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The World Wide Web
Published in David Coady, James Chase, The Routledge Handbook of Applied Epistemology, 2018
A second issue to consider relates to the broader ecological setting in which search engines are used. Here we suggest that epistemological analyses can benefit from the sort of perspectives that have long been embraced by the cognitive science community, especially those that emphasize the situated and environmentally embedded nature of cognitive processing (Robbins and Aydede 2009). In particular, we suggest that it is helpful to think of Web users as embedded in multiple networks of information flow and influence, each of which presents the user with a diverse (even if filtered) stream of facts, ideas, and opinions. This broader informational ecology, we suggest, might work to mitigate the negative epistemic effects of personalized search (if indeed there are any). The sociological concept of network individualism (Rainie and Wellman 2012) may be of potential value here. Networked individualism refers to the way in which society is changing as a result of the introduction of new media technology. In particular, it emphasizes the manner in which people connect, communicate, and exchange information following the advent of the Web and the growth of mobile communications technology. According to Rainie and Wellman (2012), society is increasingly organized along the lines of multiple, overlapping social networks, each of which is characterized by fluid and dynamic forms of membership. As a result of these shifts in social structure, individuals are likely to be exposed to multiple sources of heterogeneous information, and this may help to allay concerns about the selective exposure effects that filter bubbles are deemed to produce. A consideration of network individualism thus reminds us that a user’s informational ecology is not necessarily exhausted by the nature of their interaction with a particular search engine. Once this broader informational ecology is taken into consideration, concerns about the epistemological impact of personalized search may start to look a little overblown.
Telehealth intervention and childhood apraxia of speech: a scoping review
Published in Speech, Language and Hearing, 2022
Nilgoun Bahar, Aravind K. Namasivayam, Pascal van Lieshout
Standard search engines (such as Google) track user behaviour. This makes the user susceptible to a state of ‘intellectual isolation’ due to the ‘Filter Bubble’ effect, a type of bias wherein the search engine’s tracking algorithm learns to trace the user’s clicking history and location to determine user preferences (Pariser, 2011). To minimize the potential confirmatory bias introduced through the Filter Bubble effect, we supplemented our search by further looking for evidence in three alternative search engines (DuckDuckGo, Mojeek, Gigablast) with no tracking feature. Where possible, we used specialized programmable search options by using Boolean algebra search operators to combine the keywords displayed in Table 1 and extract multiple document formats (e.g.,.PDF,.TXT,.PPT,.PPTX, and.DOC). Inter-rater reliability for database and grey literature search between two independent blinded raters was > 80%.
Tumbling Into Queer Utopias and Vortexes: Experiences of LGBTQ Social Media Users on Tumblr
Published in Journal of Homosexuality, 2019
One of the clearest risks to life in the digital queer vortex is the limited range of opinion and information present and the potential for one to inhabit an echo chamber of ideological homogeneity. Although media audiences have always engaged in “selective exposure,” or the practice of selecting content that reaffirms rather than challenges their ideological positions (Mutz, 2006; Sears & Freedman, 1967; Slater, 2007), the proliferation of the Internet and digital information technologies affords media users increased control over the kinds of information they see. What does it mean that Tumblr users can simply filter out or click off dissent? The threat of an informational vacuum, or what some call a filter bubble (Pariser, 2011), emerged as a dominant theme in my research on Tumblr. It animated the following conversation that occurred during one of the focus groups I held at a college in the American Southeast. Tomo:I feel like Tumblr can be a very happy place for people if you make it a happy place. Who you follow and what you see on your dashboard is completely controlled by you as the owner of it. But that has the possibility of making you forget that the world around you actually sucks. Cuz I’m just like “Ah Tumblr.” (He smiles and opens his arms as if to embrace something.) “All the gay people. It’s so happy.” And then I’m like, “Oh, I’m in a world of all cis-heads and they all suck.”Jamie:Yeah. Because you can regulate what you see, you create this bubble where everyone agrees and everything is great.Caleb:I’m kinda worried about being opposed to viewpoints that oppose our views. That’s something I have a lot of trouble with because when I hear stuff like that I’m like, “No, why would you close yourself off so much. You should be exposed to these kinds of things.” But then I think in the queer tradition, the name of the game has always been making your own family sort of. And so I don’t see a difference on social media. You can make your own family I guess.
Global nursing as visualised on the internet: a netnographic analysis of the emerging global paradigm in nursing
Published in Contemporary Nurse, 2018
Jessica Holmgren, Henrik Eriksson, Charlotta Tegnestedt
As in all studies, some possible weaknesses and strengths must be highlighted. In relation to an increasingly digitized world in general, new digital forums have been created where people interact and express themselves in various ways. In view of this, it is both necessary and an opportunity to use methods such as netnography, which makes it possible to research these forums. In particular, the field of nursing can benefit from this, both in the use and development of netnography, as well as in response to relevant research questions with the internet as empirical data source. The data, in the form of images, were collected on a single occasion from the internet and a possible limitation is that only Google was used as a search engine. Although it is the most widely used in the world, it may have in part counteracted our ambition to question Western visualisation about nursing. Further nuanced data could thus have been collected through the use of multiple search engines and by including more languages during the search process. In addition, it would have been possible to use other types of data, such as text from Facebook, Twitter, blogs or discussion forums. This could have enabled alternative interpretations and thus another result. Still, Bozdag and van den Hoven (2015) raise the issue that the internet does not actually provide diverse information. This notion is connected to the consequences of filter bubbles, created through algorithms used by various search engines. However, in this particular study, the ambition has been to contribute with some new possible perspectives and insights on global nursing, rather than presenting a complete picture and representative result applicable in all contexts. The credibility of the research has been taken into account by describing the research process transparently. It has further been strengthened by including illustrative examples of images in the results section. Based on the above aspects, conditions have been possible for the reader to assess the transferability of this study. The dependability of the research rests on the competence of the researchers, which, in this study, is extensive, because the researchers have many years of experience of conducting qualitative research. In order to ‘secure’ confirmability, ongoing discussions have taken place between the authors where the different steps of the research process have been critically reviewed. A senior colleague has contributed with valuable comments regarding the table in the methods section, in consideration of the process of selecting the images.