BackgroundPeople with aphasia (PWA) often suffer from reduced participation and quality of life. Nevertheless, there are currently only a few specific interventions that respond to this problem. Participation and quality of life could be increased by interacting with peers who have similar experiences. Digital social networks could stimulate an autonomous interaction. However, digital social networks need to be adapted to the specific needs of PWA. Therefore, a participatory, agile process involving the target group should be chosen to develop such a solution, i.e., an app. The research project consists of a total of three phases. In the first phase—app development—the app was developed and programmed including the target group. In the second phase—app testing—the usability and user-friendliness of the app were evaluated with four PWA. In the third phase—feasibility and preliminary efficacy—that will be described in the article, the impact of the app on PWA will be evaluated.AimsThe overarching aim of our study is to provide preliminary efficacy of the intervention. Digital social interaction with other PWA can lead to increased social integration. In addition to digital interaction, personal encounters between PWA should be encouraged. As a result, we expect an improvement in quality of life of PWA. Additionally, we focus on identification of the most appropriate measurements to discover changes associated with the intervention.MethodsThe evaluation, which is described in this paper, takes place in a pre-test - post-test design with a total of n = 48 PWA. Participants will be recruited in regional clusters to facilitate face-to-face meetings. Half of the participants will be assigned to the delayed intervention group and the other half to the immediate intervention group. Participants in the delayed intervention group will go through a 3-month waiting period before using the app, while the participants of the immediate intervention group will start using the app for 3 months right away. Inclusion criteria are the presence of chronic aphasia (at least 6 months) and possession of a smartphone with internet access. Questionnaires on quality of life (SAQOL-39, GHQ-12), depression (GDS, DISCs), communicative participation (CPIB), and social support (F-SozU) will be conducted at inclusion (t0), after 3 months of app use (t1), and after another 3 months for follow-up (t2). Participants in the delayed intervention group will be assessed twice before the intervention, before the 3-month waiting period (t0a) and after the waiting period (t0b). In addition to the quantitative measures, interviews will take place with 6 to 8 selected participants after 3 months of app use. Responses will be analysed using Thematic Analysis.DiscussionThe app will be the first social network tool that is systematically developed with PWA. Initial indications from the first phases are that the app can be used by PWA, so that the evaluation of this app version can take place in the third phase. Results of this study can provide an initial indication of whether social network support is a suitable intervention. Findings will help provide information on the feasibility of digital connectivity for PWA. Preliminary findings on its impact on the participation and quality of life of PWA could be made available.

The proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI) in digital platforms has complicated the concept of truth in communication studies. The article presents the dichotomic framework of Front-end AI and Back-end AI to tackle the complexity of distinguishing truth. Front-end AI refers to AI technology used up-front, often as the face of a product or service, challenging the authenticity and truthfulness of content. In contrast, Back-end AI refers to AI technology used behind the scenes, which can generate misleading or biased content without disclosing its AI-generated nature. Addressing these challenges requires different approaches, such as verification and ethical guidelines for Front-end AI and algorithmic transparency, bias detection, and human oversight for Back-end AI.

IntroductionIncreasingly, people are turning toward digital health technologies to support their care management, communication with health professionals, and performing activities of daily living. Digital health technologies may be well implemented in clinical practices in several jurisdictions, but the influence of sociocultural factors may sometimes be neglected. To increase use and sustainability of these innovative solutions in health care, we need to understand acceptability among diverse groups of the population such as linguistically diverse populations. Francophone-speaking populations in Canada, for example, are known to endure challenges with income, health and difficulties associated with living in rural areas which impede on their likelihood to use digital health technologies. As part of the University of Ottawa International Francophonie Research Chair on Digital Health Technologies, this study aimed to understand the conditions that make digital health technologies acceptable among francophone-speaking communities.MethodsUsing a meta-ethnography methodology, this study synthesizes international qualitative research on social acceptability of digital health technology among francophone-speaking communities. We focused on four types of digital health technologies: telemedicine, mobile technologies, wearable technologies, and robotic technologies. Using Noblit and Hare's 7 phase approach to conducting a meta-ethnography, we were able to get a comprehensive synthesis and understanding of the research landscape on the issue. Studies published between 2010 and 2020 were included and synthesized using NVivo, excel and a mind mapping technique.ResultsOur coding revealed that factors of social acceptability for digital health technologies could be grouped into the following categories: care organization, self-care support, communication with care team, relational and technical risks, organizational factors, social and ethical values. Our paper discusses the themes evoked in each category and their relevance for the included digital health technologies.DiscussionIn discussing the results, we present commonalities and differences in the social acceptability factors of the different digital health technologies. In addition, we demonstrate the importance of considering sociocultural diversity in the study of social acceptability for digital health technologies.ImplicationsThe results of this study have implications for practitioners who are the instigators of digital health technology implementation with healthcare service users. By understanding factors of social acceptability among francophone-speaking communities, practitioners will be better suited to propose and support the implementation of technologies in ways that are suitable for these individuals. For policymakers, this knowledge could be used for developing policy actions based on consideration for diversity.

In this paper, we analyze the front pages of mainstream Greek newspapers with the highest circulation reporting the official result of the Brexit referendum in 2016. Our analysis seeks to extract the standpoints and arguments that circulated in the Greek mainstream press on that day by studying the headlines and visuals on the front page. We study the front page not merely as an informative genre but crucially as an argumentative one, where the arguments can be reconstructed with the help of tools from argumentation theory combined with principles from multimodal critical discourse analysis. The proposed approach makes it possible to compare how the different ideological orientations in the Greek public sphere were steered by the representation of this piece of news. We show that, despite their ideological background, the newspapers under study converge to the construction of Brexit as a menacing phenomenon that puts the EU integration to the test and, as such, as an event that should have been avoided.

Over the past years, scholars have explored eudaimonic video game experiences—profound entertainment responses that include meaningfulness, reflection, and others. In a comparatively short time, a plethora of explanations for the formation of such eudaimonic gaming experiences has been developed across multiple disciplines, making it difficult to keep track of the state of theory development. Hence, we present a theoretical overview of these explanations. We first provide a working definition of eudaimonic gaming experiences (i.e., experiences that reflect human virtues and encourage players to develop their potential as human beings fully) and outline four layers of video games—agency, narrative, sociality, and aesthetics—that form the basis for theorizing. Subsequently, we provide an overview of the theoretical approaches, categorizing them based on which of the four game layers their explanation mainly rests upon. Finally, we suggest the contingency of the different theoretical approaches for explaining eudaimonic experiences by describing how their usefulness varies as a function of interactivity. As different types of games offer players various levels of interactivity, our overview suggests which theories and which game layers should be considered when examining eudaimonic experiences for specific game types.