Our server costs ~$56 per month to run. Please consider donating or becoming a Patron to help keep the site running. Help us gain new members by following us on Twitter and liking our page on Facebook!
Current time: March 29, 2024, 5:05 am

Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Please help me with my academic essay
#1
Please help me with my academic essay
Hi all! Second shot at posting this, so let's hope this one works.

I'm a student (mature student, I'm in my 40s) in my Honours year of Communications in Creative Media. For the module User Theory I have to write an academic essay from a virtual ethnography perspective about a forum. I thought this one would be great, as forums and discussions like it helped me a lot when I decoverted years ago. So here's how you can help.

Copy the questions listed below. Paste them in a private message to Alex K with your answers, and he will anonymise your response and send it on to me. I apologise for not linking to his profile, if I do, because I'm a new member, the thread gets eaten by the dragons that protect us all from trolls.

Thanks in advance!

The questions:

1 – What is your age, gender, location?
2 - How often do you visit the forum / post on the forum?
3 - Do you ever meet any other members IRL/AFK (Away From Keyboard)? If so, in what context (other atheist group meetings/socials, other shared hobbies or interests unrelated to atheism)?
4 - Do you feel Atheist Forums offers a sense of community?
5 - Do you have any access to an IRL/AFK atheist community? If so, how does it differ from what you get out of Atheist Forums?
6 - Do you find it easier to communicate and voice your opinions online on the forum, than offline face to face? Has participation here made it easier for you to talk about belief, perhaps helped you prepare for such conversations?
7 – Does being part of Atheist Forums affect your offline social life? If yes, how?
8 - Do you think there's a downside to communicating online rather than just offline?
9 – What do you think is the best aspect of communicating in Atheist Forums?
10 – Do you communicate with any Atheist Forums member via off-forum messaging service (Messenger, Skype, Whatsapp)? If so how many, how often, in depth conversations or small talk?
12 – Any other comments or thoughts?
"Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life." - Terry Pratchett
Reply
#2
RE: Please help me with my academic essay
It would probably help if we got some confirmation from Alex that he is on board with this, first of all. Just an idea.

Also, I'd like to know specifically what you're going to do with said information and if you're going to post it anywhere online either here or elsewhere while mentioning this site. Well, it's not so much about what I want, as it is about what people might want to know in order to help you with your survey. Also, I'm specifically asking about this because the first question on the survey might easily give away members who've shared that information publicly. Not that I think these questions are very intrusive, not at all, but just wondering if you factored this in because it seems to me like you'd want to, that's all.

I know you didn't ask for these suggestions, but I'm only trying to help. I hope you don't mind. That being said, good luck with it.
Reply
#3
RE: Please help me with my academic essay
I do not need confirmation from Alex or the staff. I am fine answering stuff like this on a regular basis.
"Never trust a fox. Looks like a dog, behaves like a cat."
~ Erin Hunter
Reply
#4
RE: Please help me with my academic essay
(October 13, 2016 at 2:18 am)Maelstrom Wrote: I do not need confirmation from Alex or the staff.  I am fine answering stuff like this on a regular basis.


Alex might not want to get bombarded with these messages if he didn't consent to it beforehand, that's why I said what I said.
Reply
#5
RE: Please help me with my academic essay
Moderator Notice
Ayup, 'twas our idea to collect the answers
The fool hath said in his heart, There is a God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
Psalm 14, KJV revised edition

Reply
#6
RE: Please help me with my academic essay
1 – What is your age, gender, location?
37, Male, Clearwater, FL

2 - How often do you visit the forum / post on the forum?
Daily.

3 - Do you ever meet any other members IRL/AFK (Away From Keyboard)? If so, in what context (other atheist group meetings/socials, other shared hobbies or interests unrelated to atheism)?
No.

4 - Do you feel Atheist Forums offers a sense of community?
Yes.

5 - Do you have any access to an IRL/AFK atheist community? If so, how does it differ from what you get out of Atheist Forums?
No.

6 - Do you find it easier to communicate and voice your opinions online on the forum, than offline face to face? Has participation here made it easier for you to talk about belief, perhaps helped you prepare for such conversations?
Yes.

7 – Does being part of Atheist Forums affect your offline social life? If yes, how?
No.

8 - Do you think there's a downside to communicating online rather than just offline?
No.

9 – What do you think is the best aspect of communicating in Atheist Forums?
I have no answer for this question.

10 – Do you communicate with any Atheist Forums member via off-forum messaging service (Messenger, Skype, Whatsapp)? If so how many, how often, in depth conversations or small talk?
No.

What happened to number 11?

12 – Any other comments or thoughts?
No.
"Never trust a fox. Looks like a dog, behaves like a cat."
~ Erin Hunter
Reply
#7
RE: Please help me with my academic essay
(October 13, 2016 at 2:26 am)Maelstrom Wrote: What happened to number 11?

[Image: tumblr_lf576uD6ya1qc0ck0.gif]
"Leave it to me to find a way to be,
Consider me a satellite forever orbiting,
I knew the rules but the rules did not know me, guaranteed." - Eddie Vedder
Reply
#8
RE: Please help me with my academic essay
I'm in.
Reply
#9
RE: Please help me with my academic essay
(October 13, 2016 at 2:14 am)Excited Penguin Wrote: It would probably help if we got some confirmation from Alex that he is on board with this, first of all. Just an idea.

Also, I'd like to know specifically what you're going to do with said information and if you're going to post it anywhere online either here or elsewhere while mentioning this site. Well, it's not so much about what I want, as it is about what people might want to know in order to help you with your survey. Also, I'm specifically asking about this because the first question on the survey might easily give away members who've shared that information publicly. Not that I think these questions are very intrusive, not at all, but just wondering if you factored this in because it seems to me like you'd want to, that's all.

I know you didn't ask for these suggestions, but I'm only trying to help. I hope you don't mind. That being said, good luck with it.

The paper is for my course in a third level institution in Ireland. I'd tell you which one but I also need my anonymity. It will be submitted electronically via Moodle, which can only be accessed by myself and my lecturer. Copyright of the paper belongs to the institution when it is submitted. It is extremely rare for an Honours year academic paper to be read by anyone other than the lecturer, and maybe a moderator or two. Responses to this questionnaire will be included in the appendix, but will contain no identifying information, using the method described I will not even know your username. If you feel uncomfortable with any of the questions but still would like to help, you can simply leave that specific question unanswered. The first question is really just to determine the geographical, age and other distribution of membership, I'm looking for country, perhaps state if you're in the USA but even just "USA" will do.

I explained the process of going through Alex K because I asked permission from the administrators before proceeding, and this was the admins' plan to participate in the research but do so in a way that will ensure members' continued privacy. I think it's a great idea, as I fully understand that anonimity can be extremely important especially to atheists in some parts of the world. Unfortunately the thread discussing permission is in "Questions for staff" so can't be shown to provide evidence of permission. As I said, I tried to post this yesterday already with a link to Alex K's profile, but the spam protectors ate the thread.

Hope that reassures anyone who has doubts.
"Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life." - Terry Pratchett
Reply
#10
RE: Please help me with my academic essay
Quote:Responses to this questionnaire will be included in the appendix,
What appendix?
All I want to know is if the members here, other than the staff, will be able to view any of the responses(which are not their own) to these questions in the future.
Reply



Possibly Related Threads...
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
  Podcast recommendations please... arewethereyet 1 204 September 1, 2020 at 6:34 pm
Last Post: Rhizomorph13
  Questionnaire about life (for academic purposes) halos 26 1568 July 28, 2020 at 8:05 am
Last Post: BrianSoddingBoru4
  [Serious] How do you get over your past mistakes? [Please Don't judge me] GODZILLA 12 1080 June 3, 2019 at 12:48 pm
Last Post: BrianSoddingBoru4
  Can you filthy foreigners please invite your friends? Losty 43 2848 May 1, 2019 at 2:42 pm
Last Post: The Valkyrie
  somebody, Please Talk Sense into My Stupid Head. I Think I'm Getting Ready to Fuck Up Rhondazvous 30 2171 September 13, 2018 at 5:41 pm
Last Post: Rhondazvous
  Gentlebeings, a salute, please. Gawdzilla Sama 13 1207 July 31, 2018 at 7:40 am
Last Post: Brian37
  Please help me understand this Indian "law" Alexmahone 18 2333 July 25, 2018 at 2:02 pm
Last Post: popeyespappy
  Help! If You Hsbr sn iPhone, iPad, iPod or Mac Please Do Me a Favor Rhondazvous 2 480 April 17, 2018 at 3:22 pm
Last Post: Rhondazvous
  Please help? Longhorn 16 2963 January 9, 2018 at 10:53 am
Last Post: Brian37
  A little advice on a family matter please NuclearEnergy 6 1110 August 27, 2017 at 7:16 pm
Last Post: Minimalist



Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)