As China’s internet has matured, from its initial web-based origins through innovative ‘2.0’ and ‘3.0’ innovations, so too have the community sentiments that criss-cross the People’s Republic of... Show moreAs China’s internet has matured, from its initial web-based origins through innovative ‘2.0’ and ‘3.0’ innovations, so too have the community sentiments that criss-cross the People’s Republic of China’s networked society. A perennial issue has been the question of how Chinese nationhood has been constructed and reproduced through digital technologies and how the evolving affordances of internet technology have contributed to China’s many nationalisms. This short essay reflects on this history. It discusses how early internet forums and blogs allowed users to coordinate their sense of Chineseness, how these processes later changed when communication moved to widely adopted microblogging platforms and what we can expect of the future, as China’s media environments shift their focus towards short-messaging applications and video-sharing platforms. What will happen to Chinese nationalisms as China’s platformisation enters its next phases? Show less
This Special Issue of Global Cooperation Research – A Quarterly Magazine provides a set of provocative essays on the hotly contested subject of ‘Unity and Diversity in Global Internet Governance’.... Show moreThis Special Issue of Global Cooperation Research – A Quarterly Magazine provides a set of provocative essays on the hotly contested subject of ‘Unity and Diversity in Global Internet Governance’. In a word: how far do we want the global internet to be singular and unified or plural and fragmented? The contributing authors enter this debate from different parts of the world (Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe), different academic disciplines (international relations, law, politics, sociology), different theoretical positions (from liberal to postcolonial), and different substantive problems (from blockchain to misinformation). Show less
This article undertakes an empirical investigation of the relationship between structural inequalities and legitimacy beliefs in global governance. Normative theory often emphasises inequality as a... Show moreThis article undertakes an empirical investigation of the relationship between structural inequalities and legitimacy beliefs in global governance. Normative theory often emphasises inequality as a major source of injustice in global politics, but we lack empirical research that examines the implications of inequality for legitimacy in concrete situations of global governance. This paper draws on large mixed-method survey evidence regarding inequality perceptions and legitimacy beliefs at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), a key site of global Internet governance that has given particular priority to issues of diversity and inclusion. Our analysis arrives at four main findings. First, participants in ICANN do perceive substantial structural power asymmetries and often find them to be problematic. Second, persons on the perceived subordinate side of these power stratifications tend to observe larger inequalities and to find them more problematic than persons on the perceived dominant side. However, third, these perceptions and concerns about inequality almost never associate with legitimacy beliefs towards ICANN, even among people in structurally subordinated positions and among people who express the greatest worries regarding power inequalities. Fourth, in forming legitimacy perceptions, participants at ICANN generally prioritise other aspects of institutional purpose, procedure and performance, unconnected with inequality. This lack of a relationship between perceptions of inequality and legitimacy beliefs suggests that, however sympathetic policy elites at ICANN might be towards greater equality in principle, they are unlikely to give it precedence in practice. Show less
Aim: Media use may strengthen parents' capacities to deal with parenting issues. This study examined which factors are associated with media use for parenting information.Design: Cross-sectional... Show moreAim: Media use may strengthen parents' capacities to deal with parenting issues. This study examined which factors are associated with media use for parenting information.Design: Cross-sectional data of 658 parents of children aged 0-8 years, gathered in the CIKEO cohort study in the Netherlands, were analysed.Methods: Multivariable logistic regression models were used to examine which factors were associated with media use for parenting information.Results: The mean age of the participants was 33.8 years (SD = 5.0); 94.7% were mothers; 77.4% used media for parenting information. Parents with more questions or concerns (OR: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.23, 1.59), and parents who received parenting information from their social contacts (OR: 5.57, 95% CI: 3.22, 9.61), had higher odds of media use for parenting information. Older parents (OR: 0.95, 95% CI: 0.91, 1.00), and parents of older children (OR: 0.84, 95% CI: 0.74, 0.95), had lower odds of media use for parenting information. Show less
Background Only a minority of dialysis patients with depressive symptoms are diagnosed and receive treatment. Depressive symptoms are highly prevalent in this population and are associated with... Show moreBackground Only a minority of dialysis patients with depressive symptoms are diagnosed and receive treatment. Depressive symptoms are highly prevalent in this population and are associated with adverse clinical outcomes. Underlying factors for this undertreatment may be the lack of evidence for the safety and effectivity of antidepressant medication, the reluctance of patients to adhere to antidepressant medication, the lack of mental healthcare provision in somatic healthcare environments and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) related physical limitations that complicate face-to-face psychotherapy. Guided Internet-based self-help treatment has demonstrated to be effective for depressive symptoms in other chronic patient populations and may overcome these barriers. The aim of this study is to investigate the (cost) effectiveness of a guided Internet-based self-help intervention for symptoms of depression in dialysis patients. Methods This study is a cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT) that investigates the effectiveness of a 5-week Internet-based self-help Problem Solving Therapy (PST) for depressive symptoms in dialysis patients. Depressive symptoms will be measured using the Beck Depression Inventory - second edition (BDI-II), with a cut-off score of >= 10. We aim to include 206 dialysis patients with depressive symptoms who will be cluster randomized to the intervention or the Care as Usual (CAU) control group. Secondary outcomes will include anxiety symptoms, quality of life, economic costs and clinical outcomes, such as inflammatory factors and hair cortisol levels. Assessments will take place at baseline (T0), 2 weeks after intervention (T1) and 6 months (T2), 12 months (T3) and 18 months (T4) after intervention. The control group will be measured at the same time points. Analysis will be based on the intention-to-treat principle. Mixed models will be used to assess the changes within each condition between pre-treatment and post-treatment. Discussion If demonstrated to be (cost) effective, Internet-based PST will offer new possibilities to treat dialysis patients with depressive symptoms and to improve their quality of care. Show less
It has been argued that the Internet presents numerous new opportunities for crime, including homicide. So far, empirical scholarly research in this domain is rather limited. In order to discover... Show moreIt has been argued that the Internet presents numerous new opportunities for crime, including homicide. So far, empirical scholarly research in this domain is rather limited. In order to discover how perpetrators have used the Internet in the homicides they have committed, we conducted an international newspaper search (2006–2017). Based on this analysis, we identify five distinct types of Internet use in homicides, namely Internet as an encyclopedia, Internet as a platform, Internet as a trigger, Internet as a market place, and Internet as a meeting place. Our findings indicate that these types do not significantly differ from key characteristics of homicides in general to the degree that they constitute unique forms of homicide. Rather, Internet-related homicides constitute a replication, or facilitation of already existing forms of homicide assisted through new technological means. Show less
Part of a series of digital guest lectures from Leiden University scholars for use in secondary school education. For more information, see:https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/gastlessen/cursussen... Show morePart of a series of digital guest lectures from Leiden University scholars for use in secondary school education. For more information, see:https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/gastlessen/cursussen/digitale-gastlessen/artificial-intelligence Show less
Witlox, M.; Kraaij, V.; Garnefski, N.; De Waal, M.W.M.; Smit, F.; Hoencamp, E.; ... ; Spinhoven, P. 2018
Anxiety is among the most prevalent and disabling mental health problems in older adults. Few older adults with mild to moderately severe anxiety symptoms receive adequate interventions, putting... Show moreAnxiety is among the most prevalent and disabling mental health problems in older adults. Few older adults with mild to moderately severe anxiety symptoms receive adequate interventions, putting them at risk for developing anxiety disorders, depression, and various somatic problems. Effective, low-threshold interventions should be developed. Blended care, in which a web-based intervention is combined with a limited amount of face-to-face contacts with a mental healthcare counselor at the general practice, is a promising option. The online self-help intervention “Living to the Full”—an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) intervention—has been proven to reduce depression and anxiety in several patient groups, but has not yet been investigated in older adults. The aim of this study is to evaluate the (cost-)effectiveness of a blended form of “Living to the Full” in reducing anxiety symptoms in adults aged 55 to 75 years. Furthermore, moderators and mediators of the treatment effect are investigated. Show less
Witlox, M.; Kraaij, V.; Garnefski, N.; Waal, M.W.M. de; Smit, F.; Hoencamp, E.; ... ; Spinhoven, P. 2018
Previous regulatory models for the online environment have been designed with a foundation and premise that users are fictional Homo Economicus – beings capable of optimizing all available... Show morePrevious regulatory models for the online environment have been designed with a foundation and premise that users are fictional Homo Economicus – beings capable of optimizing all available information into order to make sound decisions. Sometime these decisions will be rational and predictable. However, on other occasions users will make irrational, yet predictable mistakes; other times those errors will be unpredictably irrational. To overcome these shortcomings in rational economist models, behavioural economists like Daniel Kahneman, Amos Tversky and Richard Thaler and lawyers like Cass Sunstein have advocated using lessons from psychology to help people make better decisions. By deploying 'choice’ architecture to overcome less than rational decisions, Homo Sapiens can be 'nudged' to making better choices. Building from this foundation, our paper inquires what role big data may play in developing better regulation. For example, can insights from big data help to overcome erroneous assumptions that regulators may make about the way users rationally behave in online environments? What potential is there for harnessing ‘big data’ to provide insights into user behaviour? Can big data be used as an additional tool by lawmakers to improve regulatory settlements? Show less
After observing the growth of the Indian and Filipino Business Processing Outsourcing sectors, Kenyan policy-makers and managers made substantial investments in international internet... Show moreAfter observing the growth of the Indian and Filipino Business Processing Outsourcing sectors, Kenyan policy-makers and managers made substantial investments in international internet infrastructure and BPO marketing campaigns. While observers continue to discuss the sector in terms of its international work opportunities, in recent years the sector has increasingly focused on contracts sourced from Kenyan and other East African clients. The government has also refocused efforts on attracting international BPO companies. This domestic turn signals both the difficulties of gaining access to overseas work due to the power of incumbents and the increasing use of the internet and ICT-enabled automation within Kenyan organizations. In effect, better connectivity has enabled a two-way globalisation of services: Kenyan BPO companies have been able to access some international work opportunities but the connectivity has also contributed to the inflow of international service companies and business practices into Kenya.The conclusion examines what these shifts might entail for the sector and its workers in future [pre-publication draft]. Show less
