Focus on research: AdPR professor studies early adolescents' use of social and traditional media

Associate Professor Maria Len-Rios studies
adolescents' media use patterns

As part of a new initiative, the Advertising and Public Relations department will highlight research led by our own faculty and staff. In this article, Associate Professor Maria Len-Rios studies early adolescents' use of media.

Maria E. Len-Rios, Hilary E. Hughes, Laura McKee, Henry N. Young (2015). Early adolescents as publics: A national survey of teens with social media accounts, their media use preferences, parental mediation, and perceived Internet literacy. ScienceDirect.com.

How do you get through to a 13-year-old? That’s not a purely rhetorical question. In fact, a team from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication recently conducted a national survey of early adolescents – recently published on ScienceDirect.com – to identify trends and patterns in their use of both social and traditional media.

The audience in question consists of sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders, generally ages 11-13, both male and female – a population with some $75 billion in annual spending power and strong brand loyalty potential. In other words, a valuable commodity that public relations professionals should know how to reach. The study found that early adolescents spend more time watching television than any other medium, including social – implying that communicators shouldn’t give up on traditional media as a way of reaching young people.

Like their older brothers and sisters, early adolescents tend to multi-task with both social and traditional media, but are more likely to read (or watch) social media content than to create their own. This suggests that PR professionals may have more difficulty generating quality interactions with this audience, which might not yet be ready for a higher level of engagement. As they grow older – and their level of access to social media grows – early adolescents gradually increase their online use. Drivers may include greater access at school – eighth-graders are more likely to have access at school than sixth- and seventh-graders – and a gradual lifting of parental limits.

Parental limits, however, have their own limitations when it comes to influencing early adolescent behavior – suggesting that in some cases, children may be tweeting and Instagramming without their parents’ knowledge. At the same time, limits on social access may increase the use of traditional media by this age group.

To view the full article, click here.

Written by Tripp Cagle.

Focus on research: AdPR professor studies social media discussions of serious diseases

Associate Professor of advertising
Itai Himelboim researches social media
discussions of serious diseases

As part of a new initiative, the Advertising and Public Relations department will highlight research led by our own faculty and staff. In this article, Associate Professor Itai Himelboim studies the mood of social media postings discussing serious disease:

Gall Myrick, J., Holton, A., Himelboim, I., Brad, L. (2015). #StupidCancer: Exploring a typology of social support in an online interactive environment. Health Communication.

Social media postings about serious diseases, such as cancer, are more likely to express feelings of hope, as opposed to negative emotions such as fear and distress. That’s one of the findings of a new study recently published in the Journal of Health Communication. According to co-author Itai Himelboim, associate professor of advertising at the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, cancer patients, as well as their friends and family, are more likely to express positive emotions in their social media conversations, perhaps as a way of “fighting back” against the disease and showing support for those afflicted.

Posts expressing negative emotions, on the other hand, are less likely to be shared or retweeted, suggesting that “the norm for discussions in a cancer community may be to remain as optimistic as possible,” according to the article. The study also found that information sharing is widespread among those posting about cancer, with 61 percent of tweets in the sample containing hyperlinks to outside sources. Meanwhile, an interesting benefit of sharing support via social media may be the ability to establish a broader community of users who may or may not have a direct connection to the cancer experience.

The purpose of the study was to explore a new typology, or categorization, of social support interactions in an online environment. The study distinguishes between interactions that offer helpful information as opposed to those that provide strictly emotional support, both for those who transmit the posts and those who receive.

To view the full article, click here.

Written by Tripp Cagle.

Grady's Social Media Certificate Benefits Students, Professors and Business Owners

The University of Georgia is making it possible for students, professors and small business owners alike to become experts in the world of social media. A new UGA-developed course, Using Social Media to Build Business, provides a roadmap for successfully integrating social programs into your business strategies.

Christa C. Bell, recent graduate of Grady's Using Social Media to Build Business Certificate  

This program is an online certificate course developed by the Department of Advertising and Public Relations in UGA’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. The certificate is designed so that people of all ages, and in all walks of life are able to progress at their own pace. At any time, you can engage in a dialog by email with your mentor.

Christa C. Bell is a professor at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana, who recently graduated with a certificate from this program. Professor Bell has utilized her knowledge learned from this course to better lead the campus’ PRSSA chapter. She was able to learn in-depth, practical information about using social media effectively to win business. Bell was able to grow and develop her skills, and because of this program, her students are also being benefitted.

We live in the era of the new “social consumer”, and these consumers want to hear from your business. Register today to take part in this learning experience provided by the AdPR Department of UGA’s Grady College.

Social Media Certificate Registration: http://www.georgiacenter.uga.edu/courses/business-and-leadership/using-social-media

Online reputation management: A look inside Dr. Russell's Class

A sample tweet from the students of Dr. Karen Russell's course
in online reputation management

ADPR 5990, or Online Reputation Management, takes aim at training young advertising and public relations professionals the art of crafting an online presence and creating strategic, meaningful content. With creative teaching tactics (i.e. encouraging live-Tweeting during class time) and social media savvy, Dr. Karen Russell prepares her students for the future of the AdPR world.

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​​What inspired a class designed like this?

KR: "Online reputation management is only one aspect of public relations, but it's something that should concern every brand and even every individual. Even if you want to bury your head like an ostrich, other people can create a reputation for you online. Recognizing this, the department decided to open up the class university wide, and each time I teach it, we get a bigger crowd (175 this semester)."

Can you describe how the real-time Tweets work in your classroom?

KR: "Each student who chose to participate works with a team to live Tweet one class period. The class account, @RussellClass, has nearly 350 followers, a few of whom tune into the class every Tuesday and Thursday. The students usually say it's fun, although for some, it's their first Twitter experience so it's hard work.

"The benefits for students are that they have a record of what was said in class, and they get to practice live Tweeting an event and working as a team on the same account. From my perspective, I can see what students thought was important in a lecture or what resonated most with them. With a class this large, it's hard to find ways to assess social media use, and this is a fun way to do that. All students in the class have to create a LinkedIn profile and a blog."

What are the other important aspects of your course and online reputation management?

KR: "It's not all fun! We spent three days on measurement and ROI and have another block coming up on Search Engine Optimization… although I try to make the serious stuff fun, too."

New Faculty Spotlight: Jhih-Syuan (Elaine) Lin

Jhih-Syuan (Elaine) Lin

What is your new position at Grady? Assistant professor of advertising. 

What classes (if any) are you teaching this year? JRMC 8130 Special Topics in Consumer Psychology.

Past academic positions: I earned my doctorate degree from the University of Texas at Austin in August 2012.

What are your research interests and why? I have developed keen interest in areas of interactive advertising, media management, and consumer psychology.

As advertisers and marketers nowadays have tried to bond various media to carry/emphasize the same message throughout the integrated marketing plans, a cross-platform marketing communication needs to be further investigated and developed to engage consumers and optimize branding efforts. Thus, I have done studies about brand placement on TV program websites, food-related advergames that target children, and branded mobile applications that aim to enhance brand experiences.

For media management, I have studied how TV networks utilize SNSs to leverage branding opportunities and to improve communication with fans. Also, from the media psychology standpoint, I am interested in knowing what forms and to what extent audience feel engaged with media content. And, how social media can help optimize multichannel brand communications for both conventional and media brands.

As for the area of consumer psychology, I found it fascinating to study consumer self-concept and identity and the role of consumers’ psychological disposition (i.e., commitment) in determining branding outcomes, especially in the context of consumer-brand relationships. And, I am also interested in understanding the scope and challenges of international advertising and marketing through a cross-cultural lens.

Are there any projects/publications you're working on that you can share a little about at this time? While existing literature describes strong brand relationships along several dimensions, my recent research sheds light on the identity perspective of brand relationships through the lens of identity fusion, aiming to understand the extent to which consumers incorporate brands into their self-perceptions. Specifically, this ongoing project investigates the nature and effects of consumer identity fusion and its motivational consequences following brand transgressions.

What are you most looking forward to while you're at Grady/UGA? I believe Grady is a wonderful environment for me to grow and further develop my research. I am looking forward to working with the faculty members and students here at Grady.

Dr. Jay Hamilton research considers the implications of user-generated advertising

Dr. Jay Hamilton, an associate professor in the department of advertising and public relations, presented a paper titled “Selling to Ourselves; User-Generated Advertising,” at the National Communication Association annual convention in November in New Orleans. The session, titled “Voices for Sale: Monetizing Social Media,” was part of the Critical and Cultural Studies Division of the conference.

Hamilton’s paper focused on a study that investigated the development and forms of user-generated commercials. Hamilton found that agencies can utilize user-generated commercials to help supplement agency needs for research and public relations through user engagement. However, user-generated materials can pose challenges for the advertising profession because of the involvement of non-advertising agency personnel. Some examples cited in the paper include those for consulting companies such as Giant Hydra and Zooppa, which claim to mobilize the creative power of the public to make relevant and effective advertising campaigns. In addition, the paper also highlights the brand Doritos and its “Crash the Super Bowl” promotion that generated a fan-made commercial contest.

For more information on Jay Hamilton and his research, click here.