Virtual communities

The Impact of Short Video Addiction on Self-identity: Mediating Roles of Self-esteem and Appearance Anxiety

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Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the attributes of female self-identity, and investigate the correlation between addiction to short videos, self-esteem, objectification of female content, internalization of beauty ideals, and self-identity. The goal is to develop a psychological framework that enhances our comprehension of the self-identity of contemporary Chinese women. Methodology: This study employed an online survey with a convenience sampling approach to gather responses from 400 female short video users from four most popular Chinese social media platforms: Sina Weibo, Xiaohongshu, Douban and WeChat, the Chinese equivalents of Twitter, Instagram, Reddit and WhatsApp respectively. Results: The results suggest that (1) self-esteem played a significant role in mediating the relationship between short video addiction and self-identity; (2) the chain mediating effect of internalisation of beauty ideals and self-esteem was not statistically significant, and (3) the chain mediating effect of objectification of female content and self-esteem was statistically significant. Therefore, the greater the short video addiction, the lower self-esteem, the deeper the appearance anxiety, and thus the higher the likelihood that the individual would not identify with themselves. The results provide a theoretical foundation for gaining a deeper understanding of the factors that influence females’ self-identity. Simultaneously, it offers new ideas for enhancing women’s self-identity. In addition, previous studies on women’s appearance anxiety have given less attention to self-esteem and self-identity. This study, however, looks more extensively into both aspects, so broadening the investigation of the factors impacting women’s self-identity.

The Importance of Self-Development Podcasts to Improving Mental Health in Generation Z 

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Objectives: Since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a global rise in mental health issues within
Generation Z who has grown up in a digital age where social media platforms have become an integral
part of their lives. Self-development podcasts can be a valuable resource for those, who are seeking
support and guidance to improve their mental health and well-being on various platforms. However,
there is a shortage of mental health professionals leveraging podcasts as a valuable tool for
mental health education and support in the Vietnamese context. Therefore, this article takes the
pioneering step by exploring the importance of self-development podcasts to improve mental health
in Vietnamese Gen Z. Methodology: The research employs qualitative research, and data was collected
through semi-structured interviews with nine content creators who produce self-development podcast
programs in Vietnam. Results: The results highlight the role of self-development podcasts in
improving mental health among Vietnamese Gen Z by analyzing how it is consumed and revealing
the multifaceted impact of self-development podcasts on mental health among Vietnamese Gen Z.

Celebrity Worship, Social Media Use, and Mental Health

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Over the past two decades, social media use has become increasingly popular including its use by celebrities. Related to this, research has indicated that a minority of individuals may develop a psy- chological dependence on celebrities that can lead to obsessions and diminished functioning. Alt- hough research has also shown that worshipping celebrities can have positive consequences, re- search has also shown that there is an association between the pathological aspects of celebrity wor- ship and poor mental health such as high anxiety, increased depression, high stress levels and poor body image. Moreover, there appears to be evidence that pathological celebrity worship has in- creased over the past two decades and one of the primary reasons for this may be increased social media use by both celebrities and their fans.

“Translation by fans for fans”: organization and practices in a Spanish-language community of scanlation

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Figura 1. Captura de Shiro mentre neteja una pàgina.

Objective: To describe the organization and literacy practices of a Spanish-speaking scanlation community (a group of fans who collaborate on the Internet to scan, translate and distribute mangas) by examining the community members’ roles and activities, the online environments in which they work and the resources they use.

Methodology: The study employed cyberethnographic techniques to create and analyse a database comprising 97 videos of onscreen activity, 32 transcripts of comments drawn from Facebook, blogs, forums and chats, 96 scanned manga chapters and, finally, six semi-structured interviews.

Results: The scanlation community in question assigned its members specific roles (of cleaning, translating, typesetting or correcting) and the members worked in a variety of online environments (email, Facebook, forums and chats). Members interacted to negotiate the development of projects, troubleshoot and exchange knowledge and expertise. Their literacy practices were regulated by the shared culture of scanlation communities as these exist worldwide, evidenced in the existence of a set of ethical standards, a common repertory of tools (translators, dictionaries, inventories of fonts, etc.) and a series of specific, socially valued semiotic practices (such as maintaining Japanese honorific suffixes in translations). This sophisticated level of organization challenges the notion that the cultural products of these vernacular and plurilingual practices are merely the result of their individual members’ creativity or of the spontaneous collaboration between them.