Institut für Kommunikationswissenschaft

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Reputationsorientiertes Themen- und Issues-Management : Konzeption, Regelbetrieb, Weiterentwicklung
(2011) Fahrenbach, Christian; Brettschneider, Frank
The dissertation examines, how organizations can implement, operate and enhance an reputation oriented issues management. Therefore, the operational issues-management-model is linked to the strategic aim reputation and its parts. The first chapters proves the importance of reputation and issues management in general. Then a practical model is being developed, of how issues management with its substeps planning, acting, controlling can be organized. A detailed chapter explains the possible conceptualization and implementation of an issues management in an existing company. A detailed case study assesses the findings and develops them further.
Zeitungsjournalismus im Internetzeitalter : Umfragen und Analysen
(2011) Mast, Claudia
Privacy, self-disclosure, social support, and social network site use : research report of a three-year panel study
(2013) Trepte, Sabine; Dienlin, Tobias; Reinecke, Leonard
This research report presents data from a study conducted in Germany based on a 3-year panel design. From October 2009 to April 2012, five waves of data collection were established. N = 327 participants from a convenience sample gave answers to questions regarding media use, privacy behaviors, well-being, social support, authenticity, and specific online experiences with a particular emphasis on social network sites (SNSs). It was found that across the 3 years of the study, people increasingly gained online social capital, developed a greater need for privacy, started to disclose more personal information online, and continually spent more time on SNSs. At the same time, people's willingness to disclose information in offline settings as well as their risk assessment of SNSs significantly decreased over time. Furthermore, frequent users of SNSs had more online social capital than less frequent users, disclosed more personal information online, knew more ways to restrict the access to their profiles, and were more authentic in their online profiles. People who had a higher need for privacy were less satisfied with their lives, less authentic in both their personal relationships and their online profiles, and generally showed more negative effects on different psychological variables. Respondents who had more online social capital also reported having more general positive affect and more offline social support. In the research report, further results are reported: Each variable is presented both individually and in context with other measures. The study is the first longitudinal study on online privacy and as such the first to be able to report mutual causalities between online experiences and privacy behaviors.
Analyse rezeptionsbegleitend gemessener Kandidatenbewertungen in TV-Duellen : Erweiterung etablierter Verfahren und Vorschlag einer Mehrebenenmodellierung
(2014) Bachl, Marko; Brettschneider, Frank
Continuous Response Measurement (CRM) as a tool to capture candidate evaluations during televised debates is well established in political communication research. Such systems allow very detailed measurements of individual responses to certain candidate statements. However, CRM studies produce very complex data structures which are not easily accessible by simple analytical procedures while at the same time preserving the individual nature of the measurement. Therefore, we first critically discuss the established analytical approaches and recommend some modifications. Second, we describe how such measurements can be adequately modeled at the individual level in a multilevel framework. All analytical approaches are demonstrated using data from a CRM study on the televised debate in the run-up to the Baden-Württemberg state election 2011.
Am Puls des Wandels - Veränderungskommunikation messen und steuern : Entwicklung und Anwendung eines Controllingansatzes für Veränderungskommunikation.
(2014) Heyder, Daniela; Schweiger, Wolfgang
The objective of the dissertation lies in the development and empirical application of a controlling approach particularly for change communication. For the success of a company continuous change is essential. As fast as the environment changed through e.g. increasing competition, shift in values or innovative technologies, the strategies, structures and processes in enterprises have to change as well as the employees, their mindset and behaviors, in order to secure continuance and growth. For the success of organizational change a special form of internal corporate communication is of central importance – change communication. It can create attention, knowledge and acceptance for the change with the employees concerned by the change and activates a mindset and behavior modification. The journalistically coined role of internal communication changes itself from the passive observer and correspondent of enterprise developments to the master clock and active designer of change processes. An interdisciplinary connection of internal corporate communication with organizational development approaches and implementation instruments of change management is demanded in times of change. So there are characteristics of the goals, strategies, contents, roles and instruments of change communication, which distinguish change communication as a special form of internal corporate communication. In continuous corporate change and with the essential meaning of communication for successful changes the need grew to measure and to steer the performance and impact of change communication systematically with success-critical indicators. This need is encouraged by the increasing attention of the communication science and management for the evaluation of corporate communication. International communication scientists and managers deal with the pressure to justify for their efficiency, effectiveness and budgets as well as with questions for planning and optimizing the success of Public Relations, market and employee communication. As an answer communication experts and controllers together with scientists developed the communication controlling. Contrary to Public relations, marketing communication or internal communication there is so far no scientific or practical approach for controlling change communication, that integrates the characteristics of change communication as a special form of internal communication conceptually or methodically. The development and empirical application of a controlling approach for change communication makes a contribution to lock the shown research gap and to the current discussion in communication controlling. First the characteristics and specific objectives of change communication are illustrated on the basis of a literature analysis. The dissertation regards the phenomenon of organizational change and the special role of communication during change processes. Their goals and tasks, strategies, contents, roles and instruments supply success-critical and steering-related factors of change communication and thus first elements for a controlling system. As a further basis for the specific measurement approach of change communication selected existing controlling approaches of corporate communication as well as change management are outlined and reviewed regarding transferable elements on a change communication controlling system. Beside a controlling tool for internal communication as well as an approach of marketing communication, the PR evaluation plays a major role in this reflection. Additionally evaluation concepts and measurement instruments of the change management deliver valuable implications. Based on this reflection the work defines measuring constructs, indicators and inquiry methods for the controlling of change communication. They are structured in a theoretical framework and an action-oriented measurement system. With the developed controlling system change communication can be evaluated and steered accompanying. The progress of the change is made visible and a rolling wave planning for a continuous optimization of the change process is made possible. The practical applicability of the innovative controlling approach for change communication is tested empirically at a case study. According to the specific goals, strategies, contents, target audiences and instruments of the corporate change initiative „CustomerFirst“ the developed controlling system is modified and applied on two measurement times. From the results of the measurement concrete recommendations for action are derived for steering the change initiative CustomerFirst. The steering mechanisms prove an optimizing effect on the change progress. The development and empirical application of the controlling approach for change communication in the context of a case study make a contribution to the current discussion in communication and change controlling, which look for best practice examples to enhance the discipline.
Konfliktkostenmanagement – Wirtschaftlichkeitskontrolle im Konflikt- und Kommunikationsmanagement
(2014) Audi, Manuel; Brettschneider, Frank
Conflict management is a method of limiting the negative effects of conflict while increasing the positive ones. Conflict cost management has not yet been considered as a major task of the conflict management process. The dissertation bridges this gap by developing a theoretical model which aims to ensure a systematical management of direct and indirect conflict costs. The conflict cost management model is being integrated into the conflict and communication management process. The model can be incorporated in the organizational management process as an independent approach to identify, measure and control conflict costs. Furthermore the model can be used to manage the profitability of different interventions aiming to prevent and/or to treat existing or potential conflicts.
Zum Begriff der Transparenz : politikbezogene Vorstellungen, kognitive Bezüge und medial vermittelte Bilder
(2015) Zipfel, Theodor; Brettschneider, Frank
Transparency is a very frequently used term but it is also a volatile one. Frequently, the semantic content and conceptual imagination of the figurative meaning of the word in linguistic usage is kept relatively vague. This paper thus pursues the objective of contributing towards establishing the understanding of the term transparency. To this end, the linguistic and epistemological bases of analysing a term were first explained and the theoretical and methodical basis for the study was elaborated. Based on this, lexical information on the conveyed meaning of the word transparency was analysed. This analysis formed the basis for a qualitative analysis of the content of specialised texts from politics, where it was possible to demonstrate that the content of the term by its definition is far more complex than presented in dictionaries; that more than anything else, subject-related and object-related references of notions of the term need to be differentiated. In addition, the manifold dimensions of usage of the politics related term of transparency were defined and the functional meaning transparency adopts in the political system was presented. The results of the qualitative study subsequently served as a starting point for a quantitative analysis of newspaper articles. The result was that more than a few conveyed the concepts of specialist texts in the newspapers. Yet, that is precisely where there are restrictions to the presentation, where the contents of terms become more abstract.
Kommunikations-Controlling zur zielgerichteten Steuerung der internen Kommunikation in der Bundeswehr
(2015) Abel, Stephan Christopher; Brettschneider, Frank
Presuming that there is need for improvement the doctor’s thesis aims at systematically selecting the best fitting instrument for a strategic-objective-oriented management of the German Federal Armed Forces’ internal communication. It starts with a description and multi-dimensional classification of all available instruments for the management of private enterprises’ internal communication. Before proposing one of them for managing the German Federal Armed Forces’ internal communication, there is conducted an organizational analysis to clear the crucial differences between the German Federal Armed Forces and private enterprises. As a part of this, there is also conducted a research for the differences in internal communication between these two organizations by using Qualitative Research methods. The evaluation of 16 expert interviews leads to a model called ‚Unterschiedsmodell interne Kommunikation Bundeswehr vs. privatwirtschaftliches Unternehmen’. The findings resulting from the organizational analysis are used to create an evaluation tool that finally proposes to establish the ‚Communications Value System’ in combination with the ‚Index Interne Kommunikation’ for a strategic-objective-oriented management of the German Federal Armed Forces’ internal communication.
Phänomen Shitstorm - Herausforderung für die Onlinekrisenkommunikation von Unternehmen
(2015) Salzborn, Christian; Schweiger, Wolfgang
Social media has found their way into society as well as the corporate world. But the more benefits the new platforms brings to the corporate communication, the more are their responsible members afraid about the potential loss of control over their communication. Customers and consumers communicate now on "eye level" and in the case of criticism it may lead to an accumulation of critical, sometimes gleeful comments in social media, which are directed against the company - the so-called Shitstorm. The term was chosen among others as the Anglizismus of 2011 in Germany and found its way into the “Duden” dictionary. But what exactly is meant by this? How long does a Shitstorm take? Which platforms are involved and how develop it? What topics make up a Shitstorm and how can the players involved be described? What are the consequences of a Shitstorm for the company and how can it react within a professional online crisis communication before, during and after a Shitstorm? The aim of the present communication science work was to answer these and other questions in the context of a theory-based empirical study to identify and describe key characteristics and structures of the phenomenon Shitstorm. For this purpose, a combination of methods was used, which combines the advantages of quantitative and qualitative content analysis. Based on the findings the author present also three Shitstorm types as well as a final definition and derives comprehensive recommendations for the crisis communication of the company.
Cultural differences in social media use, privacy, and self-disclosure : research report on a multicultural study
(2016) Masur, Philipp K.; Trepte, Sabine
This research report presents comparative results from five nations (United States of America, United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, and China) with regard to social media use, self-disclosure, privacy perceptions and attitudes, and privacy behavior in online environments. The data stemmed from an online survey that was conducted from November, 2011, to December, 2011. Across all five nations, N = 1,800 participants completed the survey. The findings suggest that a broad differentiation between Western and Eastern cultures only partly accounted for differences in social media use and privacy behavior. Rather, the results of this report suggest that European countries (United Kingdom, Germany, and the Netherlands) share similar privacy perceptions and show similar behavioral patterns. Non-European cultures (the USA and China) on the other hand, use social media differently. Participants from European countries had generally smaller audiences on social network sites and microblogging platforms, tended to limit the visibility of their postings and profile information more, and used more privacy settings to safeguard their privacy. In particular, German social media users seemed to be guarded, protective, and rather reluctant to participate in online communication. Users from the US, on the other hand, rated privacy-related behavior as less risky and were hence less likely to imply sophisticated privacy strategies. Apart from these findings, the report also shows that there are more commonalities than differences. People from all five countries think that it is important to protect privacy. Most users consciously decides what to share and what not to share. Accordingly, social media users do not always share intimate and detailed information about their lives.
Meinungsführer in Online-Diskussionsforen
(2016) Scheiko, Ljewin; Schenk, Michael
The study deals with opinion leaders in internet forums. Questions and hypotheses of classical opinion leader studies are transferred and adapted to the specific characteristics of the communication process in internet forums. Due to the width of the field of research, the study is divided into three research areas, each with a specific objective. In the first research area general findings on users of internet forums are obtained. In the second research area opinion leaders are profiled in detail and the relevance of shared information in internet forums is evaluated as well as the degree of influence of opinion leaders on other users is measured. In the third research area, the network structure of internet forums is analyzed and the network positions of opinion leaders are identified. To meet the different objectives optimally, a complex study design, consisting of an Internet-representative online survey and a triangulation of online survey and network analysis, is used.
The psychology of privacy: Analyzing processes of media use and interpersonal communication
(2017) Dienlin, Tobias; Trepte, Sabine
What is the psychology of privacy? How do people perceive privacy? Why do people disclose personal information on the Internet, and what does this reveal about our their personalities? With four studies, this cumulative dissertation discusses potential answers to these questions. Study 1 (“The Privacy Process Model”) proposes a new privacy theory, the so-called Privacy Process Model (PPM). The PPM states that privacy consists of three major elements: the privacy context, the privacy perception, and the privacy behavior. In order to balance the three elements people constantly engage in a privacy regulation process, which can be either explicit/conscious or implicit/subconscious. Through concrete examples of new digital media, several implications of the PPM are demonstrated. Study 2 (“Is the Privacy Paradox a Relic of the Past?”), which is co-authored by Prof. Dr. Sabine Trepte, analyzes the privacy paradox through the results of an online questionnaire with 579 respondents from Germany. By adopting a theory of planned behavior-based approach, the results showed that self-disclosure could be explained by privacy intentions, privacy attitudes, and privacy concerns. These findings could be generalized for three different privacy dimensions: informational, social, and psychological privacy behaviors. Altogether, Study 2 therefore suggests that the privacy paradox does not exist. Study 3 (“An Extended Privacy Calculus Model for SNSs”), co-authored by Prof. Dr. Miriam J. Metzger, builds upon the results of Study 2 and investigates whether psychological antecedents can explain not only online self-disclosure but also online self-withdrawal. Using a privacy calculus-based approach, the study analyzes data from a U.S.-representative online sample with 1,156 respondents. The results showed that self-disclosure could be explained both by privacy concerns and expected benefits. In addition, self-withdrawal could also be predicted by both privacy concerns and privacy self-efficacy. In conclusion, Study 3 demonstrates that perceived benefits, privacy self-efficacy, and privacy concerns together predict both online self-disclosure and online self-withdrawal. Study 4 (“Predicting the Desire for Privacy”), also co-authored by Miriam J. Metzger, analyzes the relationship between the desire for privacy and different facets of personality. In Study 4a, an online questionnaire with 296 respondents was conducted and in Study 4b, a laboratory experiment with 87 participants was run. The results of the questionnaire showed several significant relationships: For example, respondents who reported lacking integrity and being more shy, less anxious, and more risk averse were all more likely to desire privacy. The experiment showed a statistical trend that participants who had written an essay about past negative behaviors were more likely to express an increased desire for privacy from other people; in addition, an implicit association test (IAT) showed that participants whose IAT results implied higher lack of integrity also desired more privacy from government surveillance. In conclusion, the results evidence that the desire for privacy relates with several aspects of personality and, notably, also with personal integrity. In the overarching discussion, the results of the aforementioned studies are combined in order to provide an updated picture of privacy. This picture suggests that online self-disclosure is not paradoxical but explainable. Being able to understand online privacy behaviors is important; however, this is not only because the Internet has paramount importance in social and professional contexts, but also because people’s desire for privacy can reveal central aspects of personality, such as one’s own personal integrity. Finally, several societal implications are discussed. It is argued that modern societies should try to design new cultural artifacts about privacy, update old and obsolete behavioral patterns with regard to privacy, foster a better understanding of the conceptual nature of privacy, work toward new and more protective privacy laws, and aim to leverage overall privacy literacy.
Communicating climate change : how proximising climate change and global identity predict engagement
(2018) Loy, Laura Sophia; Trepte, Sabine
The majority of scientists express an urgent need to limit climate change in order to ensure sustainable development, but our societies are not reacting decisively enough to achieve this goal. My research aims to understand how news about climate change can be communicated to convey scientific knowledge and support climate protection. Proximising climate change by focussing on local instead of global or remote consequences has been recommended as a promising communication strategy. The reasoning is that many people seem to perceive climate change as a phenomenon that affects mainly other people in far-off places (i.e., psychological socio-spatial distance). Proximising might bring climate change closer. However, the recommendation still lacked convincing empirical evidence. Thus, my research investigated the communication of proximity vs. distance in news coverage. Specifically, I examined the process assumed to be behind proximising effects, namely a reduction of the psychological socio-spatial distance of climate change, which might increase issue relevance and in turn promote climate protective behaviour and climate change knowledge. In Study 1 (N = 498), people were asked to what extent the news communicated climate change as something affecting mainly other people in distant locations. The more they perceived news communication as socio-spatially distant, the higher their psychological socio-spatial distance of climate change and the lower relevance they attributed to the issue. Perceived communicated socio-spatial distance was indirectly and negatively related with climate protective behavioural knowledge through higher psychological socio-spatial distance. Study 2 (N = 99) found no evidence that communicating socio-spatial proximity vs. distance of climate change in a news text influences psychological socio-spatial distance, relevance attributed to the news text, climate protective behaviour, and climate change knowledge. However, the test power was not sufficient to detect small effect sizes. In Study 3 (N = 508), proximising climate change in a news text decreased the psychological socio-spatial distance of climate change and indirectly and positively predicted climate protective behaviour as well as climate change knowledge through lower psychological socio-spatial distance and higher relevance attribution. While the indirect relations were small, stronger relations might arise if people repeatedly receive local information. I thus suggest that it is worthwhile to complement news about global climate change with reports about regional impacts. As a second objective, I aimed to illuminate whether the concept of a global identity helps to explain why proximising might not always be necessary or useful. I assumed that the more people identify with people all over the world, the more relevant they evaluate climate change to be and the more they are motivated to take climate protective action and acquire climate change knowledge. Moreover, I supposed that people with a strong global identity might evaluate climate change as relevant regardless of whether they perceive that the consequences mainly affect other people in distant places. In other words, a global identity might bridge the psychological socio-spatial distance of climate change. In Study 1, global identity positively predicted the relevance attributed to climate change and climate protective behaviour, as well as climate change knowledge indirectly through relevance attribution. In Study 2, the global identity dimension of self-investment positively predicted climate protective behaviour. However, global identity did not bridge the psychological socio-spatial distance of climate change in either study. I further reasoned that the negative relation between psychological socio-spatial distance and relevance attribution might be weaker if global identity is made salient. In other words, a salient global identity might bridge the psychological socio-spatial distance of climate change. In Study 3, before reading the news text, participants watched either a control video or a video showing a man dancing with people all over the world, which communicated a feeling of connectedness. While participants who received the control video evaluated the news text as less relevant as their psychological socio-spatial distance of climate change increased, there was no such relation among participants who received the connectedness video. Moreover, communicated proximity vs. distance in the news text did not indirectly predict climate protective behaviour and climate change knowledge in the latter group. This suggests that communicating connectedness might be a way to bridge the distance of climate change communication and render issues that are perceived as affecting mainly other people in far-off locations more relevant to recipients.
Auswirkungen der Nutzung mobiler Kommunikation auf die Verbindlichkeit in engen Freundschaften
(2018) Alius, Daniel
Our world becomes faster, more flexible and more short-term due to the possibilities of mobile communication. This development raises the question of its impact on our social relationships as long-term constructs. The present work examines the consequences of the use of mobile communication and online-vigilance on the commitment, responsiveness and behavior in friendships. The theoretical basis of the study is the investment model of Rusbult (1983). Data collection was conducted by an online-survey and a convenience sample in March 2018. 677 users of mobile communication (68% female/ 32% male) from Germany, with an average age of 30, participated in the survey. To investigate the relationships, a structural equation model with latent variables was specified. In addition, mediation effects were examined for their significance. The results show that the use of mobile communication promotes commitment and responsiveness in friendships. Online-vigilance, which captures the cognitive focus on online content and communication, has both, positive and negative effects on the commitment. On the one hand, it leads to a decrease in satisfaction in friendships and, subsequently, to a lower level of commitment, on the other hand, it increases the perception of investment, which increases the commitment. A high level of online-vigilance is also attended by a greater degree of non-committal behavior.
Der Sleeper Effekt : Theoriekritik und der Versuch eines Nachweises
(2018) Lindemann, Ann-Kathrin; Scheufele, Bertram
The sleeper effect was first described by Hovland, Lumsdaine and Sheffield (1949) in the 1940s. In the study, the influence of a propaganda movie on the attitudes of American soldiers seemed to grow over time: five days after watching the movie, the soldiers were less likely to agree with the movies conclusions than nine weeks later, when they showed a significant attitude change in line with the movies narrative. Consequently, the sleeper effect was defined as a persuasive media effect gaining strength with the passage of time. Despite its long research history, the origin of the sleeper effect is still undetermined (Kumkale & Albarracín, 2004). Therefore, one of the main objectives of this study is an in-depth review of the existing research literature regarding the underlying mechanisms which might cause the effect. Once these basic mechanisms are identified, the second objective is to test these principles in an experimental setting. The present study shows, that neither the order of presentation of the experimental stimuli, nor the extent of pre-existing attitudes have any influence on the sleeper effect - first and foremost, because the sleeper effect failed to occur in this experiment. Therefore, the question on how the sleeper effect is formed remains unsolved.
Strategische Innovationskommunikation : ein phasenbasiertes Konzept für die Kommunikation von Innovationen in Unternehmen am Beispiel der digitalen Transformation und Industrie 4.0
(2019) Krugsberger, Stefanie; Brettschneider, Frank
The aim of this dissertation was to show how an integrated corporate communication can create acceptance for innovations. Innovations were especially studied in the field of communication science at the beginning of the 21st century. After that the research decreased. However, some research gaps remained open, which were not pursued to this day. This includes, for example, a strategic approach that takes into account the external perspective of the acceptance process, or concrete theories for the application of corporate communications in the form of concepts. In addition, it is questionable whether the findings from the 21st century are still valid. The present study thus contributed to complement the research field of innovation communications on new and current approaches. After discussing the fundamentals of innovation management and innovation communication, an interdisciplinary model was developed: the innovation processing model. With this model a new approach was defined, with which the processing of innovations in the individual can be explained in an interdisciplinary manner. In addition, the approach can supply derivations, how a corresponding communication must be designed so that they contribute positively to the acceptance development process of the individual. For this purpose, different phases of innovation development as well as the diffusion in the market were first defined, which represent a framework for the innovation processing model. A focus was placed on the diffusion phases, since only these are visible to the general public. The basis for the diffusion phases was the model of Rogers “Diffusion of Innovation”. For each of the five phases knowledge, persuasion, decision, implementation and confirmation - a specific communication goal has been defined that must be reached in the phase in order to eventually lead to acceptance. The aim of the knowledge phase is that a potential customer receives information about an innovation and perceives it as well. In the persuasion phase, this information is used so that a positive attitude towards an innovation is formed. In the decision-making phase, communication should help the user to make a positive decision for an innovation, such as purchasing. In the implementation phase, communication ensures that habits in dealing with the use of an innovation develop. In the confirmation phase, the last step is to create a positive attitude towards the innovation. Based on the five phases, interdisciplinary theories were integrated into the model that describe and explain the achievement of the respective communication goal: How do people get information about the innovation, how to form attitudes, how do people make decisions and how do they establish habits? The developed model states that an individual has completed acceptance for an innovation after positive completion of all phases. As this can be concretely implemented, the example of digital transformation and industry 4.0 revealed a fictitious automotive manufacturer, as this topic shows particularly well how currently the innovation communication is. The empirical part of this study consisted of a media content analysis, with which routines of reporting could be identified, that gave an idea on how a concept of strategic innovation communication on the topic of digital transformation and industry 4.0 should be designed. It was possible to find some evidence of how journalists are reporting on the topic of digital transformation and industry 4.0 as well as innovations from this topic area. In addition, the innovation processing model was used to formulate a new approach to the selection of news for innovation topics, which could already be strengthened with the help of the media content analysis. This could be confirmed in particular by qualitative expert interviews with three different journalists.The innovation processing model and the results of the media content analysis developed in the present work offer a further approach for the design of strategic innovation communication, which can be further expanded and validated in future investigations. This dissertation has taken the innovation research a step further.
Kooperation oder Konfrontation? Die Wirkung von Commitment, Empowerment, Emotion und Kritik in Verhandlung und Mediation
(2019) Hartmann-Piraudeau, Andrea; Brettschneider, Frank
The present work examines the effects of commitment, empowerment, anger, happiness and criticism by means of computer-based negotiation in the laboratory. In negotiation and mediation research, only a few experimental studies exist on the mechanisms of these conditions or interventions in a negotiation context with a mediator or a mediating third party. Usually, the results of experimental negotiation studies are based on classical two-party negotiations. With the research question of how the interventions of a mediator affect the negotiation process and the selected topics commitment, empowerment, emotions and criticism, a scientific contribution to the research of the effect of media-tion should be made. This is relevant because conflicts in society are less and less resolved by power. This development can be seen in different fields of social life In the first part of the work, mediation and negotiation are described as procedures for dealing with conflicts of interest and their similarities and differences are worked out. The state of research on the mechanisms of mediation in general and specifically on the research topics of Commitment, Empowerment, Emotions and Critique forms the theoretical basis of the work. Subsequently, the specific experimental conditions are discussed and the extent to which the negotiation situation in the laboratory can be transferred to the mediation context is worked out. 186 participants took part in the negotiation and were then questioned by questionnaire. The effects of the different test conditions on the willingness to cooperate, the agreement rate, the evaluation of the negotiating partner, the emotions experienced during the negotiation and the evaluation of the mediator were examined. The negotiating movements of the individual groups were compared against two reference groups and evaluated according to the principle of "match and mismatch" (Pruitt and Syna 1985; Benton et al. 1972). There were statistically significant differences between the experimental groups: All in all, those groups that were confronted with anger or criticism agreed faster. In the case of the condition "anger", concessions - analogous to previous attempts (without mediator) - can be seen as a strategic approach. The anger of the negotiating partner was evaluated by the test persons as an indication of their negotiating limits. In order to avoid an escalation or even a break, the participants reacted with concessions, even if they were not happy and felt negative. If the mediator criticised the course of the negotiations, a similar effect resulted: the participants in this group reached agreement more frequently than in other groups. However, the motivation for the concession was not based on strategic considerations, but on the uncertainty triggered by the mediators intervention, and was accompanied by strong negative emotions of its own, which were projected onto all participants. Below-average cooperative behaviour and below-average agreement rates indicate the experimental conditions of "confidence" and "empowerment". The difference between the two conditions lies above all in the emotion experienced and the assessment of the negotiating partner. If the test persons were given "confidence" by their negotiating partner, they reacted in an above-average good mood, little anxious and confident and found their negotiating partner sympathetic and cheerful. In the "Empowerment" group, the mediator induced his own encouraging comments. In addition to the restrained cooperation, these triggered a rather average emotional response, and the mediator was rated as "unhelpful". The analysis shows that the test persons interpreted the confidence of the negotiating partner analogously to the condition "anger" as a sign of his satisfaction with the progress of the negotiation. Accordingly, they saw no strategic necessity to show increased cooperation. In the empowerment of the mediator, the restraint is also based on the fact that the mediator as an external third party evaluates the progress positively. This is interpreted as an indication that there is no danger of escalation or abortion in the room and that the situation does not require increased concessions. However, the subjects were less positive in this condition and were more critical of the mediators intervention. There are indications that the test persons felt restricted in their self-determination. The test condition "Commitment" examines the effect on the demand of a written commitment of the test persons before the beginning of the negotiation. The agreement rate as well as the cooperation behaviour remained rather average. One conspicuous feature of the group analysed, however, is the high number of words used in the comments during the negotiation compared to the other groups. The request to write a first comment significantly increased the communicativeness in the course of the procedure and led to positive emotions among the test persons and an equally positive attribution of the negotiating partners. In addition to descriptive observation, data analysis and interpretation, recommendations for action in mediation practice were derived from the results for each group.
#unfollow on Instagram – Factors that have an impact on the decision to unfollow public figures
(2020) Werning, Carolin; Oßwald, Liv Tasja
The social media platform Instagram allows users to subscribe to various people from their immediate circle of acquaintances or to follow public figures. Recent research has identified reasons concerning the discontinuance of social media use and the unfollowing behaviour on certain social media platforms. However, little is known about the unfollowing behaviour on Instagram and what causes users to unfollow public figures in particular. This study was the first trying to find out what factors influence users between the ages of 20 and 29 years of age to unfollow public figures. To this end, a total of nine qualitative guideline interviews were conducted with users recruited via Instagram. The interviews were analysed by means of an summary qualitative content analysis. Thereby, a total of eleven factors could be identified. The first factor relates to the negative feelings that arise when the content is received. The second and third factors relate to the public figure: behaviour and communication. The fourth, fifth and sixth factors relate to the frequency of posts, stories and the same content. The seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth and eleventh factors relate to content, but in different aspects: advertising, design, lack of identification, unfulfilled expectations and changes.
News endorser influence in social media
(2020) Teutsch, Doris; Trepte, Sabine
Social networking sites have become an online realm where users are exposed to news about current affairs. People mainly encounter news incidentally because they are re-distributed by users whom they befriended or follow on social media platforms. In my dissertation project, I draw on shared reality theory in order to examine the question of how the relationship to the news endorser, the person who shares news content, determines social influence on opinion formation about shared news. The shared reality theory posits that people strive to achieve socially shared beliefs about any object and topic because of the fundamental epistemic need to establish what is real. Social verification of beliefs in interpersonal communication renders uncertain and ambiguous individual perceptions as valid and objectively true. However, reliable social verification may be provided only by others who are regarded as epistemic authority, in other words as someone whose judgment one can trust. People assign epistemic authority particularly to socially close others, such as friends and family, or to members of their in-group. I inferred from this that people should be influenced by the view of a socially close news endorser when forming an opinion about shared news content but not by the view of a socially distant news endorser. In Study 1, a laboratory experiment (N = 226), I manipulated a female news endorser’s social closeness by presenting her as an in-group or out-group member. Participants’ opinion and memory of a news article were not affected by the news endorser’s opinion in either of the conditions. I concluded that the news article did not elicit motivation to strive for shared reality because participants were confident about their own judgment. Therefore, they did not rely on the news endorser’s view when forming an opinion about the news topic. Moreover, the results revealed that participants had stronger trust in the news endorser when she expressed a positive (vs. negative) opinion about the news topic, while social closeness to the news endorser did not predict trust. On the one hand, this is in line with the social norm of sharing positive thoughts and experiences on social networking sites: adherence to the positivity norm results in more favorable social ratings. On the other hand, my findings indicate that participants generally had a positive opinion about the topic of the stimulus article and thus had more trust in news endorsers who expressed a similar opinion. In Study 2, an online experiment (N = 1, 116), I exposed participants to a news post by a relational close vs. relational distant news endorser by having them name a close or distant actual Facebook friend. There was a small influence of the news endorser’s opinion on participants’ thought and opinion valence irrespective of whether the news endorser was a close or distant friend. The finding was surprising, particularly because participants reported stronger trust in the view of the close friend than in the view of a distant friend. I concluded that in light of an ambiguity eliciting news article, people may even rely on the views of less trustworthy news endorsers in order to establish a socially shared and, therefore, valid opinion about a news topic. Drawing on shared reality theory, I hypothesized that social influence on opinion formation is mediated by news endorser congruent responses to a news post. The results indicated a tendency for the proposed indirect relation however, the effect size was small and the sample in Study 2 was not large enough to provide the necessary statistical power to detect the mediation. In conclusion, the results of my empirical studies provide first insights regarding the conditions under which a single news endorser influences opinion formation about news shared on social networking sites. I found limited support for shared reality creation as underlying mechanism of such social influence. Thus, my work contributes to the understanding of social influence on news perception happening in social networking sites and proposes theoretical refinements to shared reality theory. I suggest that future research should focus on the role of social and affiliative motivation for social influences on opinion formation about news shared on social networking sites.
Public knowledge of alternative media in times of algorithmically personalized news
(2021) Klawier, Tilman; Prochazka, Fabian; Schweiger, Wolfgang
Citizens are likely to encounter various types of alternative media online, especially on algorithmically personalized news channels (APNC) like social network sites or search engines. It is unclear, however, to what degree they are aware of these outlets and familiar with the concept of alternative media. This study investigates the relation between exposure to alternative media and knowledge of them, taking the role of APNC into account. Analyzing representative survey data of German Internet users, we find a gap: While many individuals report to use alternative media, few of them are able to name alternative media titles matching scholarly conceptions. Although the use of APNC increases self-reported exposure to alternative media, it does not improve actual knowledge of them. All in all, many Internet users have little awareness of alternative media and do not clearly distinguish between different types of sources they come across online.

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