scholarly journals Social Media Polarization and Echo Chambers in the Context of COVID-19: Case Study

JMIRx Med ◽  
10.2196/29570 ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. e29570
Author(s):  
Julie Jiang ◽  
Xiang Ren ◽  
Emilio Ferrara
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Information Dissemination ◽  
The United States ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
Political Preference ◽  
Echo Chambers ◽  
Public Health Campaigns ◽  
The Right ◽  
Effective Public Health

Background Social media chatter in 2020 has been largely dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Existing research shows that COVID-19 discourse is highly politicized, with political preferences linked to beliefs and disbeliefs about the virus. As it happens with topics that become politicized, people may fall into echo chambers, which is the idea that one is only presented with information they already agree with, thereby reinforcing one’s confirmation bias. Understanding the relationship between information dissemination and political preference is crucial for effective public health communication. Objective We aimed to study the extent of polarization and examine the structure of echo chambers related to COVID-19 discourse on Twitter in the United States. Methods First, we presented Retweet-BERT, a scalable and highly accurate model for estimating user polarity by leveraging language features and network structures. Then, by analyzing the user polarity predicted by Retweet-BERT, we provided new insights into the characterization of partisan users. Results We observed that right-leaning users were noticeably more vocal and active in the production and consumption of COVID-19 information. We also found that most of the highly influential users were partisan, which may contribute to further polarization. Importantly, while echo chambers exist in both the right- and left-leaning communities, the right-leaning community was by far more densely connected within their echo chamber and isolated from the rest. Conclusions We provided empirical evidence that political echo chambers are prevalent, especially in the right-leaning community, which can exacerbate the exposure to information in line with pre-existing users’ views. Our findings have broader implications in developing effective public health campaigns and promoting the circulation of factual information online.

scholarly journals Social media polarization and echo chambers: A case study of COVID-19 (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Jiang ◽  
Xiang Ren ◽  
Emilio Ferrara
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
Factual Information ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Echo Chambers ◽  
Public Health Campaigns ◽  
Effective Public Health ◽  
The U.S

UNSTRUCTURED During 2020, social media chatter has been largely dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this paper, we study the extent of polarization of COVID-19 discourse on Twitter in the U.S. First, we propose Retweet-BERT, a scalable and highly accurate model for estimating user polarity by leveraging language features and network structures. Then, by analyzing the user polarity predicted by Retweet-BERT, we provide new insights into the characterization of partisan users. Right-leaning users, we find, are noticeably more vocal and active in the production and consumption of COVID-19 information. Our analysis also shows that most of the highly influential users are partisan, which may contribute to further polarization. Crucially, we provide empirical evidence that political echo chambers are prevalent, exacerbating the exposure to information in line with pre-existing users' views. Our findings have broader implications in developing effective public health campaigns and promoting the circulation of factual information online.

scholarly journals Optimizing COVID-19 Health Campaigns: A Person-Centered Approach

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Smith ◽  
Jessica Gall Myrick ◽  
Robert P. Lennon ◽  
Molly A. Martin ◽  
Meg L. Small ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
The United States ◽  
Good Effect ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
Public Health Campaigns ◽  
Effective Public Health ◽  
Person Centered Approach ◽  
Local Healthcare

As the United States continues to be ravaged by COVID-19, it becomes increasingly important to implement effective public health campaigns to improve personal behaviors that help control the spread of the virus. To design effective campaigns, research is needed to understand the current mitigation intentions of the general public, diversity in those intentions, and theoretical predictors of them. COVID-19 campaigns will be particularly challenging because mitigation involves myriad, diverse behaviors. This study takes a person-centered approach to investigate data from a survey (N = 976) of Pennsylvania adults. Latent class analysis revealed five classes of mitigation: one marked by complete adherence with health recommendations (34% of the sample), one by complete refusal (9% of the sample), and three by a mixture of adherence and refusal. Statistically significant covariates of class membership included relatively negative injunctive norms, risk due to essential workers in the household, personal knowledge of someone who became infected with COVID-19, and belief that COVID-19 was a leaked biological weapon. Additionally, trait reactance was associated with non-adherence while health mavenism was associated with adherence. These findings may be used to good effect by local healthcare providers and institutions, and also inform broader policy-making decisions regarding public health campaigns to mitigate COVID-19.

COVIDiots and Cogency

2021 ◽  
pp. 62-85
Author(s):  
Roy Schwartzman ◽  
Jenni M. Simon
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Heuristics And Biases ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
Broadcast Media ◽  
Attitudes And Behaviors ◽  
And Behaviors ◽  
Public Health Campaigns ◽  
Health Experts

The COVID-19 pandemic in the United States spawns a perplexing polemic. Intransigent coronavirus skeptics who defy public health recommendations often get cast as ideological zealots or as perniciously ignorant. Both characterizations overlook a more fundamental epistemic opposition. The authors recast the conflict between COVID-19 skeptics and public health advocates as the rhetorical incompatibility between the deliberative, scientifically grounded public health experts and the intuitive, emotion-driven mental heuristics of the non-compliant. This study examines the discourse of COVID-19 misinformation purveyors on broadcast media and online. Their main contentions rely on heuristics and biases that collectively not only undermine trust in particular medical experts, but also undercut trust in the institutions and reasoning processes of science itself. The findings suggest ways that public health campaigns can become more effective by leveraging some of the intuitive drivers of attitudes and behaviors that scientists and argumentation theorists routinely dismiss as fallacious.

scholarly journals Review of Evaluation Metrics Used in Digital and Traditional Tobacco Control Campaigns (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lilian Chan ◽  
Blythe O'Hara ◽  
Philayrath Phongsavan ◽  
Adrian Bauman ◽  
Becky Freeman
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Evaluation Metrics ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Public Health Campaigns

BACKGROUND Mass media campaigns for public health are increasingly using digital media platforms, such as web-based advertising and social media; however, there is a lack of evidence on how to best use these digital platforms for public health campaigns. To generate this evidence, appropriate campaign evaluations are needed, but with the proliferation of digital media–related metrics, there is no clear consensus on which evaluation metrics should be used. Public health campaigns are diverse in nature, so to facilitate analysis, this review has selected tobacco control campaigns as the scope of the study. OBJECTIVE This literature review aimed to examine how tobacco control campaigns that use traditional and digital media platforms have been evaluated. METHODS Medicine and science databases (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online [MEDLINE], EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature [CINAHL], and Scopus), and a marketing case study database (World Advertising Research Center) were searched for articles published between 2013 and 2018. Two authors established the eligibility criteria and reviewed articles for inclusion. Individual campaigns were identified from the articles, and information on campaigns and their evaluations were supplemented with searches on Google, Google Scholar, and social media platforms. Data about campaign evaluations were tabulated and mapped to a conceptual framework. RESULTS In total, 17 campaigns were included in this review, with evaluations reported on by 51 articles, 17 marketing reports, and 4 grey literature reports. Most campaigns were from English-speaking countries, with behavioral change as the primary objective. In the process evaluations, a wide range of metrics were used to assess the reach of digital campaign activities, making comparison between campaigns difficult. Every campaign in the review, except one, reported some type of engagement impact measure, with website visits being the most commonly reported metric (11 of the 17 campaigns). Other commonly reported evaluation measures identified in this review include engagement on social media, changes in attitudes, and number of people contacting smoking cessation services. Of note, only 7 of the 17 campaigns attempted to measure media platform attribution, for example, by asking participants where they recalled seeing the campaign or using unique website tracking codes for ads on different media platforms. CONCLUSIONS One of the key findings of this review is the numerous and diverse range of measures and metrics used in tobacco control campaign evaluations. To address this issue, we propose principles to guide the selection of digital media–related metrics for campaign evaluations, and also outline a conceptual framework to provide a coherent organization to the diverse range of metrics. Future research is needed to specifically investigate whether engagement metrics are associated with desired campaign outcomes, to determine whether reporting of engagement metrics is meaningful in campaign evaluations.

Industrial life insurance, public health campaigns, and public communication of science, 1908-1951

1992 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 347-365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce V. Lewenstein
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Life Insurance ◽  
The United States ◽  
Private Life ◽  
Insurance Companies ◽  
Public Communication ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
History Of ◽  
Communication Of Science ◽  
Public Health Campaigns

During the first half of the twentieth century, private life insurance companies in the United States provided an important locus for the public communication of science, through their support of public health campaigns. This paper provides a history of how and why three companies (the Metropolitan, the Prudential, and the John Hancock life insurance companies) drew on their strength in `industrial' life insurance (sold to the lower classes at low, weekly rates) to engage in public health reforms. Only the Metropolitan and the Hancock, however, became active in public communication of health information. The paper suggests that four key factors provided the context for the companies' activities: (1) legislative and social pressure for reform; (2) increases in profits associated with healthier (and therefore longer-lived) customers; (3) ideals of social reform held by individuals in positions of bureaucratic power within the insurance organizations; and (4) organized machinery for weekly contact with and distribution of information to policyholders as a result of the nature of industrial life insurance.

scholarly journals Using Artificial Intelligence-enabled analysis of social media data to understand public perceptions of COVID-19 contact tracing apps (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathrin Cresswell ◽  
Ahsen Tahir ◽  
Zakariya Sheikh ◽  
Zain Hussain ◽  
Andrés Domínguez Hernández ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Media Analysis ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
Social Media Analysis ◽  
Public Health Campaigns ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Effective Public Health

UNSTRUCTURED We here report on an exploratory analysis of the suitability of AI-enabled social media analysis of Facebook and Twitter to understand public perceptions of COVID-19 contact tracing apps in the UK. We extracted over 10,000 relevant social media posts and analysed these over an eight month period, from 1st of March to 31st of October 2020. Overall, we observed 76% positive and 12% negative sentiments, and discuss how the government's decision to move from a centralised to a decentralised contact-tracing model is likely to have influenced sentiment trends. In doing so, we demonstrate how AI-enabled social media analysis of public attitudes in healthcare can help to facilitate the implementation of effective public health campaigns.

scholarly journals Social Media Platforms for Health Communication and Research in the Face of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross Sectional Survey in Uganda

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald Olum ◽  
Felix Bongomin
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
Perceived Usefulness ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Public Health Campaigns

ABSTRACTObjectives(1) To examine the usage of social media and other forms of media among medical students (MS) and healthcare professionals (HCPs) in Uganda. (2) To assess the perceived usefulness of social media and other forms of media for COVID-19 public health campaigns.DesignA descriptive WhatsApp messenger-based cross-sectional survey in April 2020.SettingMakerere University Teaching Hospitals (MUTH) and 9 of the 10 medical schools in Uganda.ParticipantsHCPs at MUTH and MS in the 9 medical schools in Uganda.Main outcome measuresWe collected data on sociodemographic characteristics, sources of information on COVID-19, preferences of social media platform and perceived usefulness of the different media platforms for acquisition of knowledge on COVID-19.ResultOverall, response rate was 21.5% for both MS and HCPs. In total, 877 (HCPS [136, 15.5%], MS [741, 85.5%]) were studied. Majority (n=555, 63.3%) were male with a median age of 24 (range: 18-66) years. Social media was a source of information for 665 (75.8%) participants. Usage was similar among MS and HCPs (565/741 (76.2%) vs. 100/136 (73.5%), p=0.5). Among the MS, commonly used social media were: WhatsApp (n=705, 95.1%) Facebook (n=405, 54.8%), Twitter (n=290, 39.1%), Instagram (n=178, 24.0) and Telegram (n=80, 10.8%). Except for WhatsApp, male MS we more likely to use the other social media platforms (p= <0.001 − 0.01). Mass media (television and radio) and social media were preferred the most useful tools for dissemination of COVID-19 related information.ConclusionMore than two-thirds of MS and HCPs are routinely using social media in Uganda. Social media platforms may be used for dissemination of information as well as a research tool among MS and HCPs. Social media alongside other media platforms can also be used as sources of reliable information on COVID-19 as well as for dissemination of research findings and guidelines.Strengths and limitationsThis is the first study in sub Saharan Africa on the use of social media for research during the COVID-19 pandemic.The study also explores perceived usefulness of different media for COVID-19 public health campaigns.Diversity of the participants consisting both healthcare professionals and medical students.A relatively large sample size was enrolled in the survey despite a low response rate.

scholarly journals Review of Evaluation Metrics Used in Digital and Traditional Tobacco Control Campaigns

10.2196/17432 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (8) ◽  
pp. e17432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lilian Chan ◽  
Blythe O'Hara ◽  
Philayrath Phongsavan ◽  
Adrian Bauman ◽  
Becky Freeman
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Evaluation Metrics ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Public Health Campaigns

Background Mass media campaigns for public health are increasingly using digital media platforms, such as web-based advertising and social media; however, there is a lack of evidence on how to best use these digital platforms for public health campaigns. To generate this evidence, appropriate campaign evaluations are needed, but with the proliferation of digital media–related metrics, there is no clear consensus on which evaluation metrics should be used. Public health campaigns are diverse in nature, so to facilitate analysis, this review has selected tobacco control campaigns as the scope of the study. Objective This literature review aimed to examine how tobacco control campaigns that use traditional and digital media platforms have been evaluated. Methods Medicine and science databases (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online [MEDLINE], EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature [CINAHL], and Scopus), and a marketing case study database (World Advertising Research Center) were searched for articles published between 2013 and 2018. Two authors established the eligibility criteria and reviewed articles for inclusion. Individual campaigns were identified from the articles, and information on campaigns and their evaluations were supplemented with searches on Google, Google Scholar, and social media platforms. Data about campaign evaluations were tabulated and mapped to a conceptual framework. Results In total, 17 campaigns were included in this review, with evaluations reported on by 51 articles, 17 marketing reports, and 4 grey literature reports. Most campaigns were from English-speaking countries, with behavioral change as the primary objective. In the process evaluations, a wide range of metrics were used to assess the reach of digital campaign activities, making comparison between campaigns difficult. Every campaign in the review, except one, reported some type of engagement impact measure, with website visits being the most commonly reported metric (11 of the 17 campaigns). Other commonly reported evaluation measures identified in this review include engagement on social media, changes in attitudes, and number of people contacting smoking cessation services. Of note, only 7 of the 17 campaigns attempted to measure media platform attribution, for example, by asking participants where they recalled seeing the campaign or using unique website tracking codes for ads on different media platforms. Conclusions One of the key findings of this review is the numerous and diverse range of measures and metrics used in tobacco control campaign evaluations. To address this issue, we propose principles to guide the selection of digital media–related metrics for campaign evaluations, and also outline a conceptual framework to provide a coherent organization to the diverse range of metrics. Future research is needed to specifically investigate whether engagement metrics are associated with desired campaign outcomes, to determine whether reporting of engagement metrics is meaningful in campaign evaluations.

scholarly journals Persuasive Messaging to Encourage COVID-19 Risk Reduction

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Bokemper ◽  
Gregory Huber ◽  
Erin James ◽  
Alan Gerber ◽  
Saad Omer
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Campaigns ◽  
Randomized Experiments ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Public Health Messages ◽  
Public Health Message ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Public Health Campaigns ◽  
Effective Public Health

Abstract What types of public health messages are effective at changing people’s beliefs and intentions to practice social distancing to slow the spread of COVID-19? We conducted two randomized experiments that assigned respondents to read a public health message and then measured their beliefs and behavioral intentions across a wide variety of outcomes. Using both a convenience sample and a nationally representative sample of Americans, we find that a message that reframes bravery as recklessness and a message that highlights the need for everyone to take action to protect others are the most effective at increasing beliefs and intentions related to social distancing. These results provide an evidentiary basis for building effective public health campaigns to increase social distancing during flu pandemics.

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