Erasmus University Thesis Repository
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Investigating the Impact of TikTok Use on Mental Health Anxiety among Generation Z
No full textMental health remains one of the most common issues faced by young adults today, yet many
continue to hesitate in their willingness to seek professional help. Since the COVID-19 pandemic,
TikTok has turned into a space where individuals feel safe and comfortable sharing their mental health
experiences and seeking support. Hence, previous research has primarily focused on the
interconnection between mental health conditions that may arise from excessive TikTok use among
young individuals, while paying less attention to whether such use increases anxiety about their
well-being. Drawing upon Social Comparison, Social Cognitive, and Source Credibility Theories, this
research sheds light on the topic by investigating whether Gen Z users engaging more frequently with
TikTok are more susceptible to developing mental health anxiety. This relationship was further
examined by the mediating role of exposure to mental health content on TikTok and the moderating
role of influencer credibility on the platform. A quantitative survey-based research design was
adopted to systematically collect and analyse data from Generation Z TikTok users (n =160),
providing insights into the relationship between TikTok use and the youth's mental health. The results
showed that the more intensive use of TikTok and exposure to mental health content are not associated
with mental health anxiety. Additionally, it was found that the perceived credibility of the mental
health influencers on TikTok did not significantly impact the connection between exposure to mental
health content and mental health anxiety. These findings carry important implications. For mental
health professionals, it highlights the importance of considering the sensitive nature of mental health
and the need for critical assessment of their intentions in sharing their knowledge with others online.
Moreover, it also emphasizes how their expertise can be used to educate Gen Z about mental health
information on social media platforms like TikTok. For young adults, these findings underline the
importance of developing stronger emotional boundaries when using TikTok as a source for support.
Finally, the results call for more critical responsibility of media professionals, marketers, and health
practitioners in forming the digital environments where mental health conversations occur more
frequently now. As social media increasingly becomes a site of emotional self-assessment, this study
points to the urgent need for an ethical, informed, and psychologically safe space for communicating
mental health information online
Localhood for sale: left ungoverned, sold by the market
No full textAs cities grapple with the pressures of overtourism, many are shifting from growth
centered strategies toward approaches that prioritize urban liveability. In this context,
localhood-oriented tourism has emerged as a response to the rise of New Urban Tourism,
where visitors seek out everyday life in residential neighborhoods. While localhood strategies
promise more sustainable and community-driven tourism, their implementation often unfolds
within broader frameworks of neoliberal urban development, raising critical questions about
their actual outcomes.This thesis investigates how localhood strategies are implemented and
experienced in Rotterdam's Oude Noorden, a post-industrial neighborhood identified in the
city's 2020 tourism vision as a priority for place-based development. Despite policy ambitions
to invest in local identity and quality of life, little empirical research has addressed how such
aims translate on the ground.The central research question is: How can a genuine localist
tourism policy for Rotterdam's Oude Noorden be implemented in the face of neoliberal
development challenges? This is guided by a sub-question: How do Oude Noorden's local
actors from government, academia, industry, and civil societyperceive the impacts and
implications of localhood tourism implementation? Using a qualitative case study approach,
the research draws on 14 semi-structured interviews with stakeholders from all four domains
of the quadruple helix. Thematic analysis reveals three key findings: (1) ambiguity in
decision-making power, exposing unequal influence among stakeholders; (2) a dislocating
identity and offer, highlighting the narrowing of local appeal; and (3) Oude Noorden's
resilient fabric, emphasizing the strength of grassroots initiatives. Based on these insights, the
thesis presents seven context-specific recommendations to foster a more inclusive, place
based, and community-led localhood strategy in urban tourism planning
'This Helped Me, Maybe It Helps You Too'
No full textIn recent years, TikTok has emerged as a powerful platform for health communication,
particularly among young people navigating mental health challenges. This thesis investigates how
eating disorder recovery content on TikTok, created by content creators with lived experience, is
constructed to be persuasive. The analysis builds on two theoretical pillars: a rhetorical framework
grounded in Aristotle's concept of ethos, pathos, and logos, and platform affordance theory, to
highlight the possibilities and constraints embedded in the platform's technological design. This
research adopts a qualitative research design with a rhetorical approach, analyzing 64 TikTok videos
collected using the hashtag #eetstoornisherstel. The videos were selected through purposive sampling
and analyzed using both inductive and deductive coding methods. Particular attention was given to
the rhetorical appeals of ethos, pathos, and logos, as well as to TikTok-specific visual and auditory
affordances, vernaculars, and engagement metrics. Findings show that creators build crediblity not
through traditional authority or expert status, but through personal experience, emotional resonance,
and platform fluency. Relatability is central: creators share vulnerable moments, reflect on their own
recovery journeys, and use specific examples that signal lived experience and an insider perspective.
Burke's concept of identification proves especially relevant, as viewers are invited to see themselves
reflected in the creator's narrative, fostering a sense of shared struggle and mutual understanding.
Ethos on TikTok is thus central and deeply embedded in the platform's visual and emotional style.
Creators also employ pathos by evoking emotional responses, such as empathy and hope, that draw
viewers into the emotional dimensions of recovery. These appeals are often strengthened by the
platform's multimodal features. Lastly, logos emerges not through the form of objective data, but
through experience-based and logical reasoning: creators structure their stories to show patterns of
progress, relapse, and insight, often offering advice or coping strategies grounded in personal
experiences. Together, these rhetorical appeals foster trust and engagement, illustrating how
persuasive power on TikTok operates through the interplay of credibility, emotional impact, and
experiential logic, all shaped by the platforms' unique functionalities. Overall, this study contributes
to media and communication studies by offering a rhetorical understanding of how persuasiveness is
constructed in user-generated recovery content on TikTok. The findings offer practical insights for
mental health organizations and educators aiming to engage audiences on platforms like TikTok,
highlighting the persuasive potential of peer-based credibility. Moreover, effective communication
on platforms like TikTok requires a nuanced understanding of platform-specific vernaculars.
Encouraging interactive engagement can further strengthen community-building and enhance the
persuasive power of mental health narratives. Together, these insights inform strategies for
promoting trustworthy, relatable, and impactful mental health communication within digital peer
networks
Forces of valorisation
No full textIn the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, raving experienced a sudden proliferation in Singapore. This thesis investigates the values associated with raving that drove this phenomenon, examining how and why it became a meaningful artistic practice in the post-pandemic era. The central research question is: why did raving experience a post-pandemic surge in Singapore?
Guided by Dekker and Morea's (2023) value realisation framework that looks at the social process in which artistic and cultural practices become valued, this study positions raving as a site where artistic, social and symbolic values are co-created and realised by diverse actors. Therefore, the sub-research question is: how do the non-economic values realised through raving shape participation, coordination, and sustainability of the scene?
Drawing on 20 semi-structured interviews with actors across various sub-electronic dance music genres, this research adopts a non-extractive care-driven approach to examine how values are manifested, realised, negotiated and sustained. While existing theory suggests that tension is the main force that drives valorisation-the social process of value negotiation and establishment-and can occur infinitely, this study offers two theoretical contributions.
Firstly, it argues that synergy, alongside tension, fuels the valorisation process although through different mechanisms. The synergistic interplay of values realised through participation reinforced value regimes and imbued raving with greater significance, catalysing the surge in raving. Tensions caused by structural challenges and external pressures, on the other hand, became an impetus for actors to reevaluate and negotiate their positions, resulting in the scene's adaptation for its sustainability. These forces of valorisation are conceptualised as the synergy-tension continuum. Secondly, the scene's current stagnation suggests the existence of a threshold beyond which, these forces breakdown.
More broadly, this study demonstrates how cultural scenes can organically form in localised settings and sustain value outside of institutional frameworks, offering insights into how artistic practices take root, build legitimacy and create meaning in contemporary urban life
From Risk Signals to Strategic Actions: An Integrated Decision-Making Framework for Commodity Trading
No full textReframing Luxury: How the Diamond Industry Shifts Consumer Perception from Ethical Concerns to Status Symbolism
No full textDiamonds have traditionally been marketed as symbols of love, eternity, and prestige, mostly through emotionally charged marketing efforts by major companies such as De Beers. However, growing consumer awareness of ethical concerns about diamond sourcing, including issues of conflict, environmental degradation, and labour methods, has put further pressure on the industry to match emotional branding with sustainability. This thesis looks at how emotional and ethical appeals are strategically used in diamond industry advertising, and how these opposing messages impact customer perceptions, rationalisation, and purchase intentions. The study used a mixed methods approach, combining a qualitative thematic analysis of five recent De Beers advertisements with a quantitative survey of 235 consumers. The study uses the Theory of Planned behaviour, Bourdieu's Theory of Distinction, and symbolic interactionism to investigate the connection between emotional symbolism, ethical consciousness, and consumer behaviour.
Thematic analysis identified five central narratives: (1) Timeliness as Cultural and Emotional Imperative, where urgency and erotic humour in the "Seize the Day" (2023) campaign frame diamond gifting as an impulsive emotional ritual; (2) Becoming Worthy of Love, in which "Worth the Wait" (2024) repositions diamonds as markers of personal growth and emotional resilience; (3) Emotional Presence and Generational Continuity, where "Forever Present" (2024) extends diamond symbolism to self-love, friendship, and legacy; (4) Conservation as Corporate Legacy, highlighting environmental stewardship in "The Diamond Route" initiative through quantifiable claims; and (5) Building Ethics into the Brand Core, where "Building Forever" (2020-2023) institutionalises CSR via traceability, STEM equity, and biodiversity pledges.
The quantitative component used factor analysis and multiple regressions to test four hypotheses concerning the effects of emotional symbolism and ethical awareness on consumer attitudes and behaviour. Emotional symbolism significantly predicted consumers' willingness to overlook ethical concerns in emotionally salient scenarios, while ethical awareness strongly predicted ethical purchase intentions. The findings reveal how emotional branding can suppress ethical scrutiny through symbolic association, and how institutional CSR framing replaces individual ethical empowerment.
This research contributes to debates on ethical consumerism, emotional branding, and symbolic capital in luxury markets. It reveals how emotion can function as both a persuasive tool and a mechanism of ethical disengagement, with implications for marketing strategy and sustainability discourse in the diamond industry
Bridging the Gap
No full textBridging the Gap: How Contemporary Galleries Adapt Engagement Strategies Across Generations
ABTRACT
This research explores how contemporary art galleries are adjusting their engagement strategies to accommodate generational shifts in collector behavior. With Millennials entering the art market alongside more established Baby Boomer and Generation X collectors, galleries face the challenge of meeting diverse expectations around communication, access, and value. The theoretical groundwork to conduct this study relies on marketing strategies in the art, generational theory, art consumer behavior, and gallery engagement strategies. Through a mixed-methods approach, combining 11 semi-structured expert interviews with gallery professionals and a survey of 110 art collectors, this study investigates how engagement preferences differ across generations and which strategies are most effective for attracting and retaining new collectors. The mixed-method approach utilized was a sequential exploratory design beginning with qualitative interviews, followed by a quantitative survey used to enhance the qualitative findings. The findings reveal that while all generations value trust and personalized service, their preferred modes of engagement diverge significantly. Baby Boomers favor in-person contact and institutional trust, whereas Millennial collectors are more responsive to digital platforms, pricing transparency, and flexible purchasing options. Despite embracing digital tools for visibility and outreach, galleries emphasize that long-term loyalty continues to rely on relational marketing and exclusivity. Theoretically, the research contributes to literature on arts marketing, generational segmentation, and symbolic value in cultural consumption. Practically, it offers galleries insights into tailoring hybrid strategies that bridge traditional relationship-building with digital fluency and inclusivity. Key recommendations include adopting omnichannel engagement, enhancing transparency, and creating accessible entry points without compromising curatorial integrity. While this study focuses primarily on Western markets, future research should consider broader demographic inclusion, especially the growing influence of Gen Z and non-Western collectors. Longitudinal studies are also encouraged to track how collector relationships and motivations evolve over time in a rapidly changing cultural economy
The Stream of Consciousness
No full textIn the current disrupted ecosystem, capitalism-driven market pressures imposed by the intermediaries have irreversibly transformed the music industry, fostering an exploitative regime rooted in power asymmetries and systemic platform dependence. The promised payoff of cultural democratization and optimization has, in contrast, led to the devaluation of creative content into a contingent commodity. By exercising an unequal gatekeeping function, these powerful middlemen exploit and manipulate artists while extracting a new source of profit through users' datafication driven by algorithmic infrastructure and digital surveillance-driven mechanisms. Considering these deeply embedded inequalities, this thesis aims to address the following research question:
How can a hybrid music streaming platform be rethought to balance the needs of artists and users through innovative, ethical, and community-driven approaches?
While previous research has typically addressed this displacement through limited methodological approaches considering the multiple affected agents, this study intentionally combines Participatory Action Research (PAR) with a Constructivist Grounded Theory approach. By applying the lens of this robust methodology to an in-depth case study, it aims to challenge and dismantle the current exploitative, entrenched structures. More specifically, the researcher's choice draws upon the urgency to co-design both practical and sustainable solutions for the industry by placing the human factor and the creative content at its core. By empowering practitioners involved in the development of sustainable streaming alternatives as co-researchers, the discussion generated through the conceptual mapping of findings serves to further validate the patterns that emerged from expert interviews. This technique anchors the conceptual framework in their lived experiences, enhancing its significance through the field-based insights of individuals directly involved in the ecosystem. Therefore, the main scope moves beyond a mere descriptive analysis toward the collaborative construction of theoretical and actionable frameworks, a tangible future transformation. Ultimately, this methodological blend is uniquely suited to the aim of this thesis: to conceptualize the conditions and values necessary for ethical, artist-centered music platform design, while contributing to tangible innovations capable of challenging the extractive capitalist dynamics that currently shape the industry.
Through the thematic analysis of primary and secondary data, a clear picture of the inequalities affecting the digital music industry is created, the foundation for systemic and structural restoration. Autonomy, agency, and creative ownership result as mandatory principles to diminish the unequal authority held by the platform monopoly and its algorithmic governance. Core themes to drive the creation of a future hybrid music streaming platform, one that is both artist-centered and community-driven, were identified through the research, including value co-creation, editorial and narrative framing to enrich music consumption, co-ownership models, ethical values shaping user engagement, user-centric revenue distribution, and transparency aimed at re-empowering curators. Together, these counter-capitalist movements reflect diverse yet interconnected dimensions of a shared vision: to reorient the music industry and its power structures around its two irreplaceable pillars: the artists who create and the listeners who give meaning to music
The AI Prism: Navigating Meaning, Relevance, and Strategic Value in Film Production
No full textArtificial Intelligence (AI) evolves more rapidly than any prior technology, reshaping sectors
towards an uncertain future. As one of the most expensive art forms, the established film industry is
facing a potentially disruptive transformation. AI is believed to bring cost-efficiency, wide
accessibility, and expanded creative boundaries, while it also presents challenges to artistic value,
workforce stability, and ethics. This research sheds light on the current and expected implications of
AI in film production. Through a practice-theoretical lens, the study explores AI's strategic
management and meaning in creative processes from those that shape the industry.
As a qualitative study, in-depth interviews were conducted with industry practitioners and
experts, from senior vice presidents of agencies to independent filmmakers to AI experts. Attaining a
holistic view through the breadth of perspectives, the research aims to situate the deep complexity of a
turbulent technology in an already turbulent media environment. The findings reveal that the meaning
of AI in film production is an actively constructed negotiation shaped by their operational context,
dominant values, and strategic responses.
The central contribution of this thesis is the ''Value Fit'' model. This model captures the
ongoing process of practitioner context, AI's industrial impact, sensemaking, and strategic enactments
negotiating in cyclical form. This leads to varied strategic responses, such as vision-led approaches
that can include culture-enforcing methods, offering strategic practices that extend current strategic
management research. The study showcases how strategy-as-practice provides a crucial lens from
which to understand these emergent strategic ''doings'' in the media environment.
The implications of this research are twofold. Theoretically, it contributes to
practice-theoretical strategy research by revealing new methods of strategic media management. It
further deepens innovation theory by offering nuance to established perspectives on GPTs, doing
justice to the ongoing evolution of AI technology. Practically, this research provides actionable
insights for stakeholders in the film sector, highlighting how understanding their own sensemaking
processes and dominant values can inform more effective context-specific AI strategies, and aid in
consciously balancing innovation with artistic and ethical value preservation. Ultimately, the thesis
underscores that the future of the film industry in the age of AI will be shaped by this ongoing,
dynamic negotiation of meaning, value, and practice
Luxury and Lyrics
No full textThis thesis investigates the influence of rap music referencing luxury brands on young adults in the Netherlands. It specifically measures the desire for luxury products when exposed to rap lyrics referencing luxury brands, while the aspiration for wealth mediates this relationship. In addition, the societal, managerial, and academic implications of this topic were examined, drawing on empirical research. Subsequently, the research question "How are young adults aged 18 - 30 years in the Netherlands influenced by rap lyrics referencing luxury brands to desire luxury brands, and to what extent do aspirations for wealth mediate this relationship?" was introduced to bridge the existing academic gap through the proposed three hypotheses guided by two empirical theories. Answering the research question would contribute to previous academic findings as an implication. The theories used to develop the three hypotheses are the conspicuous consumption theory and the social comparison theory. Throughout this thesis, a clear discussion was conducted, labeling the desire for luxury as the dependent variable, lyrics referencing luxury brands serving as the independent variable, and the aspiration for wealth as the mediating variable. A clear illustration of the variables is provided, followed by the formulated hypotheses in the theoretical framework of this thesis.
To test the proposed hypotheses, a between-subjects experiment was conducted with three different conditions. Each condition featured an identical rap verse in which the brand mentioned was manipulated. The conditions were labeled as (luxury, midrange, and affordable). The selected product to serve as a manipulation within the three conditions is a wristwatch, as a wristwatch was deemed appropriate due to its varying prices in the market and multiple price tiers. All participants were recruited through Prolific. The Hayes PROCESS Model 4 was used to conduct the main tests of the experiment. The first and third hypotheses were not shown to be significant. However, the second hypothesis yielded substantial results supporting the claim that a strong desire for wealth leads to a higher desire for luxury brands