3 research outputs found
Use of Social Media in the Generation and Diffusion of Information during the 2015 General Elections in Nigeria
No full textInformation plays a vital role in every society. It has the potentials to create conflicts situations and peace, if properly and contextually understood and well managed. The ways and channels through which information flows have profound implications if not properly understood. The study sought to understand the role that social media played in the generation and diffusion of information during the 2015 general elections in Nigeria; to achieve this four research questions were raised: What types of information were generated and diffused on social media about the presidential candidates during the 2015 general elections in Nigeria? What types of information were shared on social media about the presidential candidates during the 2015 general elections in Nigeria? How did social media friends make sense of information shared with them about the presidential candidates during the 2015 Nigeria general elections? How do the two constructs of dual process theory (Informational and Normative factors) explain information generation and diffusion on social media during elections? The study which is a qualitative research was premised within the interpretive paradigm, with Deutsch and Gerrard’s Dual Process Theory used as a theoretical framework for the study. The case study approach was used to investigate the phenomena. Nine (9) respondents were purposively sampled for the research and a content analysis of their social media pages was conducted. Inductive approach was employed in analyzing the data realized from the content analyzed pages from the respondents, which yielded two hundred and sixty-two (262) open codes, from which eighteen (18) sub-categories, seven (7) categories, and three (3) major themes were derived. The findings of the study showed that there was a higher use of social media during the 2015 general elections as compared to previous elections and was used to post offensive information about the candidates. Also, the study revealed that most people shared or were most likely to share what they believed to be true which had propaganda and high misinformation. People and friends on social media made sense of information received at face value and in most cases were not as interested in the message posted but where the person making the post was from. The social media was extensively used to propagate hate and divisive sentiments during the 2015 electioneering period in Nigeria. The study concluded that as social media continues to gain immense traction in terms of use in society, steps need to be taken to reduce the unending possibilities for misinformation, propaganda, and rumours which if misconstrued could lead to conflict situations
Understanding the informational and normative influences of rumour diffusion via social media on conflicts escalation
No full textThe paper discusses the role rumour plays in conflicts generation particularly how social media aids the diffusion of unsubstantiated information. Using the informational and normative influence of Deutsch and Gerrard’s Dual Process Theory, the paper explored how received information based on the two constructs of the dual process theory, that is, informational and normative influences can be used to explain the persuasion factor that helps people initiate action, how proper understanding of the influences the diffusion, adoption and use of unsubstantiated information will help in the design and implementation of proper information systems that would help counter rumour and reduce the information gap which leads to uncertainty among the members of the society
Institutional Repositories Containing Digitized Heritage Material (Special Collections) are Making 'Lost or Hidden' Cultures Accessible: Advantages and Disadvantages of this Trend
No full textThe current information and electronic publishing age has tremendously increased the demand for academic institutions and libraries to recognise the importance of Institutional Repositories. They are essential infrastructures in modern scholarship. However, the main focus in this study is the digital preservation of cultural heritage or special collection, providing access to knowledge about lost or hidden cultures. The purpose of this study was to examine the importance of the digitized heritage material, in the institutional repositories, in making accessible lost or hidden cultures. The research type was a theoretical research type, focusing on published research literature about the problem. Search terms were generated to get relevant literature about the topic from databases like; Emerald Publishing, Google Scholar, Google search, Booksc.org, portal.unesco.org, eprints.rclis.org, and SPARC. It was reported that all countries under study did not have policies to guide digital preservation of cultural heritage. Only Uganda was reported to have a project WDL (Uganda) under the National Library of Uganda, working on digital preservation of cultural heritage. Makerere University was reported to be the only institution to have a digital preservation of special collection (music archive). Access to the digital collection of the cultural heritage is very vital in many aspects of research and societal dynamics. Governments should pick interest in digital preservation of heritage material and making it easily accessible. Preservation policies should be put in place to guide the preservation processes. Academic and research institutional libraries should take a leading role in digital preservation processes on the national cultural heritage.Carnegie Corporation of New York and University of Pretori
