Zeeshan Ahmed Bhatti, University of Portsmouth, United Kingdom

Tahir Abbas Syed, University of Manchester, United Kingdom

Hina Mahboob Yasin, University of Portsmouth, United Kingdom

Track Call

Digital communication refers to the process of transmitting information, ideas, and messages through electronic and digital means. It is characterised by its ability to facilitate immediate, interactive, and often multimedia-rich exchanges of information, making it an integral part of personal, organisational (Thompson et al., 2020), and societal interactions (Bhatti et al., 2021) in the modern world. The widespread adoption of social and digital communication platforms has dramatically altered communication among individuals, organisations, and societies (Bhatti et al., 2020). These tools are now crucial in everyday life, changing the dynamics of personal, professional, and civic interactions (Leong et al., 2019). This track seeks to investigate the diverse impacts of these technologies on communication practices. We welcome contributions that explore how social media and digital communication tools affect information dissemination, social interactions, organisational communication, public discourse, marketing (Appel et al., 2021; Olan et al., 2024). Additionally, we are interested in the social and ethical issues associated with these communication technologies (Bhargava & Velasquez, 2021). Interdisciplinary perspectives that connect technology, communication, sociology, business, marketing, and media studies are highly encouraged.

Track Areas

  • The role of social media in political communication and elections.
  • Digital activism and the mobilisation of social movements.
  • The influence of algorithms and AI on content visibility and user engagement.
  • Privacy, security, and ethical issues in digital communication.
  • Comparative studies of social media use across different cultures and regions.
  • The impact of influencer culture on consumer behaviour.
  • Virtual reality and augmented reality in digital communication.
  • Crisis communication and reputation management in the digital age.
  • Social media analytics and big data.
  • The future of digital communication technologies.

References

Appel, G., Grewal, L., Hadi, R., & Stephen, A. T. (2020). The future of social media in marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing science, 48(1), 79-95.

Bhargava, V. R., & Velasquez, M. (2021). Ethics of the attention economy: The problem of social media addiction. Business Ethics Quarterly, 31(3), 321-359.

Bhatti, Z. A., Arain, G. A., Akram, M. S., Fang, Y. H., & Yasin, H. M. (2020). Constructive voice behavior for social change on social networking sites: A reflection of moral identity. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 157, 120101.

Bhatti, Z. A., Arain, G. A., Yasin, H. M., Khan, M. A., & Akram, M. S. (2021). The role of integrated offline/online social activity and social identification in Facebook citizenship behaviour formation. Information Technology & People, 34(5), 1419-1438.

Leong, C., Pan, S. L., Bahri, S., & Fauzi, A. (2019). Social media empowerment in social movements: power activation and power accrual in digital activism. European Journal of Information Systems, 28(2), 173-204.

Olan, F., Jayawickrama, U., Arakpogun, E. O., Suklan, J., & Liu, S. (2024). Fake news on social media: the impact on society. Information Systems Frontiers, 26(2), 443-458.

Thompson, P., McDonald, P., & O’Connor, P. (2020). Employee dissent on social media and organizational discipline. Human relations, 73(5), 631-652.