Pierre Ratinaud

Les médias et l'opinion- Eléments théoriques et méthodologiques pour une analyse du débat sur l'identité nationale

The Media and Public Opinion - Theoretical and Methodological Analysis of the Debate on National Identity: This article deals with the “great debate on national identity” initiated by the Ministry of Immigration, Integration, National Identity and Mutually-Supportive Development in the winter of 2009-2010. Using the theory of framing (Bateson, 1972; Entman, 1993; Chong and Druckman, 2007), it seeks to identify the relationship between permeability and public debate as it is shown on the Web and the media coverage of the latter. To do this, a crossed lexicometric analysis of two corpora was done: on one hand, the 18,240 contributions posted on the dedicated ministerial site; on the other, the 1,436 press articles published from 25 October to 2 December 2009. A descending hierarchical classification was done with the Iramuteq software and identified, by their lexicon, places of permeability between personal and media frameworks in the apprehension of the debate, but also the specific universes of discourse to one or other corpora. We present them here in a detailed manner while proposing explanatory approaches of their dynamics.

The Charlie Hebdo Attacks on Twitter: A Comparative Analysis of a Political Controversy in English and French:

In this article, we propose an original method combining large-scale network and lexicometric analysis to link identifiable communities of Twitter users with the main discursive themes they used in the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris, France in 2015. We used this method to compare tweets and user networks in French and in English. We observed that the majority of the users who tweeted about Charlie Hebdo were people without any particular affiliation, who were shocked by the attacks and immediately expressed themselves through emotionally charged messages. But rather quickly their proportion decreased and they participated less in politically polarizing discussions. On the other hand, we found that smaller, highly politicized, and polarized groups had similar attitudes toward the events: they were less engaged immediately after the attacks in emotional expression of sympathy and shock, but they participated vividly in the following days in polemical discussions or engaged themes. Other findings include the central position of mainstream media and the existence of groups of users that aggregated on the basis of nationality. More generally, our results show clearly that even the most dramatic events such as a terrorist attack with innocent victims do not produce homogeneous reactions online. Rather, political engagement and cultural dispositions are keys to understand different attitudes on Twitter.

Examination of previously published data to identify patterns in the social representation of “Loud music” in young adults across countries

Purpose: The current study was aimed at understanding the patterns in the social representation of loud music reported by young adults in different countries. Materials and Methods: The study included a sample of 534 young adults (18–25 years) from India, Iran, Portugal, United Kingdom, and United States. Participants were recruited using a convince sampling, and data were collected using the free association task. Participants were asked to provide up to five words or phrases that come to mind when thinking about “loud music.” The data were first analyzed using the qualitative content analysis. This was followed by quantitative cluster analysis and chi-square analysis. Results: The content analysis suggested 19 main categories of responses related to loud music. The cluster analysis resulted in for main clusters, namely: (1) emotional oriented perception; (2) problem oriented perception; (3) music and enjoyment oriented perception; and (4) positive emotional and recreation-oriented perception. Country of origin was associated with the likelihood of participants being in each of these clusters. Conclusion: The current study highlights the differences and similarities in young adults’ perception of loud music. These results may have implications to hearing health education to facilitate healthy listening habits.

Examination of Previously Published Data to Identify Patterns in the Social Representation of ‘Hearing Aids’ Across Countries

Background and Objectives Societal factors seem to exercise a strong influence on hearing aid uptake, use, and satisfaction. In particular, knowledge, perception, and attitude of people will have bearing towards their and others health behavior and decisions. The current study aimed at understanding the perception of hearing aids by adults belonging to the general population in different countries. Subjects and Methods The study employed a crosssectional design. A sample of 404 adults from India, Iran, Portugal, and the United Kingdom were recruited by relying on a convenience sampling. Previously published data was re-analyzed but it was applied for different approach. Free association task was used to collect the data. They were asked to provide up to five words or phrases that come to mind when thinking about “hearing aids.” The data was initially analyzed based on qualitative content analysis. This was followed by quantitative cluster analysis and chi square analysis. Results The content analysis suggested 39 main categories of responses related to hearing aids. The cluster analysis resulted in five main clusters, namely: 1) positive attitude, 2) external factors, 3) hearing aid use and satisfaction, 4) etiology, and 5) benefits and limitations of technology. A few demographic factors (i.e., education, occupation type, country) showed association with different clusters, although country of origin seemed to be associated with most clusters. Conclusions The study provides us with unique insights into the perception of hearing aids by the general public, and additionally, the way demographic variables may influence these perceptions.