The thesis is focused on utilization of social networking sites as a tool for virtual team collaboration support. The first goal is to identify critical success factors of virtual teamwork, which are currently not supported by groupware tools, based on description of virtual team characteristics and processes. Identified critical success factors represent the basis for the completion of next goal, which is to describe aspects of social networking sites, which are able to support the identified critical success factors. That leads to the main goal of the thesis, which consists of two main parts. First part is the analysis of social networking sites aspects influence on virtual teamwork critical success factors. The second part is the practical solution of utilization of social networking sites for virtual teamwork support. Final solution includes all social networking sites implementation phases starting from choosing the product, implementation process and ending with setting of team processes and utilization principles. Social networking sites aspects description is based on current enterprise information systems trends and the final solution results from the analysis and synthesis of findings from both previous thesis parts. The main contribution of the thesis is the solution of social networking sites utilization inside the organization and providing of practical instructions for implementation of social networking sites in order to support virtual teamwork.

Orientador: Mauro de Souza Ventura / Banca: Angela Maria Grossi / Banca: Maria Cristina Gobbi / Banca: Alan Cesar Belo Angeluci / Banca: Itania Maria Mota Gomes / Resumo: A televisão vivencia mais um momento de transformação impulsionado pela tecnologia e pelas práticas sociais e culturais vigentes. O processo de digitalização e a possibilidade de conexão em rede modificaram as concepções de tempo e espaço e trouxeram mudanças significativas aos formatos, às rotinas produtivas e até mesmo à forma como se consome o conteúdo televisivo. É um cenário em que novas e velhas audiências coexistem, reafirmando, mas também renovando contratos assumidos com a televisão. E o telejornalismo, enquanto instituição social, na concepção de Raymond Williams, não poderia passar indiferente a esse cenário. É por isso que, nesta pesquisa, busca-se compreender como o telejornal que está há mais tempo no ar no país, o Jornal Nacional da Rede Globo de Televisão, até a última década considerado um dos noticiários mais conservadores, vem modificando seu modo de endereçamento ao telespectador (GOMES, 2011) em razão da aproximação aos sites de redes sociais. Essa proximidade se dá principalmente com o Twitter, pelas características de fomento à conversação e agilidade na propagação de conteúdos no mesmo instante da transmissão televisiva. Parte-se, portanto, de uma investigação em busca do atual modo de endereçamento do Jornal Nacional a partir do operador de análise do contexto comunicativo, também estabelecido por Gomes (2011). Ele diz respeito à situação discursiva entre telespectador e telejornal, ou como esse último enxerga e posiciona o público. Entende-se que, na... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Television is experiencing another transformation moment driven by technology and current social and cultural practices. The digitalization process and networking connection possibility changed the conceptions of time and space and brought significant changes to formats, to productive routines and even to the way television contente is consumed. This is a scenario in which new and old audiences coexist, reaffirming, but also renewing, contracts assumed with television. Television journalism, as a social institution, according to Raymond Williams' conception, could not remain indifferent. That is why the aim of this research is to seek for an understanding of how Jornal Nacional of Rede Globo, the longest-running TV news on air in the coutry, being considered the most conservative one until the last decade, has been changing its way of addressing to the viewers (GOMES, 2011) due to an approach to social network sites. This approximation occurs mainly by Twitter, due to characteristics as conversation fostering and agility in content propagation during television broadcast. The investigation is centered on the communicative context analysis operator, also established by Gomes (2011), that concerns the discursive situation between television viewer and television news, or how the later sees and positions its public. This research undestand that, nowadays, this positioning occurs from television and also by the official television news profile on Twitter. Thus, the analysis corpu... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

O objetivo desta pesquisa é abordar a expansão da divulgação científica na Internet por um prisma dialógico. O perímetro do corpus da pesquisa engloba os enunciados postados no Facebook pelas revistas Scientific American Brasil, Pesquisa FAPESP e Superinteressante durante quatro meses do primeiro semestre de 2016 (01 de março de 2016 a 30 de junho de 2016). Empregam-se, como base teórico-metodológica, os conceitos elaborados pelo Círculo de Bakhtin, em especial: responsividade, gêneros do discurso, esferas de atividade humana, autor e ideologia. Dessa forma, almeja-se averiguar em que medida a hipertextualidade, os recursos verbo-visuais e a interação com os demais usuários da rede podem influenciar o conteúdo do enunciado publicado nas páginas de divulgação científica no Facebook. Em um segundo momento de análise, o objetivo é verificar a especificidade de determinadas características da divulgação científica nas redes sociais em comparação a outros meios tradicionais de difusão da ciência: televisão, revista, jornal etc. Para responder tais questões, elabora-se de forma sintética a pergunta de pesquisa: De que maneira as revistas de divulgação científica publicam na rede social Facebook e quais são as consequências discursivas, responsivas e dialógicas desse fenômeno? Por fim, observam-se questões relativas aos gêneros, entre as quais, a autoria e o interlocutor presumido. Além de tais fatores, o emprego ou ausência de referências científicas, assim como o uso de hipertextos com acesso a outros sites e blogs são elementos constitutivos da divulgação científica no Facebook. / The aim of this research is to address the growth of popular science on the Internet through a dialogical perspective. The scope of research encompasses the statements posted on Facebook by Scientific American Brasil, Pesquisa FAPESP and Superinteressante during four months in the first half of 2016 (March 01, 2016 to June 30, 2016). The concepts elaborated by the Bakhtin Circle are used as a theoretical-methodological basis, in particular: responsiveness, speech genres, spheres of human activity, author and ideology. In this way, we aim to investigate the extent to which hypertextuality, verbal and visual resources and interaction with other users of the web can influence the content of the posts published in the pages of popular science on Facebook. In a second step of analysis, the aim is to verify the specificity of certain characteristics of popular science in social networks sites compared to other traditional mediums of science communication: television, magazine, newspaper, etc. In order to answer such questions, the research question is elaborated in a synthetic way: Which way do popular science magazines publish on Facebook and which are the discursive, responsive and dialogic consequences of this phenomenon? Finally, there are issues related to genres, including the authorship and the presumed interlocutor. In addition to these factors, the use or absence of scientific references, as well as the use of hypertexts with links to other websites and blogs are key elements of popular science on Facebook.

Doctor of Philosophy / School of Family Studies and Human Services / Karen S. Myers-Bowman / Walter R. Schumm / We live in an era of constant communication, where Social Networking Sites (SNSs) are part of the technology revolution that has significantly altered our lives and means of communication. Adolescents are quick adopters of these sites; they spend a lot of their daily time interacting via these sites. Most parents in the United States strive to understand the purpose and function behind their children’s use of these technologies. This study is aimed to explore the Saudi mothers’ experiences with their adolescents in a different culture and country. The study focused on exploring the experiences, concerns, social and technical challenges, and strategies of Saudi mothers in the United States by using qualitative methodology. A snowball strategy was used through specific Saudi student groups and organizations in the United States. The participants recruited were Saudi mothers (N=13) who had adolescents (their ages are between 10- and 17-years-old). The interviews were transcribed verbatim, coded, and analyzed in light of symbolic interaction theory. The findings revealed some benefits of using SNSs among adolescents such as learning new languages or practicing the adolescent's native language. On the other hand, the findings also showed great concern among mothers and a lot of challenges about their adolescents’ use of SNSs. Also, the findings showed the roles of these mothers to protect, advise, and support their children regarding the use of SNSs. Mothers confirmed that their adolescents using SNSs without control or supervision may cause a lot of problems that affect adolescents, parents, and the relationships between them.

O objetivo desta pesquisa é abordar a expansão da divulgação científica na Internet por um prisma dialógico. O perímetro do corpus da pesquisa engloba os enunciados postados no Facebook pelas revistas Scientific American Brasil, Pesquisa FAPESP e Superinteressante durante quatro meses do primeiro semestre de 2016 (01 de março de 2016 a 30 de junho de 2016). Empregam-se, como base teórico-metodológica, os conceitos elaborados pelo Círculo de Bakhtin, em especial: responsividade, gêneros do discurso, esferas de atividade humana, autor e ideologia. Dessa forma, almeja-se averiguar em que medida a hipertextualidade, os recursos verbo-visuais e a interação com os demais usuários da rede podem influenciar o conteúdo do enunciado publicado nas páginas de divulgação científica no Facebook. Em um segundo momento de análise, o objetivo é verificar a especificidade de determinadas características da divulgação científica nas redes sociais em comparação a outros meios tradicionais de difusão da ciência: televisão, revista, jornal etc. Para responder tais questões, elabora-se de forma sintética a pergunta de pesquisa: De que maneira as revistas de divulgação científica publicam na rede social Facebook e quais são as consequências discursivas, responsivas e dialógicas desse fenômeno? Por fim, observam-se questões relativas aos gêneros, entre as quais, a autoria e o interlocutor presumido. Além de tais fatores, o emprego ou ausência de referências científicas, assim como o uso de hipertextos com acesso a outros sites e blogs são elementos constitutivos da divulgação científica no Facebook. / The aim of this research is to address the growth of popular science on the Internet through a dialogical perspective. The scope of research encompasses the statements posted on Facebook by Scientific American Brasil, Pesquisa FAPESP and Superinteressante during four months in the first half of 2016 (March 01, 2016 to June 30, 2016). The concepts elaborated by the Bakhtin Circle are used as a theoretical-methodological basis, in particular: responsiveness, speech genres, spheres of human activity, author and ideology. In this way, we aim to investigate the extent to which hypertextuality, verbal and visual resources and interaction with other users of the web can influence the content of the posts published in the pages of popular science on Facebook. In a second step of analysis, the aim is to verify the specificity of certain characteristics of popular science in social networks sites compared to other traditional mediums of science communication: television, magazine, newspaper, etc. In order to answer such questions, the research question is elaborated in a synthetic way: Which way do popular science magazines publish on Facebook and which are the discursive, responsive and dialogic consequences of this phenomenon? Finally, there are issues related to genres, including the authorship and the presumed interlocutor. In addition to these factors, the use or absence of scientific references, as well as the use of hypertexts with links to other websites and blogs are key elements of popular science on Facebook.

The implementation of this research increases the awareness of the value for luxury fashion brands in utilizing social media as a communication channel to reach young consumers globally. It provides a general understanding of young consumers’ perception of luxury fashion brands on social media in regards to geographic cultural background, attitude towards new luxury, and preferred way of contacts. / Program: Master Programme in Fashion Management

Diploma thesis deals with social networking sites and their use in education. Thesis is divided into two general parts. The first part deals with theory of learning; Bloom's taxonomy of educational objectives and new educational theory based on learning in networks -- Connectivism. After that thesis focuses on the definition of social networking sites, introduction of some of the best known social networking sites and examples of their use in foreign and domestic educational practice. The second part of the thesis is concerned with a practical use of chosen social networking site Wall.fm in classes of Web 2.0 and Social Networking Services course at the University of Economics, Prague. One of the parts is devoted to the survey among students of the course regarding the feedback on the use of social networking site in classes. The author then offers recommendations and suggestions for the use of the social networking site in Web 2.0 and Social Networking Services course in the upcoming semesters.

abstract: In a growlingly digital world, scholars must understand the changes in textuality and communication associated with Web 2.0 technologies to incorporate potential pedagogical benefits to language curricula. For example, with the affordance of these technologies, language learners (LL) are increasingly exposed to language contact zones found both on and offline. A practice that could potentially support the communicative practices of LL within these multilingual spaces is translanguaging, or the use of strategies employed by LL when engaging with diverse codes by utilizing the resources of their semiotic repertoire as well as their language(s). Previous research has focused principally on contexts of bilingual education and identity formation vis-à-vis translanguaging. Therefore, the present study is the first to examine the actual translanguaging practices of second language (n=5) and heritage language learners (n=5) of Spanish in a digital language contact zone: Facebook affinity spaces, or common interest spaces. The dynamic data gathered from screen capture recordings of the participants’ interactions and think-aloud protocols in the affinity spaces, stimulated recall interviews, and written reflections were analyzed using content analysis and critical discourse analysis. This analysis revealed key findings in the data that focused on translanguaging practices, negotiation strategies, and performative competence - or the procedural knowledge which focuses on how learners communicate rather than what they communicate. First, the participants displayed a preference toward the separation of languages in written output, adhering to the ideals of linguistic purism, while simultaneously engaging in translanguaging practices via non-linguistic semiotic resources, such as the use of emojis, in their communication. Second, the participants’ self-reported proficiency levels for their writing abilities in Spanish correlated with their use of outside digital resources as a mediation tool. The findings show that, theoretically, the conceptualization of communicative competence must be expanded in order to incorporate the languaging practices of interlocutors in digital contexts. Pedagogically, educators need to support the development of LLs’ digital literacies, or communicative practices that are facilitated by technology, and address the bias toward linguistic purism to help students reap the cognitive benefits offered by translanguaging practices. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Spanish 2018

University personnel offering online doctoral degrees struggle to address high attrition of students in the dissertation phase; these students can feel isolated, disconnected, and unmotivated. The purpose of this study was to explore ways online doctoral students in the dissertation phase used social networking sites (SNS) to overcome isolation and to increase persistence. The conceptual framework was situated in communities of practice (CoP) and the theory on self-determination. Research questions explored participants' experiences with using SNS to remain connected and persistent. Data were collected from in-depth interviews with 7 online doctoral students, who met the criteria of being in the dissertation phase for a minimum of 2 quarters and using at least 1 social networking site; the participants were from 4 online institutions in the United States. An interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to examine themes and interpret the lived experiences of participants. Findings revealed that online doctoral students in the dissertation phase valued working with peers and with doctoral graduates from other institutions as a strategy to remain persistent in completing their dissertations. They focused on learning and on sharing with others for social and emotional support in a safe environment. Other elements included being held accountable and being challenged to keep moving. The results could influence instructional design for online doctoral candidates emphasizing the use of SNS for support from a CoP. Implications for positive social change include higher education personnel supporting unmonitored SNS interactions and increasing trust within school-created SNS spaces for students in the dissertation phase.

This study investigates the phenomenon of asymmetric interpersonal relationships—dyads in which one individual has greater knowledge of personal information about the other. Relationships usually benefit from self-disclosure when it is done in a reciprocal, personal manner; acquiring information through such means as Facebook can disrupt the process, offset information balance and negatively affect interrelationship factors. This study investigates the effect of information asymmetry on such factors as interpersonal attraction, subjective power, and social interaction anxiety. Participants were given Facebook profiles with varying amounts of information (high, low, or none) prior to interacting with a confederate. I predicted that participants in the high information condition would experience the greatest social interaction anxiety and the least interpersonal attraction. Increased anxiety would mediate a reduction in interpersonal attraction. Participants with no prior information were expected to exhibit opposite tendencies compared to the high information condition. A secondary effect on subjective power was also explored. Results did not reach statistical significance but were in the directions as hypothesized. Findings indicate that imbalance of interpersonal information has the potential to negatively impact relationship factors.