ECREA16-Abstract

Thursday, November 10

0 9 : 0 0 – 1 0 : 3 0

da-setting power; popular TV shows for their potential to attract and entertain large audiences; and popular online items (e.g., UGC videos, online satire)

that have been shared a lot via social media. Method: 1,739 respondents, representative for the German population aged 18–69, participated in an online

survey in the first week of December 2014.They indicated whether they remembered seven news items and had at least partly seen sevenTV shows and ten

online items from the previous week. Media use was recorded for linear television, radio, printed newspapers, printed magazines, the Internet in general,

and social network sites. For Facebook, the most popular SNS in Germany (Busemann, 2013), frequency of use as well as size and heterogeneity of a user’s

network of contacts within the platformwas recorded. Results: Frequently reading newspapers is associated with remembering more news, while heavy TV

watching increases the number of TV shows retained. Using the Internet in general is only slightly related to awareness of news, but has no relationship to

the other two types of contents. Using SNS leads to higher awareness of online items and, to a lesser degree, more TV shows. The structure of an individual’s

network (e.g., on Facebook) appears to have two-fold effects: A large network of contacts within the platform increases the number of online contents that

users are aware of, but slightly decreases the number of news retained. Discussion: While newspapers and television use increase the number of news and

shows people remember, respectively, the results for online use are mixed. Using SNS is associated with higher awareness of current online items, but for

Facebook users, also less awareness of news. This could be grounds for a loss of social cohesion, as strongly relying on such platforms for information and

entertainment could lead to a smaller common denominator of current topics with other people.

PP 023

“Safe Havens”. Online Peer Grief Support and Emotion Regulation in Coping with the Loss of a Close Relative

K. Döveling

, Y. Hård af Segerstad

, D. Kasperowski

University of Leipzig, Dptm. For Empirical Research on Communication and Media, Leipzig, Germany

University of Gothenburg, Department of Applied IT, Sweden

Linguistics and Theory of Science University of Gothenburg, Department of Philosophy, Sweden

The loss of a close relative can be a devastating experience, sometimes plunging mourners into deep and intense grief. Furthermore, in most Western soci‑

eties, a cultural avoidance of talking about death limits the possibilities for coping and adaptation (cf. Brotherson and Soderquist, 2002). It is here, where

social media provide new opportunities for sharing and coping, enabling support and aiding in emotion regulation The overall aim of the present study was

to analyse and compare international research findings from Germany and Sweden in terms of coping resources and emotion regulation in different online

peer grief-support communities. More specifically, what differences or similarities exist? Can such differences and similarities be traced to types of loss, age

of mourner, affordances of various online environment or norms for grieving and emotion regulation? Are there more general patterns or traits to be found

transcending specific online communities? The study compared current the usage of five different online grief-support communities in Germany (4) and

Sweden (1), using both qualitative and quantitative methods. The German data set focused on four different specifically designed bereavement networks,

addressing different kinds of mourners. These were examined qualitatively as well as quantitatively in a two-step content analysis (N postings = 1032),

generating insight into online-shared grieving processes. The Swedish data set focused on a closed group on Facebook for bereaved parents. Data consisted

of a survey (N=54) and semi structured interviews (N=4) with members in the community, as well as continuous observation of patterns of interaction and

content analysis of postings in the group. Despite differences in the compared communities’composition, types of loss and affordances, as well as different

methodological approaches, a common pattern of coping and support emerged. Users in both Germany and Sweden expressed a lack of social support or

understanding of their needs offline. A common underlying need to communicate with peers who share similar loss and experience was emerged. Online

support communities need to be understood as important resources for coping with grief and emotion regulation. The communities seem to complement

and compensate for the lack of social support and insufficiency of the health care system by providing constant, immediate support from a large number

of peers. By sharing their thoughts and emotions online, members learn vital aspects of coping with grief, and engage in active emotion regulation. Mourn‑

ers also receive practical advice for everyday situations and on more philosophical, existential matters. In such a way, the communities offer safe havens

in which the members can express their grief and all emotions involved. In both the German and the Swedish communities, data show that over time

mourners evolve from ”takers”of support to ”givers”within their respective communities. Furthermore, the communities offer possibilities for the members

to compare experiences, which seems to be a prerequisite for learning to cope with grief and emotion regulation. The implications of this study for both

bereaved individuals and practitioners in health care are discussed.

PP 024

Autistic Digital Lives in Belgium: Lhe Importance of Comprehending the Use of Digital Media by People with Autism

D. Antunes

, A. Dhoest

University of Antwerp, Department of Communication Studies, Antwerp, Belgium

People on the Autism Spectrum are marked by impairments in social interaction as well as restrictive behaviours and interests. As a consequence of these

characteristics, digital media appear as an empowering tool for these people, who can present a variety of challenges and strengths according to their place

on the spectrum. Digital media not only mediate social interaction, making it more familiar to people with autism, but also allow them to form communities

and share their mutual interests, turning what could be disabling into advantages. In Belgium, research involving the socio-cultural aspects of the condition

barely exist. As so, this work presents an exploratory and bibliographic study of the relevance of comprehending the social aspects of autism in Belgium

through digital platforms, emphasising the use of digital ethnography as a participatory methodology and addressing other research about the subject. It

also shows the importance of considering the peculiarities of the different contexts in Belgium, Flanders and the French language community. The impor‑

tance of studying digital disability practices according to their socio-cultural location is strongly stressed by Stein-Sparvieri (2012), whose work shows that

the use of digital media by people with disability changes according to the regional context: in places where disability laws are stronger, people tend to use

digital media to discuss questions related to community, the social construction of disability and identity politics, while in regions where basic rights and

accessibility are issues, digital practices focus on limitations and economical aspects. Though Belgium is a relatively small country, its socio-cultural and

linguistic division creates two different perspectives with different policies, which make for an interesting comparison. For instance, Cinzia Tolfo, president