their messages repeated without criticism, most likely accidentally since their usual silence might make the journalist jump when suddenly contacted directly. In other cases they were deliberately smeared, and constructed as a mischievous and powerless bunch of nerds. Opinions differed, but from the texts could be concluded that Anonymous is the first Internet based protest movement of its kind. How their identity develops may make or break the possibilities for future online protest movements and civil disobedience acts. In which direction they progress isn't the topic of this study. But what possible effects the newspapers constructions of Anonymous might have on that progress is of high interest. The discussion's theoretical base is that the journalistic content has an effect on its audience, and an effect on the construction of identity, both collective and individual. The media further have power, to some extent, over their audience as well as over their subjects.

This is an exploratory, qualitative study of homeless, recovering alcoholics and the problems they encounter maintaining sobriety. Using semi-structured interviews, I analyze the experiences of ten men in their forties, who are in a recovery program designed for homeless men. I ask them how they stay sober without a place to live. Three kinds of problems are inferred from their narrative histories. First, the men have difficulty identifying as alcoholics. They have trouble fully integrating into the AA program. Second, the men struggle to form relationships with others, especially with a sponsor. Third, the process of "working the steps" is adapted complexly, more than in a normal twelve-step setting. The findings indicate that homeless men face special barriers to achieving and maintaining sobriety. I conclude by discussing the larger implications for sobriety, homelessness and social change within this community.