Social Justice and Citizen Participation on Tumblr: Examining the Changing Landscape of Social Activism in the Digital Era
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SOCIAL JUSTICE AND CITIZEN PARTICIPATION ON TUMBLR: EXAMINING THE CHANGING LANDSCAPE OF SOCIAL ACTIVISM IN THE DIGITAL ERA Jessica Hartl Majcher A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS December 2017 Committee: Catherine H. Stein, Advisor Dale Klopfer Carolyn Tompsett © 2017 Jessica Hartl Majcher All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT Catherine H. Stein, Advisor The present study explored the nature of social justice discussions on the social networking site Tumblr using publicly available data from Tumblr posts generated between March 16, 2016 and March 30, 2016. Posts were self-identified by users with at least one of five common hashtags related to social justice identified in a pilot study on Tumblr. These hashtags were #Black Lives Matter, #Feminism, #Racism, #Social Justice, and #SJW, an abbreviation for “social justice warrior” a phrase used to label individuals who engage in social justice discussions online. Findings indicated that posts about social justice are common on Tumblr with 15,160 public posts created by 8,794 users across the two weeks. However, not all posts reflect a positive attitude toward social justice with 8.6% of posts expressing disagreement or even hostility toward movements promoting equality. Data from the present study were compared to data collected in the pilot study to describe consistency and differences in results using the same methodology at two different time points for two different lengths of time. Implications of study findings for clinical and research purposes are discussed. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my teachers, supervisors, colleagues, and mentors who have inspired, challenged, and encouraged me through the years. Above all, I extend my deepest thanks to my advisor, Dr. Catherine Stein for her trust in my abilities, her special knack for helping me see the big picture when I would get caught up in the minutiae, her always timely sense of humor, and her enduring patience and support throughout this process. I would also like to thank my committee members, Drs. Tompsett and Klopfer for their insights and guidance which contributed to this project as well as my development as a researcher and future psychologist. I am grateful for my cohort members and fellow clinical-community graduate students who have serve as mutual support as we walk this road through graduate school together. I would also like to thank my family and friends near and far for their support. Finally, I would like to express my deep appreciation to my husband, Jeffrey Majcher who has provided both technical and emotional support, not only on this project, but also in my personal and professional growth. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................. 1 LITERATURE REVIEW ...................................................................................................... 3 Social Justice and Community Psychology ............................................................... 3 Citizen Participation ................................................................................................... 3 Social Media, Social Consciousness, and Social Justice .......................................... 9 Social Justice and Tumblr ......................................................................................... 15 PILOT STUDY ...................................................................................................................... 17 A Preliminary Investigation of Hashtag Social Justice on Tumblr ............................ 17 Results of Pilot Study ................................................................................................ 17 Implications of Pilot Study ....................................................................................... 19 PRESENT STUDY ................................................................................................................ 20 METHOD .............................................................................................................................. 21 Participants ................................................................................................................ 21 Context ...................................................................................................................... 21 Procedure ................................................................................................................... 22 Measures .................................................................................................................... 22 Data Analysis Approach ............................................................................................ 22 RESULTS .............................................................................................................................. 24 Number of Posts ......................................................................................................... 24 Number of Users ........................................................................................................ 24 Additional Hashtags Utilized ..................................................................................... 25 vi Accumulation of Notes .............................................................................................. 27 Sentiments about Social Justice ................................................................................. 28 Comparing #Social Justice in the Present Study to the Pilot Study ........................... 29 DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................................ 31 Study Limitations ....................................................................................................... 34 Implications for Future Research and Action ........................................................... 35 REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................... 38 APPENDIX A. BOWLING GREEN STATE UNIVERSITY HUMAN SUBJECTS REVIEW BOARD EXEMPTION LETTER ......................................... 44 APPENDIX B. FIGURES ..................................................................................................... 45 APPENDIX C. TABLES ....................................................................................................... 49 SOCIAL JUSTICE AND CITIZEN PARTICIPATION ON TUMBLR 1 INTRODUCTION Community psychologists have a longstanding commitment to the systematic understanding of social justice issues and citizen participation as they relate to individual well- being and positive social change (Florin & Wandersman, 1990; Kieffer, 1984; Kloos, et al. 2012; Prilleltensky, 2012; Rappaport, 1977; Stone & Levine, 1985; Zimmerman, 2000). Traditional theories of social advocacy emphasize the importance of social consciousness-raising as a critical first step in citizen participation, empowerment, and social action (Hill, Bond, Mulvey, & Terenzio, 2000; Kieffer, 1984; Mulvey, 1988; Prilleltensky, 2012; Weitz, 1982). Theories suggest that individuals’ observation or experience of social oppression can be a catalyst for them to engage in social justice activities and take on social activist roles. However, our understanding of the influence of social media in individuals’ consciousness-raising about social justice issues is in its initial stages. Online communities are becoming more prevalent in people’s lives (Duggan, 2015) and microblogging website platforms can facilitate connections between like-minded individuals around the globe. Microblogs are social networks that allow users to generate and distribute information in posts with self-assigned hashtags identifying the general content. Researchers have acknowledged that microblogs can have a dramatic impact in the public sphere (Graeff, Stempeck, & Zuckerman, 2014; Newman, 2011; Small, 2011; Vitak, et al., 2010) and have begun studying the ways civic participation is changing in the digital era (Bennett, Freelon, & Wells, 2010; Shah, Cho, Eveland & Kwak, 2005; Weinstein, 2014). The microblogging website Tumblr in particular has a reputation for its social justice-oriented community (Hillman, Procyk, & Neustaedter, 2014). However, there remain many questions about the nature of online discourse regarding social justice issues and the impact social media SOCIAL JUSTICE AND CITIZEN PARTICIPATION ON TUMBLR 2 has on civic participation. Relatively little is known about the basic types of social justice discussions that are occurring on social media. Such basic research is fundamental to theories of citizen participation, social action, and individual well-being in a digital world. The present research examines discussions of social justice on the microblogging website known as Tumblr. The primary goal of the study is to describe the frequency and nature of issues labeled by users as involving social justice that are posted on Tumblr over the course of a two- week period and gauge the rate of dissemination of such content among users. SOCIAL JUSTICE AND CITIZEN PARTICIPATION ON TUMBLR 3 LITERATURE REVIEW Social Justice and Community Psychology As a discipline, community psychology is interested in understanding reciprocal relationships between individuals and social systems within a community context.