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Research on autistic individuals' writing has long focused on weaknesses in structural complexity, organisation, and perspective-taking skills. More recently, awareness has grown that writing can be a strength, as suggested by research on autistic memoirs. To learn more about how well autistic individuals write when they use language for their own purposes, we turned to autistic-authored blogs. Online word usage patterns were analysed for 30 self-identified autistic bloggers and 30 age and gender-matched non-autistic bloggers, assumed to be neurotypical (NT). In addition, blog content was analysed for the range of topics discussed. Topics were categorised according to broad topics including common hobbies (e.g. sports, arts, crafts), preoccupations (e.g. people, vehicles, food, machines), and academic domains (e.g. belief systems, science, numbers, history). Compared to NT bloggers, autistic bloggers wrote in a more complex manner, as measured by word and sentence length and rare vocabulary. Autistic bloggers often wrote about science or other abstract topics rather than discussing daily life events. These findings suggest that one subset of autistic individuals, those who write blogs, are able to write in a more complex style than their NT peers. This may reflect having an intellectual orientation, or, autistic people with sophisticated writing skills are the ones who choose to author blogs. Raising awareness that some autistic individuals can be strong writers will be of broad help to diverse stakeholders, including educators, clinicians, families and autistic individuals themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This ethnographic study explores how severely ill and dying persons participating in expressive forms of culture, such as art, blogging and talking, confront dying and death. Influenced by the increasing relevance of values such as expressivity and creativity and the mediatisation of everyday life, more and more people facing death in globalised Western culture seek their own expressive ways to deal with finitude in online and offline contexts. Framed by Tony Walter's sociology of death, which captures key features of death attitudes within Western societies, this study identifies commonalities in the different expressive endeavours at the end of life. The data for the analysis stem from encounters with 12 persons receiving palliative care in Switzerland. The study found that the performances of individualistic expressivity are informed by the idea of personal growth, prosumer and sharing culture, a quest for belonging and the wish for silence. The findings aim to contribute to further the understanding of current forms of mediated dying in networked society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mommy blog communities have been established by mothers who publish their stories online with the stated purpose to empower themselves and their peers by offering a seemingly unfiltered representation of motherhood. While this benefit has been felt by many readers, there are invisible governing discourses that have prevented such blogs from becoming authentic spaces of resistance to the hegemonic ideals of motherhood. To understand the governing forces placed upon mothers through “mommy blogs,” we explored the question: How is motherhood shaped through narratives (re)presented in mommy blogs? Critical discourse analysis, informed by a governmentality perspective, was used to analyze mommy blog entries to illuminate representations of power and knowledge within the blog entries. The findings suggest that a governmentality perspective is useful in understanding how mommy blogs enact power over mothers using mechanisms of governance through 1) sameness and imperfection, 2) perceived self-compassion, 3) advice and support, and 4) the scientification of motherhood. As more people turn to online communities for support with the experience of mothering, it is important to garner a critical understanding of how mommy blogs continue to influence contemporary experiences of motherhood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In spite of the superior effects of semester- or year-long educational experiences abroad, the majority of students prefers short-term study abroad for which participation numbers are steadily rising. Due to the increased student interest in short-term study abroad options, investigations into how a short stay abroad can be designed to maximize learning outcomes for participants are important. While some studies suggest that technology can have negative impacts on language learning during study abroad, effective inclusion of technology can maximize learning. This article summarizes the results of three years of research investigating the effects of daily online journaling during an intensive German summer program on second language (L2) learners' writing skills during an intensive German summer program. The context of the program will be described along with the rationale for including online journaling assignments. The study investigates whether there is a relationship between the amount students wrote in their daily blogs and their writing development, and whether students' linguistic progress can be traced in their journal posts. Lastly, the article will provide a pedagogical evaluation of the benefits of incorporating journaling or blogging in short-term study abroad programs and present suggestions for successful projects. The terms journaling and blogging are used interchangeably in this manuscript; while a blog was used as the journal platform in this project, a different format than a blog can serve the same purpose of providing a space for reflective journaling for students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psychological resilience has been a topic of ongoing debate in the field of psychology, with a lack of consensus on its definition, operationalisation, and conceptualisation. Meanwhile, young people have been called upon to demonstrate resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LAMICs) where they have been disproportionately affected by the economic fallout. In response to this, this study aimed to explore the perception of resilience and blogging among young people from a LAMIC. Using in-depth interviews with 15 participants, the study identified three main themes: sources of resilience, role of resilience, and process of resilience. Additionally, five main themes related to blogging were identified: what is a blog, video bloggers, advantages, concerns, and experience. The study's findings highlight the importance of understanding resilience from a different demographic, which can influence the development of resilience interventions. This study also provides insights into the potential of using blogging as a tool for promoting resilience in young people. Overall, this study offers a valuable contribution to the understanding of resilience and its relation to digital mental health, particularly in diverse and underrepresented communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contemporary literature suggests that music education is stuck in a cycle of cultural reproduction in which music teachers and curriculum writers value Western art music more than culturally-diverse and modern, technology-saturated musics, and train the next generation to hold similar views. A MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) was developed to challenge music teachers' worldviews and to develop critical thinking about the field. In this mixed-methods study, we analysed 18 months of qualitative and quantitative data provided by the more than 1,600 course participants in response to paedagogical 'provocations' to assess whether it was successful in prompting critical thinking and worldview change. We used three methods to interrogate three distinct datasets: basic content analysis of participants' publicly written reflections, statistical analysis of peer marking and context-network maps of peer comments. Between-methods triangulation crystallised our findings. We find that through required peer-review of public postings, an online community of practice formed, that it encouraged teachers to engage deeply with new ideas, and engage in Critical Thinking. We find that those who had a disposition towards critical thinking in the early assessments responded most positively to the pedagogy of provocation and were consistently prepared to question their own worldview and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Evangelical Christian communities, the responsibility for maintaining the home is taken up primarily by women (Bartkowski, 1999 ; Gallagher & Smith, 1999). The discursive construction of the home as a sacred space free from toxic influences emerged during the Cold War, when the global turmoil seemed to demand the delineation of a matriarchal safe space (Shively, 2017; Neumann, 2019 ; Anagnost 2013). More recently, restrictions concerning COVID-19 have initiated a further shift from the public to the private sphere. Women who were accustomed to conducting housework while their husbands were at work have abruptly come to the foreground as life primarily took place at home. This article explores the intersection of daily activities with religious beliefs as reflected in the practice of blogging. Central to this study is the assumption that ordinary, daily activities provide a unique lens into the way people 'in the pews' live their lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The biggest change in the purchasing behavior of Filipino employees nowadays is the power of blogging and social media. The most popular of these are YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and so many more upcoming platforms. The cited social media platforms greatly impact consumer behavior, specifically employees. Having all the necessary information is readily accessible in the palm of your hand. And this changes everything, including consumer behavior. Consumer decision-making is influenced by social media and blogging. According to UNCTAD, people will continue to shop online long after the epidemic has passed due to the crisis's repercussions. (Cerezo, 2020). This study will analyze the implications of blogging and social media in the buying behavior of Filipino employees observed for the post pandemic period utilizing the black box model. Quantitative information was collected and used for this study's purposes using descriptive and inferential statistics. The research is limited to a specific environmental consultancy firm in Manila. The findings indicate that social media influences Filipino employees' purchasing behavior by providing them with information that alters their perspective and sense of style, which leads to purchases of the products. Without a doubt, social media plays a large connection for both consumers and businesses, including Filipino employees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blogs are considered to be a useful online tool for learning, teaching, training and education. Students and teachers can share their thoughts and ideas, and can express their feelings and opinions in an online environment (Deng & Yuen, 2011). No special technological skills are needed in order to post a blog entry. Blogging promotes creativity, critical thinking, reflection, collaboration, interaction and active participation. Blogs can help people to gain and share knowledge, as well as to increase the digital literacy of both students and teachers, and to change their attitudes towards information and communication technology (ICT; Goktas & Demirel, 2012). This study investigated the role of blogging in the development of the cognitive, social and self-directed learning skills of students, who were future EFL teachers, during a teaching methodology and teaching practicum course. The participants were 40 university students (third and fourth year). Their ages ranged from 18 to 25 years, their L1 was Cypriot Greek and they all resided in Cyprus. The students were asked to write online blog entries after each of their sessions. The analysis of the data, blog entries and questionnaires, showed that, overall, the students had positive attitudes towards blogging. They believed that blogs facilitated their development as teachers and practitioners via creating an online community in a user-friendly way. The students had the opportunity to interact more with their peers and the tutor, express their views, exchange ideas, gain new knowledge and experience, and increase the level of their digital competence, particularly considering the current COVID situation (Halic et al., 2010). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article proposesto refine the periodisation of Russian and Russian-speaking immigration in Bulgaria. It examines the necessary context, describing changes in motivations and identity projects of these groups from (relatively) 2013 to 2023. The text outlines the specific tool - the blog, reinvented in a modern context – the text highlights the differences between it within the visual platform Instagram and its classical visual version. Thus, some of the main features of Russian-speaking users’ own online representations are brought to the fore through the implicit and (counterintuitively) explicit discourses of Russian-speaking users. They focus the analysis on their identifications and the specifics of adaptation and its dynamics, maintaining a sense of community but also accumulating social capital that directly reflects their plans and strategies for the present and future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emergence of new information and communication technologies, social media platforms, and the called WEB 2.0, has led to a new digital revolution. This cyber-era has witnessed profound social transformations. Blog and blogging today extend beyond just writing with limited influence. Individuals from diverse social backgrounds, institutions, affiliations, and ideologies have their own or shared spaces to talk about various topics such as daily life, economics, politics, religion, leisure, sports, and others. Intellectuals are not the exception, as they have been seamlessly integrated into these digital spaces. In the Arab world, many social movements and revolutions have gained great momentum using social media platforms and technologies and through the presence of intellectuals, policy / decision-makers as well as ordinary citizens. This paper aims to provide a modest exposition about the reality of the intellectual participation of actors (intellectuals) in the field of blogging in the context of social media platforms and technologies. It also addresses some of the challenges that intellectuals faced in these dynamic, rapidly spreading and developing digital environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Croatian Journal of Education / Hrvatski Časopis za Odgoj i Obrazovanje is the property of Uciteljski Fakultet u Zagrebu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Technology has become an inevitable part of learning these days and the popularity of blogs and web forums is increasing exponentially. The purpose of blogging is to encourage discussions on a particular topic or concept, thereby throwing more light on the point of discussion. These discussions generally focus on knowledge sharing and acquiring, but in a way, they help the participants and the readers to enhance their language skills like listening, reading, writing, grammar, and vocabulary both directly and indirectly. The present study consolidates the opinions of the researcher about the use of blogs as educational technology and the opinions of the learners about the role of blogs in their language learning aspects. The result shows that blogs have a considerable impact on one’s language proficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated how English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students at a university in Pakistan experienced blogging on their smartphones as a means to gain more extensive autonomous practice writing in English. The blogging was done as a stand-alone activity, independent of the students' university EFL programme. Using a mixed-methods case study design, data were collected from 23 undergraduate students through interviews, surveys, and reflective written accounts. This paper foregrounded the students' voices to reveal their attitudes to blogging, their experiences using smartphones for that purpose, and perceived changes in their English writing skills. The findings indicated that many of the participants developed a virtuous cycle, in which their interest and enjoyment of blogging, along with perceived improvements in their ability to communicate in English, contributed to increase both confidence and motivation to write more. The findings also pointed to other worthwhile social and educational outcomes that could be fostered through this type of activity. As a result, the study has implications for teachers and learners in a wide range of EFL contexts, i.e., offering further insights into strategies for harnessing existing digital tools in order to extend students' opportunities to use the target language, within and beyond formal educational settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyai, Philologia is the property of Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A number of university educators decided to implement an experience "pilot": the co-creation of a blog with students in which they disseminated some topics of the subject "Spanish political system", taken as part of a joint honors degree in law and political science from the Faculty of Political Sciences and Sociology of the Complutense University of Madrid. Four professors and 42 students participated in this experience. In the first phase, the students, under the supervision of the professors, collaboratively developed each of the assigned topics. To do so, the professors explained the dynamics, provided them with a series of resources, trained them in collaborative work techniques, supervised the whole process, and resolved all their doubts. In a second phase, they jointly evaluated one subject to see the possible deviations that had occurred with respect to the initial model, in order to be able to correct them in the rest. In addition, the professors conducted a student survey to measure teamwork and the impact of the blog, the results of which were shared with the participants and at specialized conferences. Thanks, this pilot program has shown that blogging is an important technological tool for the transformation and improvement of teaching and learning processes, and that it encourages the active role of students and promotes their collaborative learning, generating knowledge with and for students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored perceptions of the digital experiences of 18 preservice teachers before and after participation in blogging paired with online book clubs. The purpose of the research was to identify participants' reading habits and online practices, examine their perceptions of blogging as an instructional tool when coupled with online book clubs, and ascertain if or how they intend to incorporate this digital pairing into their future educational practice. A 15-question Likert-scale survey was administered to participants, six-member online book clubs were formed, and blogs were created and used by participants to engage in online dialogue over the course of four weeks. Participants again responded to the survey and also provided reflective responses. Findings revealed positive aspects and challenges related to participants' experience. Though this study was narrow in scope and results were limited, it provides a foundation and rationale for future research in an area that is still emerging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Business writing has been a desired skill in managers. The existing traditional business writing assessment tools like written examination and hand-in assignments based on genre-specific instructions do not create a workplace writing environment. The business management students (n = 98) engage with an innovative Web 2.0–based business writing tool using blogging and LinkedIn. The findings show that the tool created a workplace-like context, a meaningful purpose, and a real audience for the students. The students make and build relationships in the professional community using their business writing. The challenges and recommendations for BPC faculty are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on blogs' role in public relations about animal agriculture production is limited at best. This case study set out to describe the characteristics of selected bloggers' writing about protein-related topics and issues, with a special focus on how the protein industry was represented, what themes were most common, and what the tonal characteristics of the blog posts were. Researchers used a content analysis approach to describe the content of 37 blog posts from eight purposively selected blogs that contained posts about protein-related topics. The content analysis showed at least three types of blogs about protein--organizational, which included meat industry organizations as well as activist groups that seek to effect changes in the protein industry; professional, which included blog entries by experts (such as dieticians) representing their own opinions; and personal, which included lifestyle bloggers who were not experts but who provided information to readers on a variety of topics. In terms of themes, four prominent overarching themes were identified by coders, including environment, consumption of protein, alternative protein sources, and alternative dieting. Tones associated with the environmental theme were mostly negative toward the protein industry. Tones associated with the consumption of protein were mostly positive toward the industry. Tones in the blog entries about alternative protein sources and alternative dieting were mixed--both positive and negative toward the protein industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Participants in study abroad (SA) programs (sojourners) are often encouraged to blog as a form of reflective writing, yet little is known about this practice. Generally, reflection facilitates sojourners' engagement in their personal and professional growth. Drawing from two different but complementary frameworks, we analyzed blogs from 51 sojourners in short-term SA volunteer teaching placements to examine the reflection that occurred through their writing. The two frameworks revealed different aspects of blogging practices: types of reflection (Maarof, 2007) were primarily descriptive, but intercultural communicative competence learning (Elola & Oskoz, 2008) examples were more numerous and varied, documenting sojourners' navigation of culture in SA. Sojourners did not typically use their blogs for dialogic or critical reflection, instead chronicling experiences or representing reflection as completed actions. Although blogging can be useful for reflection in SA, the results from this study suggest that careful scaffolding may be necessary to encourage critical reflection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blogging is usually associated with the posting of informal texts, but academic blogs have also become quite popular as they facilitate the exchange of ideas in many fields of study. This paper explores the scope of blogging in making tertiary level students more aware of a few important aspects of academic writing. The two objectives of this paper were to determine whether blogging can i) enable students to understand and practice the mechanics of academic writing, and ii) motivate the learners to write longer texts. The study was a quasiexperimental research that was conducted by the researcher in the classroom. The findings indicate a significant difference in the way learners understand the mechanics of academic writing due to blogging. The findings also revealed that learners are more motivated to write longer text while blogging. This study recommends the use of blogging as a tool in order to teach academic writing at the tertiary level. However, the lack of familiarity with technology among a number of students in India is still a cause for concern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trusted online identities in social media are viable sources of information in the digital world. Among different types of social media, blog continues to play important roles in promoting social commerce and social interactions through the development and maintenance of trusted online identities. This study examines factors that influence bloggers' intentions to continue blogging. From the social identity perspective, we suggest that identity confirmation, reflecting the congruence between identity expectation and perceived identity performance in blogging, is a primary driver of blogging continuance intention. Integrating the social identity theory, the expectation-confirmation theory, and the literature on habit, we develop a model to show that identity confirmation influences satisfaction with blogging and habit of blogging, and the latter two factors influence continuance intention. An empirical test of 165 Taiwanese bloggers confirmed the expectations. A post hoc analysis further shows that the effect of identity confirmation on blogging continuance intention is mediated by satisfaction and habit, highlighting the critical role of bloggers' ex-post experience in the linkage between their ex-ante motivation of identity construction and blogging continuance intention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both autistic adults and families of autistic children rely heavily on blogs and other digital platforms to create community and gain experiential knowledge about autism, but research on autism blogs has failed to distinguish between the perspectives of autistic adults and neurotypical parent bloggers. Furthermore, intersections in the experiences of BIPOC autistics are rarely examined. Using a content analysis with a feminist Critical Disability Studies lens, I explore six autism parent blogs from diverse demographics: a white neurotypical father, a white autistic mother in an interracial relationship, a white neurotypical mother, an Indigenous autistic trans father, a Black autistic nonbinary mother, and a Black neurotypical mother. I examine the attitudes of these bloggers to get a sampling of their opinions on autism, how they parent autistic children, and how their social location, specifically race, impacts their experiences. More intersectional research needs to be done to boost the perspectives of BIPOC autistics and the expertise of autistic parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper mobilises interactionist sociology to explore the biographies and moral careers of two former zhiqing who emerged, circa 2007, as well-known mother figures in a dynamic tongzhi blogosphere. Their encounter with young tongzhi inaugurated parental advocacy for their sexually nonconforming children in China. By anchoring tongzhi activism in contemporary Chinese history and reconstructing two parallel processes of activist-becoming, this paper seeks to better understand how political agency emerged in an authoritarian setting while making a case for studying activism as historicised meaning-making activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When its entire staff resigned in protest of management meddling in 2019, Deadspin had become one of the most influential institutions in American sports journalism. This critical essay examines the blog's legacy through the unique lens of punk philosophy, drawing upon coverage by and about the site, as well as in-depth interviews with sports media professionals (including those among Deadspin's leadership). Punk theory helps explain how and why Deadspin cultivated itself in opposition to both the flawed symbiotic dependencies of sports media and the aesthetic restraint of establishment journalism, while pioneering and sharpening the participatory, do-it-yourself culture of blogging. The paper concludes this analysis of what Deadspin might portend for an otherwise-rare adversarial model of sports journalism at a time of dramatic industry and technological upheaval. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Creative expression has been proven to have therapeutic value. While this normally takes place in the form of a journal or diary, blogging has become an increasingly popular venue for expression. The present study attempts to identify if blogging about general topics can improve emotional well-being. Over the course of two weeks, 22 participants completed a series of 6 blog posts using a series of general prompts. Some participants were asked to create a public blog, while others were asked to make their posts private and closed to comments. The results show that blogging did significantly improve the emotional well-being of the participants. This improvement advocates for the usefulness and therapeutic value of blogging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the empirical case of commercial mom blogging as indicative of the particular ways in which the digital economy invites and exploits women's affective and emotional labour. Based on Finnish mom bloggers' interviews, the article explores the ways in which emotional labour is needed to tackle the mean and degrading comments that most bloggers have to come to terms with, and the ways in which their affective involvement is an inseparable part of their work as mom bloggers. Looking at vulnerability, control and emotional resilience as sites of emotional and affective labour in blogging, the article shows how gendered and embodied burdens are carried on to the digital realm, and how new vulnerabilities and forms of affective labour are formed and normalized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Tonsillectomy has generated extensive comment on the internet, but this content has not been examined in a scientific manner. This study aimed to determine what the blogosphere has to say about adult tonsillectomy and to report whether this information can be used to improve post-surgical care. Methods: The internet was searched to find personal blogs relating to tonsillectomy. A retrospective review of data collected on these blogs was carried out and the blogs were conceptually analysed by the authors. Results: Fifty blogs were included. Seventy per cent of patients had read blogs prior to their procedure. The average pain score where available was 7.2. Complications occurred in 10 per cent of patients. Only 1 patient (2 per cent) regretted having a tonsillectomy. Conclusion: It is important for otolaryngologists to stay in tune with the blogosphere as this unregulated and easily accessible source of information is both friend and foe but will ultimately help in pre-operative counselling and post-operative management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Russia's accelerating authoritarian turn has not ignored the internet, and in recent years, the Russian state has clamped down on internet activities that diverge from the statist line, employing a variety of strategies to dominate online spaces. Nevertheless, oppositional voices flourish on the Russian internet, taking shape in independent blogs and videos. This paper explores three political bloggers through surveillant and resistance assemblages, making sense of this contestation through an interpretation of the Deleuzian virtual that underscores the emancipatory potential of online activities for producing more egalitarian configurations, but also taking stock of the ways that these technologies have increased domination. Encompassing the blurriness between digital and corporeal spaces, the paper contributes by revealing new geographies of contestation against state strategies to dominate the Russian internet. Overlapping with but not corresponding to Russian territorial boundaries, these dynamics highlight shifting spaces of power and resistance in the increasingly illiberal world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the benefits of undergraduate research for students are broadly understood, implementation of undergraduate research in the college classroom can be challenging. In this article, I explain how blogging assignments can be used to enable students to successfully complete course-long research projects and achieve many of the content and skill development benefits of undergraduate research, even in courses in which undergraduate research is less common—such as those with high enrollment numbers, those at earlier points in a political science major, or those with many non-major students. I draw on several forms of student feedback and assessment to identify the strengths and weaknesses of using blogs as a way to build a research paper. Additionally, I outline the components of one set of blogging assignments and provide suggestions for implementation of blogging research projects in other courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the emotional responses that assessment can provoke in undergraduate students. The literature on the link between emotions and learning is well established, with an emphasis on confidence and anxiety, but there is surprisingly little research on the relationship between emotions and innovative assessment practices. This article aims to make a contribution to these debates by looking at courses where students were assessed through blogging, an assessment strategy that was new and unfamiliar to all of them. Focus groups were undertaken with students on four courses at the University of Edinburgh. The data from the focus groups identified positive emotional responses to blogging with students outlining how it was a way to enhance engagement because of the enjoyment it brought them. Blogging also evoked negative emotions, with respondents detailing how a new assessment method initially engendered feelings of unease and anxiety. Our analysis indicates that it is important to pay attention to the wider emotional landscape of assessment strategies. Students compared the allure and appeal of blogging, despite its unknowns and uncertainties, with the often negative feelings they had about being assessed using more conventional means such as essays and examinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we investigate the powerful role of blogging to promote student engagement. We use the experience of students on four courses at one university, which all included blogging in their assessment portfolio. The paper draws on focus groups undertaken with the students participating in the courses to provide a detailed examination of how and why blogging fosters engagement. We show how a focus on assessment practices, including blogging, is an important addition to the literature on student engagement. In the empirical section, we present detailed findings from the student interviews, including discussion of how blogging enables students to develop their own voices as part of the writing process. The evidence suggests that a broader understanding of student engagement depends not only on the complex interaction between students and assessment practices, but on understanding the role of students' investment in the learning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although blogs have mostly been regarded to be useful in learning environments, it has been observed that few experimental studies with control groups have been conducted on the use of blogs in order to promote pre-service teachers' development. It is a mixed method research study conducted through pre-test and post-test experimental design with a control group. Although the research framework was based on the experimental quantitative data, qualitative interviews were also held with the experimental group at the end of the procedure. 46 pre-service teachers were included in the study, 21 for the experimental group, and 25 for the control group. In the end, qualitative data were collected from 14 voluntary pre-service teachers in the experimental group. As a result of the analyses, it was revealed that the experimental and control groups, which were identical at the beginning, differed significantly at the end of the experimental process in terms of reflective thinking and teacher self-efficacy. In other words, it was concluded that blogging was effective in developing the aforementioned variables, and the research findings were supported by qualitative interviews. Pre-service teachers in the experimental group pointed out that blogging contributed to the course, their professional and personal development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Women are under-represented in information technology (IT) professions, globally. It is widely discussed that there is an urgent need to tackle this issue by bringing more women into the IT industry. However, the spotlight is less often put on women currently working as developers in male-dominated environments. How do these women experience their work and deal with problems? International non-profit initiatives such as Women who Code (WwC) aim not only at supporting women in training for and entering IT professions: they also advise them in their daily lives and struggles as developers. Using this network and its blog as a case study, I show that the WwC bloggers are faced with contradictory work norms and experiences. They tend to resort to pragmatic advice, focused on DIY problem solving, and shouldered individual responsibility rather than highlighting systemic failures. This tendency shows similarities to neoliberal feminist rationales and speaks to the need for (re)emphasizing the need for structural changes within the broader discourse concerning women developers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Estudios de Traducción is the property of Universidad Complutense de Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Firstly known as “weblog”, soon shortened as “blog” in 1999, blogs have always been an important part of online culture. Since then their static nature has changed, and they have offered new opportunities, which in return has started to draw the attention of both educators and researchers increasingly. Soon they have assumed a critical place in language learning, specifically in writing classes. As a result of their nondecremental role in language learning, this study aimed to investigate the effects of using blog in academic writing and determine the attitudes of learners of English as a foreign language at tertiary level. The results indicated a considerable increase in the success scores of the students who used blogging in academic writing, confirming that blogging improves students’ writing skills. In parallel with this finding, students also expressed positive attitudes towards the use of blog in their writing activities, which together could imply that students with positive attitudes towards blogging are likely to become better writers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beyond a purely social activity, mode of leisure or form of escape, blogging is an increasingly important form of labour that is becoming central to many jobs, occupations and forms of self‐employment. Yet, the labour dynamics of blogging remain poorly understood and articulated. To address this gap, this paper presents a novel typology of work‐related blogging based on the integration of existing knowledge, an in‐depth qualitative analysis of 10 blogs and 1,304 blog posts and a 'total social organisation of labour' framework. It contributes to the sociology of work by unpacking and nuancing our collective understanding of the relationships between blogging, labour market mobility and labour market trends such as the fragmentation of work, the heightened significance of unpaid labour and new forms of resistance and solidarity in the digital age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to illustrate the various challenges facing research in the field of new media, mainly content analysis, sampling, validation of questionnaires, the difficulty of measuring impact, and highlighting the reasons for these difficulties that linked to the specifications of new media compared to conventional media, such as the speed of modification of content, the nature of hypertexts and virtual identities. Finally, the study presents some ways to overcome these problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a cyber-ethnographic study of a community of North American men who write parenting blogs—known as "dad bloggers." Informed by sociological and feminist media studies literature on parenting culture and digital public spheres, I examine dad bloggers as a social group who are collectively responding and contributing to contemporary cultural models of fatherhood. Drawing on data from fieldwork observations, blog posts, and interviews, I demonstrate how dad bloggers are developing their community and group "idioculture," reframing how fatherhood is represented in the media, and engaging in advocacy and activism for issues surrounding family, work, and gender. I argue that dad bloggers in North America constitute a "tiny public" who are constructing their own culture of fatherhood 2.0. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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There is a dilemma for HR executives concerning social media policies: Should HR managers allow employees to use social media while at work? The question has no easy answer because there are conflicting views on the matter. However, the conflicting views can be resolved if we focus on the individuals with whom an employee interacts through social media. Building on data on the blogging activity of 269 employees working for a Canadian health-care provider, the paper reveals a new problem: The extent to which employees engage in personal blogging with outsiders – individuals who do not work for the organization – is negatively related to intrinsic work motivation and to proactive behavior. After having introduced the problem, the paper shows a solution. If employees engage in blogging with coworkers, the negative effects turn positive: Blogging with coworkers positively affects intrinsic work motivation and proactive behavior. Finally, the paper offers a recommendation for HR managers to leverage the solution. Through social job design and increasing formal interaction requirements, HR executives can reinforce the association between social media use and blogging with coworkers. Overall, the paper helps HR executives to clarify the outcomes of social media, find a problem, suggest a solution, and recommend how to achieve it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An evaluation of the use of blogging for developing educational affordances that enhance characteristics of social interaction and reflective dialogue within learning communities. The findings emerge from a study investigating the implementation of course blogs on a media practice programme at a UK university. Literature on the use of course blogs suggests that blogging supports learning and promotes the attainment of skills in researching, academic writing, critical reflection and professional identity formation. There are however difficulties for educators seeking to promote the use of course blogs as a productive and lively social practice. The study presents data from a group of L4 students as well as a group of tutors tasked with implementing the use of course blogs. It asks: what are the barriers to developing blogging as a social practice; and seeks to identify positive actions that will enhance the implementation of course blogging. The research employs a qualitative approach drawing on the concept of 'dwelling' as a focus group methodology. The production of two data sets, one from the staff and one from students allows for a comparison that aims to identify disjunctions between the staff conception of blogging and that of the students. Thereby offering the possibility for determining the particular set of educational affordances required to achieve the aims of the project. Findings suggest that in the early stages of implementation one of the biggest challenge to developing blogging is resistance to change among staff. While among students the core theme is around ownership and motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

My essay examines the blogging culture surrounding San Diego Comic-Con. Con-bloggers share desirable strategies for navigating the convention, including access to tickets, hotel rooms, and panels. I argue that con-blogging's focus on wait times, the convention space, and communal experiences among fans functions as an adjacent yet external "extra" to the industry's promotional discourse. The popularity of con-blogging demonstrates that fans' interests exceed industrial offerings. Con-bloggers' primary fandom is the ephemeral experience rooted in a specific time (four days in July) and space (the San Diego Convention Center), expanding the usual definition of fandom as centering on a media text. Even though con-bloggers' fandom remains apart from industry buzz, they adopt industrial strategies to promote their blogs, including branding, sponsorships, and swag. The complex economy of knowledge production among con-bloggers reorients our understanding of industry-fan interactions at conventions and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For this case study, an Internet-based survey was posted on a popular mixed-martial-arts (MMA) blog to ascertain its users' demographics and usage trends. Data analysis revealed that users were predominantly White men between the ages of 23 and 39, with some college education and an annual income of $40,000-59,999. An exploratory factor analysis revealed 6 dimensions of gratification: evaluation, community, information gathering, knowledge demonstration, argumentation, and diversion. The most salient motivation statements were related to the speed of information access, the depth of information and coverage, and the availability of information not typically found through traditional media outlets. Most users spent 1-5 hr/wk watching MMA programming and 1-10 hr/wk on MMA blogs, making 1-20 comments per week. Findings indicated that users used this particular blog for both interactive and information-gathering purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Firms have become interested in blogs, since consumers are more prone to believe in other individuals, such as private bloggers, than firms, and because blogs influence readers' behaviour. Nevertheless, private bloggers may be driven by factors other than commercial motivations, and firms need to investigate carefully how to address these independent but powerful actors. By understanding bloggers' motivations to blog, marketers can better address bloggers' needs and adapt social media campaigns accordingly. This paper contributes to social media and gratifications research by studying the perceived gratifications of 12 experienced private bloggers from Estonia. The bloggers sought process, content, and social gratifications from blogging activities. Several new categories were found compared with previous research. For example, the content gratifications of enlightening others, advertising, and promotion, and the social gratifications of communication, image management, and vanity, are new to blogging. Bloggers' gratifications were found to evolve over time, leading to blog changes. The dynamics of gratifications have not been covered in the literature, and its implications for blog marketing require further research. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]