Publications

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Chapter in "Lingua Ex Machina: AI, Multilingualism and Interculturality" which explores the evolving role of AI in shaping language, communication and intercultural encounters. The term ‘Lingua Ex Machina’ (literally ‘language from the machine’) encapsulates the paradox of AI acting as both a tool for bridging linguistic and intercultural divides, and a potential amplifier of inequalities. This edited volume brings together critical perspectives on the impact of AI on language diversity, translation, education and the production and dissemination of knowledge. From questioning whether AI is more than a sophisticated ‘parrot’ to examining its effects on minor languages and intercultural education communication and research, the contributors highlight both the promises and drawbacks of machine-mediated communication. They also urge readers to reflect on the future of language, advocating for a reflexive approach to technology that prioritises agency, diversity, and critical engagement. This interdisciplinary book is an essential read for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in multilingualism, intercultural communication education, and the implications of AI.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Chapter in "Lingua Ex Machina: AI, Multilingualism and Interculturality" which explores the evolving role of AI in shaping language, communication and intercultural encounters. The term ‘Lingua Ex Machina’ (literally ‘language from the machine’) encapsulates the paradox of AI acting as both a tool for bridging linguistic and intercultural divides, and a potential amplifier of inequalities. This edited volume brings together critical perspectives on the impact of AI on language diversity, translation, education and the production and dissemination of knowledge. From questioning whether AI is more than a sophisticated ‘parrot’ to examining its effects on minor languages and intercultural education communication and research, the contributors highlight both the promises and drawbacks of machine-mediated communication. They also urge readers to reflect on the future of language, advocating for a reflexive approach to technology that prioritises agency, diversity, and critical engagement. This interdisciplinary book is an essential read for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in multilingualism, intercultural communication education, and the implications of AI.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This book adopts an interactional pragmatics and multimodal approach to the study of im/politeness, offering unique insights for better understanding intercultural interactions in today’s globalised world. The volume explores face/identity and its relation to im/politeness, not only through language but through gestures as well. In addition, this study brings greater awareness to analyses of interactions with participants from different cultural backgrounds, specifically drawing upon data from authentic video-recorded interactions between Finnish and French speakers in both personal and professional contexts. Detailed analyses of interactional situations across different phases of life, from family meals to social interactions between students and friends to coaching at work, elucidate both the ways in which face/identity are co-constructed during interactions through an intercultural lens and offers new directions for its further study. This book will be of interest to students and scholars in pragmatics and intercultural communication.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Lingua Ex Machina: AI, Multilingualism and Interculturality explores the evolving role of AI in shaping language, communication and intercultural encounters. The term ‘Lingua Ex Machina’ (literally ‘language from the machine’) encapsulates the paradox of AI acting as both a tool for bridging linguistic and intercultural divides, and a potential amplifier of inequalities. This edited volume brings together critical perspectives on the impact of AI on language diversity, translation, education and the production and dissemination of knowledge. From questioning whether AI is more than a sophisticated ‘parrot’ to examining its effects on minor languages and intercultural education communication and research, the contributors highlight both the promises and drawbacks of machine-mediated communication. They also urge readers to reflect on the future of language, advocating for a reflexive approach to technology that prioritises agency, diversity, and critical engagement. This interdisciplinary book is an essential read for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in multilingualism, intercultural communication education, and the implications of AI

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Practicing Digital Ethnography offers a comprehensive introduction to the essential methods, concepts, and practices of conducting ethnographic research in digital environments. Written by sixty global contributors across twelve chapters with accompanying case studies and concept explorations, this book provides both theoretical foundations and practical guidance for digital ethnographic work. It covers research approaches for diverse digital contexts including social media, virtual spaces, video games, and hybrid physical-technological settings, while addressing the deployment of tools like artificial intelligence, big data, mapping technologies, and multimodal methodologies. The book examines ethical challenges specific to digital research environments while maintaining a commitment to reflexive, co-present research that acknowledges how our interactions with digital technologies transcend boundaries of citizenship, race, gender identity, age, and ability. Practicing Digital Ethnography is ideal for students and researchers in anthropology, media studies, science and technology studies, and communications who seek to understand contemporary hyper-mediated environments, as well as professionals outside academia who need practical, accessible guidance for conducting rigorous digital research.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Chapter in "Lingua Ex Machina: AI, Multilingualism and Interculturality" which explores the evolving role of AI in shaping language, communication and intercultural encounters. The term ‘Lingua Ex Machina’ (literally ‘language from the machine’) encapsulates the paradox of AI acting as both a tool for bridging linguistic and intercultural divides, and a potential amplifier of inequalities. This edited volume brings together critical perspectives on the impact of AI on language diversity, translation, education and the production and dissemination of knowledge. From questioning whether AI is more than a sophisticated ‘parrot’ to examining its effects on minor languages and intercultural education communication and research, the contributors highlight both the promises and drawbacks of machine-mediated communication. They also urge readers to reflect on the future of language, advocating for a reflexive approach to technology that prioritises agency, diversity, and critical engagement. This interdisciplinary book is an essential read for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in multilingualism, intercultural communication education, and the implications of AI.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
In the field of Software Engineering (SE), educational institutions are confronted with the demanding responsibility of aligning their curricula to provide students with the competencies — soft and technical — demanded by the evolving job market. Moreover, workplaces are becoming increasingly international, highlighting the competencies required in collaborating with people from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds. Competency models offer essential input for curriculum design. Moreover, educators may need to construct their own competency models when international guidelines fall short. To prepare students for future workplaces, curriculum designers necessitate knowledge to address demands of the international working environment. To gain a deeper understanding of the needs in the international SE context, we conducted a systematic literature review (SLR) to identify and analyze existing SE competency models and their construction, as well as investigate communication, collaboration, intercultural, and language competencies embedded in these models. This SLR identified 29 competency models across diverse application domains and purposes, constructed using a range of mono- and multi-method approaches, and offering multiple use scenarios for diverse stakeholders. We identified and collected an extensive collection of communication, collaboration, intercultural, and language competencies from the competency models in addition to the elements of the competency model construction process. Regarding identified competencies, communication and collaboration embody as core components in SE competency models whereas intercultural and language competencies are depreciated. Moreover, competency models and their construction lack international aspects. These findings highlight gaps in current competency models and offer insights into curriculum design to better prepare students for international SE environments.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Stepping into the vibrant and uncharted margins of Intercultural Communication, Education and Research (ICER), this edited volume challenges the field’s established narratives by actively listening to the thinkers, educators and practitioners whose transformative work has previously been overlooked. Moving beyond clichés, this volume introduces the ‘unsung maverick’ not as a heroic figure but as a precarious rope-dancer performing vital and innovative work without a safety net. Through powerful, first-hand accounts, ranging from autoethnographies to poetic experiments, the contributors pull apart dominant paradigms and reveal how systemic biases and linguistic hierarchies have silenced crucial perspectives. Representing a platform for methodological rebellion and epistemic justice, this book showcases how interculturality is lived and reimagined from the ground up. For anyone ready to move past the usual references and discover the fertile and creative potential at the edges of ICER, this edited volume urges us to listen, learn and help shape the conversation about interculturality today.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This chapter examines how sociotechnical affordances of activist education and digital interaction enabled a pedagogical practice aimed at disentangling learners from colonial legacies of gender, sexuality, and race. Specifically, I focus on a 2021 Faveladoc class, a documentary-making workshop held via Google Meet for young favela residents in Rio de Janeiro, organised by the grassroots NGO Raízes em Movimento. Led by Joice Lima, a Black social scientist and activist, the class explored what it means to inhabit a gendered, racialised body shaped by desire within a peripheral space. The interactions among the instructor, the young participants, and the digital and discursive affordances at play gave rise to a situated collective that actively resists (in)securitisation—that is, the process of framing certain populations as existential threats. As territories predominantly inhabited by Black working-class communities, favelas have been key targets of Brazil’s (in)securitisation, subjected to intensified policing and the persistent ‘crossfire’ between the state and organised crime. Against this backdrop, this chapter analyses how this dialogical digital setting fostered unlearning of patriarchy, racism, and LGBTQI-phobia — ultimately repositioning language as hope.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Digital intercultural experiences are shaped by broader sociocultural dynamics, including migration, corporate discourse, and social activism. This volume offers a comprehensive exploration of ‘digital interculturality’, drawing on insights from intercultural communication studies, sociolinguistics, and adjacent fields. The contributors examine how digital technologies—such as social media platforms, translation apps, and artificial intelligence—mediate intercultural encounters, identities, and meaning-making processes. Together, these perspectives advance our understanding of the entanglement of intercultural communication with digital technologies, laying the groundwork for ‘digital interculturality’ as an emerging interdisciplinary field.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The digital age has profoundly transformed Holocaust remembrance through the influence of digital archives, connectivity, and emerging technologies. This research investigates the transformation of personal memories into connective memory shaped by online social platforms, Internet search tools, and artificial intelligence. It employs an analysis of digital memory platforms and conducts interviews centered on a specific case study examining the memory patterns of a Holocaust survivor. The increasing reliance on algorithmic mediation raises concerns about the potential distortion and manipulation of historical narratives. This study highlights the need for human agency in memory construction and the challenges of technologically mediated memory. It suggests that collaborative efforts involving scholars, survivors, and community members should continue to play a central role in developing technological tools for remembrance. The implications extend beyond Holocaust memory, informing discussions on the digitization, preservation, and ethical dissemination of technologically mediated historical knowledge in the twenty-first century.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This book addresses the importance of sustainability and environmental worldviews and the role of intercultural competencies in achieving SDGs acceptance and their effective implementation. Particularly since the pandemic, there is a growth in online education, and this offers opportunities for educators and students that can be exploited with a focus on sustainability. The book provides examples of virtual exchange including Global South and Global North with tools ranging from Project-Based and Community-Based Service Learning, Debates, Environmental Games and Simulations, Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality, and Accessibility and DEI issues. Additionally, issues of social justice and digital colonialism are a thread through several of the chapters. By providing a broad range of global learning experiences from scholars across several continents from various disciplines that include various post-secondary education based on tools and best practices, the book is a great resource to academics, researchers, and students on approaches to education that prepare the learner for praxis and effective implementation of sustainable solutions for their professional and social future perspectives.

Book

Language(s): German

Abstract:
In Japan findet jährlich eine Vielzahl von Amateur-Comic-Events, darunter die größte Comic-Messe weltweit, die Comiket, statt. Entgegen dem globalen Trend zur Digitalisierung im Comic-Bereich wird ein Großteil der dortigen Werke nach wie vor von den Künstler*innen selbst verlegt, gedruckt und herausgegeben. Katharina Hülsmann nimmt die Kultur japanischer Fan-Comics (sog. dōjinshi) in den Blick: Wie entwickelte sich eine solch solide Infrastruktur in Japan und warum hält sie sich bis heute? Welche Anschlussmöglichkeiten haben dōjinshi an ein globales Fandom, wenn sie sich im Internet eher wenig verbreiten? Und was treibt japanische Amateur-Künstler*innen an, ihre Werke mit viel Aufwand herzustellen und mit anderen Fans zu teilen?

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This edited volume presents the latest achievements of postdigital scholarship in the field of future studies. Showing that current policy frameworks are dominated by capitalist imaginaries, the book insists on the development of radically different futures. This task is approached in five different ways. The book begins with an overview of the many ways to approach postdigital imaginations as emancipatory practices, followed by some urgent reimaginations of older ideas. It moves on to critiques of current practices, policies, and imaginaries, and develops postdigital research methods for the development of emancipatory educational imaginaries. Showcasing some recent interventions in educational politics, policy, and practice, it links presented work on postdigital imaginations with recent postdigital inquiry related to the geopolitics of postdigital educational development. This book is suited for educators, policy-makers, and any researcher fascinated by the unbounding of education from capitalist imaginaries and reframing it within an emancipatory future.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This open access book outlines how the digital platforms that mediate so many aspects of commercial and personal life have begun to transform everyday family existence. It presents theory and research methods to enable students and scholars to investigate the changes that platformization has brought to the routines and interactions of family life including intergenerational communication, interpersonal relationships, forms of care and togetherness. The book emerged from a seminar jointly funded by the Collaboration of Humanities and Social Sciences in Europe project, the Norwegian Research Council and The Australian Centre of Excellence for the Study of the Digital Child.

Book

Abstract:
This book introduces a new theory of national identity, arguing that the nation does not only represent an abstract “imagined community” but also represents embodied cultural and discursive practices. Drawing upon a detailed case study of Serbian Londoners, this truly interdisciplinary study positions media as constitutive of national identities. The author contends that nations come into being and are sustained through everyday interpersonal communication practices that have increasingly become mediated, especially for migrants. She develops the concept of "doing nation" to argue that we should think of the nation as a dynamic process. Situated first within a particular migration context, the concept is then applied more broadly as everyday communication practices are becoming increasingly mediated worldwide. Covering a breadth of key theories and concepts in this field, including diaspora, ethnicity, nationalism, cosmopolitanism, social media affordances and polymedia, this book will appeal to scholars and students researching digital media, migration, identities, nationalism and cosmopolitanism in the social science disciplines.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This article employs Critical Technocultural Discourse Analysis (CTDA) to analyze the affective public surrounding the hashtag #christiantiktok. We find that “Christian TikTok” discursively negotiates the unpredictable visibility affordances of TikTok’s algorithm by ascribing layers of spiritual significance to how the algorithm delivers content. Our research uncovered four key themes to this spiritualized conceptualization of algorithmically controlled visibility: (1) Algorithm as directed by the hand of God, (2) Context collapse as an evangelism opportunity, (3) Boosting visibility as a spiritual obligation, and (4) Invisibility as persecution. Following our analysis, we develop an understanding of the “spiritual algorithmic imaginary,” building on Bucher’s concept of the “algorithmic imaginary.” Functioning as both a networked performance and an affective framework, the concept of the spiritual algorithmic imaginary theorizes how certain spiritual users sacralize their participation in and understanding of digital platforms.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Research on women and hostile behaviour in video games has largely focused on women as victims rather than perpetuators of hostile behaviour. In this study, by utilizing discourse analysis, we examine how women’s hostile behaviour is discussed in the subreddit r/GirlGamers, and how the ideal gaming woman is discursively constructed in these discussions.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Speakers may resort to different inferences and expectations in intercultural encounters. These expectations are influenced by speakers’ socialization processes in speech communities and networks, as well as by the local interactional demands and power dynamics in the communicative situation. While interactional sociolinguistic studies have unveiled intercultural mismatches in how contextualization asymmetries operate in the here-and-now of interaction, less attention has been given to speakers’ normative expectations of good and bad social encounters, as reflected in retrospective accounts of interactional experiences. This article uses critical discursive psychology to examine social interactional ideologies, as German and Chinese students (home and exchange students, respectively) reflect on their experiences in a virtual intercultural game. As an analytical tool, we use the notion of “interpretative repertoires,” i.e., culturally shared ways to construct generally recognizable versions of objects. Our analysis of reflection reports written by the game players shows repertoires addressing ideal behaviors and ideal group features, which tend to place the German students in a more favorable position than the Chinese students. We discuss how local and historical power dynamics are blended in the repertoires and point to the need to critically engage with the social interactional ideologies that exist – but often go unnoticed – in intercultural settings.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This two-part special issue of the Journal of Intercultural Communication Research addresses the state of past, present, and future theorizing in intercultural communication scholarship. Articles in this issue touch on one or more of the following themes: engaging in theorizing, not theory; acknowledging identities and voices at the margins; questioning and resisting colonial legacies; prioritizing praxis and social engagement; and humanizing intercultural communication. The empirical and reflexive essays in this issue are guided by diverse theoretical perspectives and each provides a snapshot of the past, present, and future state of intercultural communication theorizing.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The #StopAsianHate hashtag movement emerged as a challenge to the rising tide of racism in the United States during the coronavirus pandemic and contributed to the legislation of the Covid-19 Hate Crimes Act. Our research brings together concepts from social movement studies as well as network science and celebrity-fandom studies to examine a corpus of tweets about the movement. We employ a mixed-methods design combining structural topic modeling with digital discourse analysis. Even though the movement rose up against White Supremacist structural racism, we find that right-wing provocateurs with large followings often hijacked its hashtags to amplify sporadic Black-on-Asian violence. But the active participation of Asian celebrities such as BTS, with their own huge followings online, bolstered the movement. Their posts and statements about anti-Asian violence were heavily reposted and dominated the digital discourse. Crucially, we show how their fans helped boost the movement’s anti-racist agenda by repeatedly posting similar messages in concert, which we compare with the offline fan practice of “chanting” as a form of collective identity performance. While theories like the logic of connective action view digital activism as individualized and decentralized, our research elucidates its hierarchical structure and the oversized role of provocateurs and celebrities in raising the visibility of competing claims and agendas by re-contextualizing hashtags. At the same time, culture industries and practices can create bottom-up solidarities that can have a political impact by raising particular agendas in the digital attention economy.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Intercultural communicative competence (ICC) is an increasingly critical construct in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) education and global professional contexts, particularly amidst rapid globalization and digital transformation. This article systematically reviews prominent ICC frameworks, concurrently addressing the inherent challenges of integrating ICC within EFL curricula in non-English-speaking environments, with a specific focus on China. Furthermore, it investigates the impact of emerging technologies, such as advanced language learning tools, on fostering intercultural learning and interaction. Drawing upon established models, including those proposed by Byram and Deardorff, this study proposes a novel hybrid ICC model that integrates cultural adaptability, digital literacy, and multilingual identity, extending these traditional frameworks to address modern intercultural communication needs. The empirical validity of the proposed model is substantiated by its robust global fit statistics, including Chi-Square (𝜒2) and Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA). A brief analysis of local fit (residuals) further corroborates the model’s structural integrity and explanatory power. The interpreted model is an extension of the originally specified frameworks, aiming to meet the demands of contemporary intercultural communication. The paper concludes by offering actionable recommendations for educators and institutions committed to enhancing ICC development within digitally mediated and culturally diverse learning ecosystems.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This article introduces a practice-based approach to intercultural communication (IC), proposing an epistemological integration that foregrounds how interculturality is enacted through socially and materially situated practices. Rather than framing IC within structural (macro) or individualist (micro) paradigms, the article focuses on the performative (meso) dimensions through which people “do” IC in context. Key concepts such as practical intelligibility, teleoaffectivity, bundles of practice are introduced to offer a generative vocabulary for analysing how IC is negotiated, sustained, and sometimes opposed. The article concludes with methodological suggestions for studying IC qua practices.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This article explores the evolving dynamics of adolescents’ digital media practices and their implications for socialization, identity, and well-being. The research, conducted over two years with students aged 14-19 in Bo- logna, employed a mixed-method approach to examine media habits be- fore and after the pandemic. Findings reveal increased screen time, shifts in communication toward more functional interactions, the challenges of fragmented identity across platforms and the pivotal role of group chats in peer dynamics, often amplifying misunderstandings and exclusion.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Globalization has increased the demand for English proficiency and intercultural competence. However, English instruction in Indonesia often focuses on grammar and vocabulary, with limited emphasis on cultural understanding. Although AI tools are commonly used to support language learning, their potential to promote intercultural learning remains underexplored. This study aimed to investigate how Indonesian EFL students use AI-powered conversational agents to explore cultural perspectives and what cultural insights they gain. The research employed a descriptive phenomenological design involving 15 undergraduate students from five regions in Indonesia. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. The results showed that students moved from retrieving simple cultural facts to engaging in deeper conversations that supported reflection and critical thinking. They described AI as a non-judgmental partner that allowed them to ask sensitive cultural questions. The students learned to distinguish between surface-level cultural practices and deeper values. They also habitually questioned AI-generated content and verified it through other sources. This process helped them build critical AI literacy. The findings suggest that AI tools can support intercultural learning if used with guidance. Teachers are encouraged to design activities that help students reflect on cultural content and develop critical awareness during AI interaction.

Article / Journal

Abstract:
Examinations of online far-right activity often focus on harmful content proliferation and its social and political impact. However, understandings of its spread often lack a consideration of the emerging political economy of social media algorithms and surveillance capitalism.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
In recent years, the scholarly critique of tech power as a form of digital colonialism has gained prominence. Scholars from various disciplines—including communication, law, computer science, anthropology, and sociology—have turned to this idea (or related ones such as tech colonialism, data colonialism, and algorithmic colonization) to conceptualize the harmful impact of digital technologies globally. This article reviews significant historical precedents to the current critique of digital colonialism and further shows how digital rights activists from the Global South have been actively developing and popularizing these ideas over the last decade. I argue that these two phenomena help explain why scholars from varied disciplines developed adjacent frameworks simultaneously and at this specific historical juncture. The article also proposes a typology of digital colonialism around six core features. Overall, this article encourages historicizing current debates about tech power and emphasizes the instrumental role of nonscholarly communities in knowledge production.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Shortly after its 2018 global launch, reports surfaced that content creation platform TikTok tasked its moderators to suppress disabled creators’ user-generated content without formal notification to the users, a belief colloquially known as shadowbanning. This theoretical article introduces algorithmic ableism to interrogate how platform systems encode ableist ideologies into algorithmic recommendation infrastructures, reproducing dominant offline beliefs. With the invocation of algorithmic ableism, the article’s analysis highlights how platform companies rely on disability-related discrimination as a platform logic that reifies long-standing western biases of who belongs in public life. Supported by scholarship in critical disability and feminist creator studies, the article engages in a critical/cultural close reading of corporate and investigative cultural artefacts, using TikTok as a case study. In doing so, the article argues how algorithmic ableism reproduces bias for disabled and marginalized creators through content suppression and surveillance. The article’s conclusion offers additional insights into how disabled creators’ microactivist content creation subverts algorithmic ableism.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Abstract Counter-practices as minor practices Virtuality and counter-modelling Declaration of conflicting interests Funding ORCID iD References PDF/EPUB Cite article Share options Information, rights and permissions Metrics and citations Abstract Expanding from Borbach and Kanderske's study of counter-practices in sensor-media societies this commentary explores two additional aspects that both support their insights. The first, related to the concept of becoming-minor, seeks to further develop their ethical-political framework, while the second, focusing on virtuality and counter-modelling, broadens the scope of analysis to include the entanglement between the virtual and the computational.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Sexual pleasure is a question of sexual justice and sexual rights in so far as who is allowed or denied pleasure is a vital issue for queer, trans, and nonbinary people. Pleasure is also intimately a technological question as sex was always entangled with and regulated by technologies. In this article, we seek to delineate a queer politics of pleasure by exploring LGBTQ+ people’s uses and experiences of sextech in Australia and Sweden with a specific focus on sex toys. Which bodies, identities, pleasures, and practices do sextexch assume and extend? And how do these sextech users play with (while being played by) such norms and assumptions? We begin by considering the cultural specificity of queer and feminist histories of sex toys, including the commodification of sex and pleasure in late capitalism and how this relates to sexual identities and ideas of sexual liberation. We then discuss norms of sex, pleasure, and sextech. But rather than distinguishing the normative from the antinormative as a way of locating a transgressive potential, we rather consider how norms are always part of their own variation, opening up a broader sexual field of perhaps more mundane practices, yet no less significant. Finally, we explore how pleasure aligns with or disrupts an attention to norms and identities. In contrast to the commodification of sexual identities in sextech, and the linear enhancement of pleasure by design, we further an understanding of pleasure as something more improvisational and unpredictable with limited space in mainstream sextech data economies.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Digital gaming has evolved from a peripheral activity to a central aspect of mediatized lifeworlds, significantly impacting media culture and society. Despite its pervasive influence, digital gaming research often occupies a marginalized status within broader academic disciplines. This article advocates for recognizing digital gaming as an integral part of the media landscape and understanding its role within a deeply mediatized society. By adopting a holistic perspective, this study emphasizes the interconnectedness of digital gaming with other media forms and cultural practices, highlighting its significance in driving digital transformation. Therefore, we argue for a dual development: one that removes gaming from its segregated special status and recognizes it as an integral part of the media landscape, and another that situates the unique aspects of gaming within the broader context of a society deeply transformed and shaped by media; capturing both its significance and its role as part of the whole. We elaborate on the concept of gamevironments bridging deep mediatization research and communicative figurations to comprehend change brought about by the transformative power of digital gaming in deeply mediatized societies. Gamevironments encompass transmedia figurations and narratives, cross‐media adaptations, social interactions, user‐generated content, and the cultural and educational impacts of gaming. We discuss the analytical potential of gamevironments along five distinct yet interrelated areas (making of gamevironments, values in and of gamevironments, governance of gamevironments, education in and for gamevironments, and researching gamevironments) to provide a comprehensive view of digital gaming’s transformative impact on digital society.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Far from causing the "death of the book," the publishing industry's adoption of digital technologies has generated a multitude of new works that push the boundaries of literature and its presentation. In this fascinating new work, Élika Ortega proposes the notion of "binding media" — a practice where authors and publishers "fasten together" a codex and electronic or digital media to create literary works in the form of hybrid print-digital objects. Examining more than a hundred literary works from across the Americas, Ortega argues that binding media are not simply experimentations but a unique contemporary form of the book that effectively challenges conventional regional and linguistic boundaries. Furthermore, the book demonstrates that binding media have remained marginal in the publishing industry due to technological imperatives like planned obsolescence and commercial ones like replicability and standardization that run counter to these bespoke literary projects. Although many binding media and other hybrid publishing initiatives have perished, they've left behind a wealth of material; collecting and tracing the residues of these foreshortened projects, Ortega builds a fascinating history of hybrid publishing. Ultimately, this essential account of contemporary book history highlights the way binding media help illuminate processes of cultural hybridization that have been instigated by the expediency of globalized digital technologies and transnational dynamics.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Digital transformation is crucial for the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), yet many SMEs struggle with its implementation. Although digital leadership and digital culture are two established facilitators of digital transformation, their antecedents remain highly understudied. Drawing on the dynamic capabilities framework, we hypothesize that dynamic capabilities promote digital leadership and digital culture in SMEs. Our empirical study builds on questionnaire data from 98 SMEs located in Southern Germany. The findings support the enabling role of dynamic capabilities, indicating that dynamic capabilities enhance digital leadership and digital culture. Contrary to our expectations, the hypothesized mediation effects between dynamic capabilities, digital leadership, and digital culture were not supported, indicating that the translation mechanisms between digital leadership and digital culture might be less direct and straightforward than previously presumed. Thus, dynamic capabilities emerge as critical, yet separate, enablers of digital leadership and digital culture. By positioning dynamic capabilities as antecedents rather than outcomes, this study provides a novel perspective on central enablers of digital transformation, extending dynamic capabilities theory into this context. Overall, our findings offer important implications for facilitating SMEs’ digital transformation, highlighting dynamic capabilities as essential for fostering digital leadership and digital culture. Despite its significance, our study faces some limitations that hinder the generalizability of our findings, including relatively small sample size or specific sample context. Future research should replicate and extend our analyses using larger and more diverse samples.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This paper identifies the visibility practices of Japanese Twitter users supporting Ukraine during Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion. Studies of digital visibility often suggest that moral goals and ideals are not attainable in such practices, as they clash with conditions of visibility configured by social media. This has led scholars to suggest that moral paradoxes, or the need to reconcile conflicting considerations, are the main characteristic of visibility on social media platforms. In this study, through an innovative mixed-methods approach for analysing visibility practices, I also outline several moral paradoxes underlying practices through which Japanese Twitter users enhance or decrease the visibility of actors associated with Russia’s war on Ukraine. However, by adopting the conceptual approach of ‘ethics as practice’ which emphasises the moral considerations of practitioners when faced with a moral conundrum, I argue that users driven by the moral call to support Ukraine recognise the limitations of Twitter’s regime of visibility. Their grappling with the identified paradoxes as they engage in visibility practices is what gives moral value to these practices.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This study investigates the interplay between international entrepreneurship, digitalisation, new technologies, and intercultural dynamics in the context of globalisation and technological advancements. Through a systematic literature review, we synthesise the evolving landscape of international entrepreneurship research, focusing on the integration of digitalisation, Industry 4.0, blockchain, and artificial intelligence. Our findings highlight the growing scientific interest in leveraging new technologies and digitalisation to overcome traditional and cultural barriers in international entrepreneurship, thereby facilitating the emergence of innovative business models. Key insights reveal that while new technologies act as catalysts for reducing intercultural barriers and reshaping business models, they also introduce regulatory and privacy concerns. This study contributes to the international entrepreneurship literature by offering an updated perspective on the role of technology and digitalisation in international entrepreneurship, emphasising the need for new competencies to navigate the complexities of a technologically interconnected global market. By bridging existing gaps, this research opens new avenues for future exploration, particularly regarding the impact of digital transformation on international business strategies. The findings have significant implications for academics and practitioners aiming to understand and leverage the opportunities presented by the intersection of international entrepreneurship, technology, digitalisation, and intercultural dynamics.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
In this research, the teaching practices used in multicultural universities and colleges that promote intercultural competence, cultural empathy, and effective communication were examined. Informed by the models of Deardorff (2006), Gay (2010) and Banks (2015), the study sought to (1) determine culturally responsive pedagogical practices, (2) analyze the institutional and contextual factors that affect their use, and (3) document the views of both educators and students about the effects of these strategies. A qualitative multiple case study approach was employed, with 12 instructors and 15 students from three ethnically diverse Philippine higher education institutions. Data were gathered using semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions and observations in classrooms. Thematic analysis identified that culturally responsive teaching, dialogic reflection and experiential learning contribute considerably to cultural understanding. Institutional culture, curricular adaptability and teacher training were the key enablers, whereas fixed curricula and resistant dispositions were obstacles. Inclusive learning spaces and possibilities of intercultural encounters were stated by participants to promote empathy, global understanding, and communication skills. The results underscore the necessity for system support on all institution levels to integrate intercultural competence into higher education. Through synthesizing theory and the real-life experiences of students and teachers, the research adds to the discussion on inclusive and socially responsible pedagogy in classrooms across the globe.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Effective conflict resolution in intercultural communication entails utilizing strategies for managing cultural conflicts based on scientific approaches and research. The aim of this research is to assess and identify strategies that aid in managing conflicts arising in intercultural interactions, particularly those aimed at overcoming cultural barriers and fostering positive interactions among representatives of different cultures. An online survey method was employed in this study, and statistical methods, including comparative analysis of means and computation of t-values, were used for data processing and analysis. Experimental results indicate statistically significant differences between the control and experimental groups in resolving intercultural conflicts. The mean value in the group employing specific conflict management strategies was significantly higher (75 compared to 70 in the control group), indicating more successful resolution of conflict situations. t ≈ 8.66 denotes significant differences between the groups. The findings of the study confirm the effectiveness of utilizing specific conflict management strategies in intercultural communication. This article underscores practical significance as it offers concrete strategies and tools for effective conflict management among professionals in the field of intercultural communication. The research outcomes can be leveraged to enhance communication strategies in organizations and promote increased levels of mutual understanding and cooperation among representatives of different cultures.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The chapter deals with constructions of threats in (extreme) right-wing online discourses. These include feminism and gender discourses, abortion, immigration and birth rates, and the chapter focuses on German speaking contexts. It also includes examples of constructions of threats by abortion of the right-catholic website Kath.net. The described threat constructions refer to feminist and human rights achievements, which are regarded as intimidating and endangering. Based on the assumptions of Ulrich Beck concerning cosmopolitanism, I outline how the background of cosmopolitanism can reinforce these threat constructions. Thereby, emancipatory processes become an even greater threat, as they enable legal access to abortion, the disturbance of biological and traditional gender roles and ideas of family, which aggravates the preservation of the “Volk”. This can reinforce existing uncertainties and enable right-wing online narratives to appear efficacious, which may lead to a more rapid dissemination of those narratives, which may thus be more easily adopted by people.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
How did Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s divorce become the centre of the anti-#MeToo backlash? Why have so many teen boys fallen under the thrall of Andrew Tate, a failed reality show contestant? And why are a growing number of influencers like #tradwives dressing up like 1950s housewives and preaching total subservience to men? In the years since #MeToo – the largest social media facilitated feminist campaign in history – Roe v. Wade has been overturned in the United States, there have been attacks on reproductive rights in multiple countries and female political leaders have withdrawn from the world stage citing the level of abuse they get as a reason. CTRL HATE DELETE takes a deep dive into how a collection of misogynists and their allies have turned male supremacist ideology from a niche set of beliefs into a mainstream movement. With interviews from experts, influencers and activists, it outlines how to fight the rising tide of online misogyny and make online spaces more equal and inclusive.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
In today’s rapidly digitalizing landscape, integrating digital culture and knowledge management systems (DKM) to enhance employee performance has become necessary for higher education institutions (HEIs). The purpose of this research is to investigate the relationship between digital culture, digital knowledge management (DKM), and employee performance in higher educational institutions (HEIs), with the main aim to address the gap by focusing on HEIs since their development must integrate aspects of both digital culture and DKM for successful operation in a digital age. A quantitative research approach was used to determine how digital culture affects DKM and employee performance. Adapted Questionnaires were used for data collection from 364 faculty members drawn from different universities in the Delhi/NCR region. A non-probability sampling method was used to reach these participants. The relationships between digital culture, DKM, and employee performance were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) through Smart PLS-4.0. The findings show a strong positive association (β = 0.653) between a high level of digitization DKM. Also, a significantly positive association is shown between (β = 0.516) DKM and employee performance. The results highlighted that higher educational institutes with a well-developed digital culture can have high levels of DKM adoption, resulting in increased employee performance. The study provides useful insights for HEI administrators and policymakers. When institutions understand that digital culture is key to improving DKM, they can apply various strategies, such as promoting digital literacy skills, encouraging collaboration through online platforms, and making technology resources available to develop an enabling digital environment. These findings imply that these initiatives will improve employee performance, thus enhancing higher education institutions’ overall efficiency and competitiveness even as the learning space is increasingly digitalized. This research adds to existing scholarship by investigating the interrelationship between digital culture, DKM, and employee performance, which remains under-researched within HEIs.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
I present a sociosemiotic approach to culture/interculturality reconceptualised as non-/sharing in semiotic practices. I illustrate the non-/sharing dimensions and degrees derived from attributions of provenance in food-related Facebook groups. Several socialisation dimensions compete and combine in interaction, opening lines of flight challenging essentialised boundaries and ideas of multi/interculturality as necessarily tied to nationalities/ethnicities and/or mother tongues. The approach provides an analytical lens/toolkit to examine diversity and sharing co-construction in semiotic resources/practices in any communicative contexts, making it useful vis-a-vis a landscape of growing nationalisms and anti-immigration propaganda on one hand, and internal societal divisions and polarisations on the other.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This study used a pre- and post-test intervention design, supplied with post-test interviews, to investigate to what extent an English foreign language lesson plan focusing on communication (in)directness and face would improve students’ intercultural competence. An experiment group (n = 20) and a control group (n = 21) at the lower secondary school level in Norway were involved in the study, exploring the effects of the intervention with regard to the development of the students’ knowledge and skills. The results showed that the learning outcomes pertaining to the knowledge dimension were positive, but that there was little or no increase in the skills dimension. They also suggest that the attitude dimension of intercultural competence needs to be addressed when working with intercultural knowledge and skills in foreign language education.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Policymakers in Japan have high expectations for English-medium instruction (EMI) as an effective educational model for developing global human resources. EMI is expected to promote students' English proficiency, content knowledge, and intercultural skills. However, longitudinal studies measuring the actual results of EMI are scarce. To begin filling this gap, this study examined development of intercultural communicative competence (ICC) among 52 Japanese students enrolled in an English-language university in Japan. The participants completed a writing task assessing their ability to mediate an intercultural conflict (ICC measure). Students were assessed twice over a period of 1 year. They also completed two measures of intercultural competence (a survey and a behavioral measure) and a standardized English proficiency test (ITP TOEFL). Results revealed significant improvement in overall conflict mediation performance, but only the linguistic aspects of students’ performance improved (grammar, pragmatics). The intercultural aspects (display of empathy, problem-solving) showed no significant increase. English proficiency had a significant impact on performance in the conflict mediation task, but intercultural competence – whether assessed with a survey or a behavioral measure – had no noticeable impact on performance.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Dialogues on Digital Society is an international, interdisciplinary journal engaging with emerging and field-changing thinking about the intersections of digital technologies, human experience, and societies. It publishes cutting-edge articles and review forums that critique or expand current thinking on questions of digitisation and set the agenda for future research. The journal operates with open peer commentary, encouraging a dialogue between authors and a set of reviewers in order to foster critical dialogue to expand the field of inquiry.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Tracing the development of new technological skills and digital cultures, this book looks at the rise of new digital divides and reveals how these inequalities affect cross-cultural communication from a cultural discourse studies perspective in various ethnic and cultural groups across the world. The authors discuss the development of multicultural societies across the globe under new challenges brought by digitalization, such as digital exclusion, new professional and personal demands in terms of digital engagement. In addition to highlighting digital inequalities in access, use and benefits of using ICTs, case studies from different national contexts demonstrate the ways minority ethnic and cultural groups are adapting to the new digital environment; explore the transformations that multicultural affairs and communication undergo in the new digital setting; and analyse policy measures aimed at fostering digital inclusion of minor groups. The book advances knowledge of the digital divide, showing its development from a technological access- and skill-based problem into a social and culture-oriented one. This resourceful text will be of interest to students and scholars of social inequality, digital media and communication studies and anyone interested in learning how multicultural discourses are developing in varied national contexts today.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This article develops the concept of ‘digital interculturality’ as a critical lens for understanding postdigital societies. Against the backdrop of platformisation, algorithmic governance, and AI-driven epistemic infrastructures, interculturality is reconceptualised as a structurally mediated, dynamic, and ambivalent process, shaped by both connectivity and exclusion. The authors write in line with arguments for a shift from essentialist and interactionist models of cultural difference, which presume fixed, monocultural identities, toward a view of identity as fluid and developing within a culturally hybrid lifeworld. Interculturality is, thus, framed as the ubiquitous negotiation of uncertainty and alterity in communicative environments where meaning is algorithmically filtered, amplified, or silenced. In this context, digital interculturality emerges as a multilayered phenomenon embedded in the asymmetries of platform capitalism, epistemic colonialism, and intersectional regimes of (in)visibility. Drawing on Critical (inter)cultural Studies, Internet Studies, and Sociolinguistics, the article calls for infrastructural literacy as a key competence for engaging with the communicative conditions of the postdigital lifeworld, therefore part of intercultural competence. Digital interculturality, the authors conclude, is not peripheral—it is constitutive of contemporary cultural production and transformation.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Bringing together leading scholars from media studies and digital sociology, this edited volume provides a comprehensive introduction to digital media metaphors, unpacking their power and limitations. Digital technologies have reshaped our way of life. To grasp their dynamics and implications, people often rely on metaphors to provide a shared frame of reference. Scholars, journalists, tech companies, and policymakers alike speak of digital clouds, bubbles, frontiers, platforms, trolls, and rabbit holes. Some of these metaphors distort the workings of the digital realm and neglect key consequences. This collection, structured in three parts, explores metaphors across digital infrastructures, content, and users. Within these parts, each chapter examines a specific metaphor that has become near-ubiquitous in public debate. Doing so, the book engages not only with the technological, but also the social, political, and environmental implications of digital technologies and relations. This unique collection will interest students and scholars of digital media and the broader fields of media and communication studies, sociology, and science and technology studies.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
How digital social reading apps are powerfully changing—and nurturing—the way we read. Conventional wisdom would have us believe that digital technology is a threat to reading, but in Digital Social Reading, Federico Pianzola argues that reading socially through digital media can help people grow a passion for reading and, in some cases, even enhance text comprehension. Digital social reading (DSR) is a term that encompasses a wide variety of practices related to the activity of reading and using digital technologies and platforms (websites, social media, mobile apps) to share thoughts and impressions about books with others. This book is the first systematization of DSR practices, drawing on case studies from Wattpad, AO3, and Goodreads on a worldwide scale. Using a combination of qualitative and computational methods, Pianzola offers fresh insight into the reading experience on the scale of big data. He discusses the impact of digital technology on reading skills and shows that a change of methodological perspective is necessary to understand the positive potential of DSR for promoting reading more broadly. He argues that it is not just the medium that changes but also the context and the attitudes of readers. He also asserts that grassroots media and open, bottom-up communities are crucial to the success of many reading practices today, especially with young audiences.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Digital technologies have often been criticised due to their tendency to operate as ‘black boxes’, owing to their complexity and opacity, which pose challenges to understanding their inner mechanisms and outputs. This article presents the conceptual framework for this special issue aimed at shifting the focus away from viewing technology as a ‘black box’. Our primary objective is to contribute to the literature on digital technology-driven migration governance by moving from descriptions of digital technology (‘explaining the black box’) towards examining their established relations, shifts over time, and immediate and hidden consequences, that is exploring the effects beyond the immediate outcomes (‘behind, beyond and around the black box’). With these three principles, we advocate for a nuanced analysis by (1) examining both the continuities and discontinuities brought about by these technologies rather than regarding them as entirely new, (2) redirecting the focus away from the technology itself towards an examination of the extent to which these technologies are integrated within social contexts, thereby (re)shaping power relations among different sets of social actors, and finally, (3) setting aside normative judgments about the intrinsic value of these technologies and foregrounding how multiple actors engage with, resist, or repurpose them in their everyday lives.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
There is a notable deficiency in empirical research examining how digital transformation, particularly through the adoption of technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), can empower SMEs to navigate the challenges posed by global crises. While new technologies are frequently regarded as solutions, they can coexist with existing systems and potentially exacerbate the digital divide. This paper aims to investigate the factors that either facilitate or hinder digital transformation among SMEs and their impact on either bridging or widening the digital divide. To explore this issue, we employed a maximum variation sampling method and conducted 15 in-depth interviews with SMEs in the restaurant sector – encompassing small, medium, and large establishments – in London. Our findings indicate that technological factors (such as digital inertia), organisational aspects (including perceptions and collaboration), and external environmental influences (like lockdown measures) are critical in determining the extent of digital transformation or the continuation of the digital divide among SMEs during the pandemic. This paper contributes to understanding the interrelationships among innovative technologies, including AI, SMEs, and their external environments in the context of rapid digital transformation. It underscores the adverse effects of technology adoption on the equitable distribution of innovative practices and provides insights into promoting inclusive digital transformation to mitigate the digital divide among SMEs.