Featured in the University of Sydney - News & Opinion
A new study led by researchers from the University of Sydney has found young women's engagement with social media plays a major role in shaping how they think - and act - in relation to their health.
Read MoreDodgy health claims and nudity: Instagram’s top fitness influencers under fire
Written by Lauren Ironmonger
The findings from a University of Sydney study released last month suggest that women are just as likely to accept health messages promoted by influencers as those from health professionals.
Read MoreThis study investigates how engagement with social media leads women to adopt diet and exercise practices. We base our analysis on qualitative research, including surveys and in-depth interviews, with thirty (30) Australian women aged 18-35 years between April and August 2021. Our findings reveal how healthism discourse on social media, namely Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, underpin the adoption of diet and exercise practices by enhancing experiences of digital intimacy, repeat messages and personal testimonials from other women, and supporting new routines during COVID-19 lockdowns. This article contributes to health marketing literature by providing critical knowledge about women’s experiences that prompt and shape complex ideologies of health that are often masked through diet and exercise practices on social media.
Published in Health Marketing Quarterly
Read MoreThe proliferation of social media technologies have seen public relations practitioners adapt their practices for the emergent digital media ecologies, with the growing phenomenon of social media influencers (SMIs) presenting new opportunities and challenges for the industry. Indeed, the profession’s rapid adoption of SMIs as part of their campaigns raises questions regarding the ethics of their use and the extent to which they fit with normative models of public relations practice that promote genuine dialogue and responsible advocacy. This study explores this tension between the uses and potential misuses of SMIs by examining the worldviews, strategies and practices of senior public relations practitioners at several agencies in Sydney, Australia.
Published in Public Relations Review
Read MoreOur chapter published in Sociologic Analysing Everyday Life and Culture explores the need to think critically about the operations of the mass media and social media, including the ways in which our values are influenced by media content.
Sociologic introduces students to the study of contemporary society, through everyday life examples and themes. It encourages a boundless curiosity about the social world around us and what it means to take a sociological perspective on Australian society.
Published by Oxford University Press
Read MoreSupported by the Australia Sociological Association as part of TASA November.
UNSW, Kensington Campus [converted to online].
17 February 2022
Hosted by The University of Queensland's School of Communication and Arts and UQ Art Museum.
Supported by the Digital Cultures and Societies Initiative and UQ Node of the Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society.
6-7 December 2021
Convened by The Australian Sociological Association (TASA) Emotions and Affect, and Health Sociology Thematic Groups
Hosted by RMIT University’s Social and Global Studies Centre
28-29 October 2021
Featured in the University of Sydney - News & Opinion
Experts in health, psychology and pandemic modelling comment on what Australians can expect as the nation emerges from pandemic restrictions.
Read More2021 - Health Promotion through E-Health: Challenges and Opportunities
Virtual Conference
24 June 2021
Toppling Trump: Grab 'em by the... selfie?
Written by Samantha Selinger-Morris
The changing nature of our healthcare system has seen an increasing focus on communications skills that positively impact the outcomes of communities here, and around the world. This includes innovative ways to design and deliver public health campaigns and education programs that nurture a more healthcare-literate population.
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