The advent of new technologies is continually changing the dynamics of political communication, making social media (especially Twitter) a direct linkage between politicians and the public,...Show moreThe advent of new technologies is continually changing the dynamics of political communication, making social media (especially Twitter) a direct linkage between politicians and the public, different from, for instance, TV interviews. Thus, it is generally believed that parties can take advantage of these new channels to spread their messages, and populist Eurosceptic parties are particularly expected to utilize them as a way to expand their support and visibility within the political field. Given this, further considerations could be raised on how these parties use social media. While some may argue that social media acts only as a complementary platform to maximize the reach of proposals, many scholars have pointed out that these parties use social media to make their discourse even more colloquial, mobilizing and radical. The research question to be addressed is: what is the discursive strategy of populist Eurosceptic parties on Twitter compared to the one on TV interviews?Show less
The year 2010 marks the beginning of a series of protests and uprisings in North Africa, which sparked a revolution that Western media would soon refer to as “The Arab Spring Uprisings”. The...Show moreThe year 2010 marks the beginning of a series of protests and uprisings in North Africa, which sparked a revolution that Western media would soon refer to as “The Arab Spring Uprisings”. The protests are mostly conducted by the youth of the MENA region who are discontent with the government. This generation realizes that due to unemployment, high inflation, poverty, human rights abuses and corruption they are caught in a vacuum, with no bright future with progress and evolution of their country and blame this on the Arab dictators. Tunisia and Morocco both experienced the Arab Spring differently in terms of violence by the state, but in both countries the protests are effective and big changes are promised. In Tunisia the Ben Ali Presidency is overthrown, while in Morocco King Mohammed VI remains king. Also, in both countries the desired democracy is established and democratic elections take place. However, the circumstances do not really change the civil lives. Unemployment remains a problem, police violence still occurs, the freedom and human rights are still violated and the rule of law does not change the situation in favour of the community. The frustrated youth seeks new ways to clear the void in their lives. In the same time period, the Islamic State is upcoming and recruits these frustrated youngsters. Especially Tunisian youngsters are susceptible for the promises of the Islamic State, as they are promised a future, with money, women and weapons. The official count of Tunisian foreign fighters is 6.000, while Morocco remains at the bottom of the list of foreign fighters, supplying officially 1.200 foreign fighters. The question is why there is such a big difference in number of supplied foreign fighters between these two countries. Trying to find an answer to this question this thesis inquires if the Arab Spring is the underlying cause. Therefore, this thesis’ research question is How have the results of the Arab Spring caused the extreme flow of frustrated Tunisian youth to the Islamic State, while a similar country as Morocco remains at the bottom of the list of Islamic State’s foreign fighters? The frustration-aggression theory of John Dollard and Robert E. Miller and colleagues is applied to explain the incentive of young Tunisians and Moroccans to go the Islamic State. By analysing the contemporary situation in Tunisia and Morocco in terms of unemployment, state repression and the influence of Saudi Arabia, this thesis concludes that the Arab Spring is the driver for the frustration amongst the youth, leading up to expression of aggression, wherefore the Islamic State provides space to utter it. Tunisia’s institutional failure created by the Arab Spring drives Tunisian youngsters frustrated and they are now either planning new uprisings, or are leaving for the Islamic State. The government is still dealing with the collapse of the institutions, therefore is not able to handle the frustrated youth. Morocco is not left in institutional chaos and can now focus on the terrorist threat, with a strong security system. It can brace the country against the Islamic State. According to this thesis, this is what makes the difference between the foreign fighters’ amount of Tunisia and Morocco.Show less
Abstract: Previous literature on the role of food in the diaspora indicates that social groups communicate their identity to outsiders through culinary culture and traditional recipes. What food is...Show moreAbstract: Previous literature on the role of food in the diaspora indicates that social groups communicate their identity to outsiders through culinary culture and traditional recipes. What food is produced, how it is cooked and with what available ingredients it is prepared has extremely meaningful cultural implications, especially in circumstances of migration, hardship and loss. Social media, however, has profoundly blurred the boundaries of knowledge implicit to social groups and “followers” who do not belong to the community, but who still consume food content online. In a way, social media has brought the traditionally domestic practice of food culture onto a public platform. On this platform, exclusion and praise have faced diaspora communities in relation to their cuisine in the food influencer community. Publicity, sponsorship and an international audience have changed how the Palestinian diaspora relates to its identity-marking food practices.Show less
De opkomst van het internet en specifiek sociale media hebben voor veranderingen gezorgd binnen de journalistiek. Door middel van het internet kan het publiek steeds makkelijker in contact komen...Show moreDe opkomst van het internet en specifiek sociale media hebben voor veranderingen gezorgd binnen de journalistiek. Door middel van het internet kan het publiek steeds makkelijker in contact komen met journalisten. Ook ieders mogelijkheid om vrijelijk op het internet te kunnen publiceren heeft het journalistieke werk veranderd. Bovendien hebben de journalist en diens organisatie niet langer een monopolie op de verspreiding van het nieuws. Als gevolg van deze veranderingen is de networked journalist ontstaan. De traditionele journalistieke structuur maakte plaats voor openheid en interactiviteit die het internet biedt, hoewel de kernkarakteristieken van de journalistiek – waaronder haar maatschappelijke functie en het analyseren en filteren van nieuws – bleven bestaan. Journalist en burger werken toenemend samen aan het journalistieke product. Het sociale mediaplatform Twitter is een voorbeeld van hoe dit networked journalism zich kan manifesteren. Het platform biedt de mogelijkheid voor journalist en publiek om makkelijk in contact te komen en meningen uit te wisselen. Maatschappelijke thema’s worden op Twitter vaak besproken en bediscussieerd. Het thema ‘migratie’ is vanaf de zomer van 2015 sterk vertegenwoordigd op de publieke en nieuwsagenda, en roept ook op Twitter veel reacties van gebruikers op. Voor dit onderzoek zijn de tweets van elf Nederlandse journalisten die berichten over migratie geanalyseerd, evenals de reacties die zij krijgen op Twitter. Vervolgens zijn deze elf journalisten geïnterviewd over hoe zij omgaan met de verschillende soorten reacties, of de journalisten deze tweets nuttig achten en of de tweets gebruikt worden voor het journalistieke werk. Dit verkennende onderzoek brengt daarmee twee zaken in kaart: enerzijds categoriseert het de soort reacties die journalisten die berichten over migratie krijgen op Twitter, anderzijds categoriseert dit onderzoek de manier waarop deze journalisten omgaan met Twitterreacties.Show less
Social Networking Sites (SNS) can be valuable tools to connect people with shared interests worldwide. However, SNS screentime has increased drastically over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic....Show moreSocial Networking Sites (SNS) can be valuable tools to connect people with shared interests worldwide. However, SNS screentime has increased drastically over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. Excessive use of SNS has been associated with adverse mental health outcomes in previous studies. Contrary to the majority of studies on SNS, which usually rely on correlations, this study used an experimental approach to examine the relationship between SNS use, depression, and anxiety. Fear of missing out (FOMO) was also investigated as a potential mediating factor. To manipulate SNS screentime a multifaceted intervention was built based on results from previous experimental studies and input from a focus group (N = 3). A convenience sample of first year psychology students (N = 122) had been collected and split into three groups. The intervention group was instructed to follow the smartphone use intervention, while participants in the active-control group received instructions with little expected influence on screentime. Both groups were instructed to reduce their smartphone use as much as possible for two weeks. The waitlist-control group was told their intervention would begin in two weeks. SNS screentime, anxiety, depression and FOMO were assessed pre- and post- intervention. The results show significantly lower post-intervention SNS screentime in both intervention groups but not in the waitlist-control group. Depression scores were significantly lower in the intervention group but not for the active-control or waitlist-control condition. No significant group differences for anxiety were found. The mediation analysis obtained no significant results for FOMO as a potential mediator variable. Overall, the findings suggest participants reduced their smartphone usage regardless of the received set of rules. However, only participants in the intervention group showed fewer depressive symptoms. Limitations and suggestions for future research on SNS use were discussed.Show less
The use of 3D models has steadily increased within archaeology, leading to the adoption of many 3D digital data acquisition techniques and 3D quality assessments. Yet the problem remains of how 3D...Show moreThe use of 3D models has steadily increased within archaeology, leading to the adoption of many 3D digital data acquisition techniques and 3D quality assessments. Yet the problem remains of how 3D models and 3D file formats can be opened 10 or 20+ years after they have been generated. 3D Data preservation for the long-term is a predicament that current archaeological digital archives are dealing with. Correct preservation has to consider the purpose of current 3D models and what 3D models can offer for future research aspects. Legal, institutional and technical aspects influence preservation as well and combined with the digital archive and user perspectives, form the stakeholders of 3D data preservation. The used 3D data of this thesis are photogrammetric-generated 3D models of Uruk pottery of Jebel Aruda. The focus of this thesis is to demonstrate how existing object-based archaeological 3D data should be converted and presented within a dataset to consider the requirements of all the stakeholders. This thesis presents a workflow for generating a dataset of object-based archaeological 3D models for EASY. EASY is a certified digital archiving system in the Netherlands that assumes responsibility for long-term preservation of research data and accessibility of digital objects. The workflow only addresses stakeholder requirements that are essential for digitally preserving 3D data for the long-term. This workflow is assessed on its adherence to the FAIR principles, on the fit for purpose of 3D file formats for object-based archaeological 3D models and lastly, the required tools and applicability of Free and Open-Source Software (FOSS). The workflow consists of four steps with the first step addressing ethical considerations and the second step directory structuring and file naming. The third step involves importing the original 3D file in Blender and exporting the file to six preservation recommended 3D file formats. The last step of the workflow is to generate three levels of documentation using metadata and paradata. Three evident results emerged from this thesis. The research indicates that of the six recommended 3D file formats, the combination of the FBX and OBJ file formats provide the most value for preserving object-based archaeological 3D models. The research also suggests that the generated 3D dataset not completely adheres to the FAIR principles, but that elements which are not fully addressed do not inherently alter the outcome of the interoperability or reusability. Lastly, the thesis has shown that it is possible to generate a preservation-ready 3D dataset using only FOSS. Although archaeological and preservation specifications can be researched further, object-based archaeological 3D datasets can be generated in a cost-free and transparent production.Show less
In conflict literature, much attention has been given to the relation between food prices and conflict, as well as the effects of climate change on conflict and food security, in an attempt to...Show moreIn conflict literature, much attention has been given to the relation between food prices and conflict, as well as the effects of climate change on conflict and food security, in an attempt to explain civilian victimisation through food security. However, the effect of crop pests and diseases on violence against civilians has not been studied, despite the large proportion of worldwide crop loss caused by these factors. This study theorises that these pests pressure the local food supply and thus force armed groups to use violence in order to obtain their necessary resources from the local population. This results in the hypothesis that the occurrence of plant pests in an area increases the risk of violence against civilians by non-state actors. Specifically, this study focuses on the effects of locust swarms in four African countries: Somalia, Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya. The hypothesis is quantitatively tested using both OLS regression and negative binomial regression. A positive correlation between locust swarm occurrence and violence against civilians is found, which holds up against both fixed effects and specific control variables. This new finding suggests that the occurrence of locust swarms shortens the time horizons for cooperation between rebels and the local population, incentivising rebels to quickly gain resources using violence rather than engaging in long-term, more peaceful cooperation.Show less
