Share Paper: A Tweet by Any Other Frame: Three Approaches to Studying Educator Interactions on Twitter

  1. K. Bret Staudt Willet, Michigan State University, United States
  2. Matthew J. Koehler, Michigan State University, United States
  3. Spencer P. Greenhalgh, Michigan State University, United States
Monday, March 6 4:15-4:45 PM Tannehill

Abstract: Every day, thousands of educators use Twitter to interact with each other. Yet, the research that examines these educator interactions on Twitter is nascent, in part because it is unclear how to theoretically conceptualize the nature of interactions occurring in just 140 characters. In this paper, we explore three of the most promising theoretical frameworks for studying interactions on Twitter: affinity spaces, media circuits, and social capital. We examine what each perspective emphasizes and how these important features can be operationalized in Twitter interactions. We exemplify how these theories might be used by applying each to a descriptive analysis of ...