by georg.kiraly -

Exposé: Master Thesis

Working title = provisional title

A user centered tool to increase the democratic awareness of children and people of younger ages (Generation Z & Alpha)

An exposé provides information about:

1. the problem (Starting point, problem description)

On the one hand, the problem is that political parties in Austria have no idea how to appeal to young voters. On the other hand, interest in democracy and politics is constantly declining. Information is often formulated in a rather complicated way and tends to deter children and young people. A component or rather proof of the lagging behind of political actors is also shown by their social media presence or the survey results of the leading female candidates among under 20-year-olds. For young people, Austrian politics often seems outdated, uninteresting and also often as if the young voter group and its issues are rather unpopular. This opens the gates and receptiveness of young people to populism and sensationalist politics. I would like to get to the bottom of this thesis with my work and find out how young people understand politics and develop and offer an interactive service design for this.

2. state of research

Unfortunately, there is not yet much specialised literature, statistics or other theses that deal with the topic of “politics and youth”.  Although I have already come across a few theses, particularly in the field of journalism and media, there are unfortunately not (yet) many large-scale studies or relevant specialised literature.

3. the question

What is the political awareness of children and young people in Austria and which parameters are decisive for the political success or failure of established parties?

4. the hypothesis resp. the objective

Firstly, I would like to find out more about the current situation and draw a picture of the present. The challenges that political actors face when it comes to the young target group will be analysed. Once the problems have been explained, I would like to present systematic solutions in the form of tools. This could be an app, a workshop idea or a board game/mini-game. It depends on the results of the empirical part of the scientific work. At the moment, I am strongly leaning towards an app that diplomatically categorises complicated political content and explains the basic cornerstones of a democracy. Due to the voting age in Austria (16 years old), I would limit the target group to 13-18 year olds.

5. the reference to theory

In my opinion, there are two fundamental problems that cross-fertilise each other. On the one hand, politics and democracy-related subjects are taught far too late. Young people learn about the Austrian state and the prevailing democratic system in primary school, but they can do little with it at primary school age and then hear nothing more about it for a relatively long time before it is usually referred to again at the age of 14/15. As a result, in addition to the basic subjects of maths, English, German and the like, a subjectively lower prioritisation towards politics and democracy develops. The second problem I see is that children and young people are often taught that politics is an “adult thing” and that most decisions are not made for them but for other age groups. I think this is understandable from a demographic point of view but more than unwise from a social point of view. Issues such as education, sustainability or security are mainly played out by political “extreme parties” (extreme right or extreme left), which I think is a shame. I would like to see political centre parties also focus more on these issues. To cut a long story short: I am curious to see whether my research supports or refutes these theses.

6. the method

Formulate the problem on the basis of existing empirical studies or call out a scientific thesis Develop a type of questionnairem or interview guide Conduct qualitative (and possibly also quantitative) surveys Analyse the results and either substantiate or modify the thesis Incorporate relevant theory (specialist literature, other statistics) Identify possible solutions as an interaction designer Develop/design tool

7. the material

Various specialised literature, surveys/statistics, reports or news articles, videos, other theses

8. (preliminary) bibliography

theres a already a lot of literature available. Detailed titles or sources will be announced soonish.

9. (preliminary) structre

Here I refer to point 6 and add the following:
1. Theory/Empiricism 2. Ideation 3. Practical Part

10. the timetable (project phases and duration)

I expect to complete my work towards the end of the summer. I would categorise the time periods as follows:  1. theory/empiricism – 300 hours 2. ideation – 100 hours 3. practical part – 300 hours

11. Projectteam

At the moment I am on my own, but I can imagine that I will work with schools, teachers or counselling centres in the future.

12. Financing

At the moment, apart from the printing of the thesis, no costs are planned.

12. Risk factors

The risks, as with presumably all scientific work, are as follows: 1. time management – do not spend too much/too little time on the research 2. quality of the work – do not neglect the precise elaboration of the empirical results due to time stress or the like 3. spectrum – it is important to depict several social strata and groups so as not to research only in certain milieus. Otherwise, the research results could be distorted.
by georg.kiraly -

Ontology & Epistemology

I will reflect on those two topics regarding my thesis-topic, in the following two collums.

Ontology:
Exploring the awareness of younger individuals towards democracy involves understanding how young people perceive and engage with the democratic system. It delves into their knowledge, attitudes, and participation in democratic processes. Key elements include examining the influence of factors like education, societal influences, and the political environment. Additionally, temporal aspects such as changes over time and developmental stages within the younger population contribute to shaping their awareness of democracy. This analysis aims to create a structured framework for comprehending the intricate relationships and dynamics associated with this important societal aspect. Once this dynamic or maybe problem is understand its possible work on a problem-solving educational tool.

Epistemology:
In developing a tool to enhance awareness of democracy among younger individuals, I’ll draw on a variety of scientific sources, including papers, books, articles, and statistics. I’ll critically assess the validity and reliability of these sources, considering the methodologies used in research. By integrating findings from diverse studies, I aim to gain a comprehensive understanding of factors influencing awareness. This synthesized knowledge will guide the development of the awareness tool, with ongoing feedback and iterations based on research and user responses. Ethical considerations will underpin the project to ensure accuracy, privacy, and cultural sensitivity. This approach aligns with a dynamic and robust epistemological framework.

by Kris Van Hout -

Blog #10 – Topic assignment Master‘s thesis

Central Research Question
What is the best way to make a social media campaign a question that a lot of marketing teams are asking themselves but still don’t have quite clear answer to. Why is a social media campaign valuable for brands? How does a campaign communicate? What is a social media campaign and what does it include? This thesis will mainly focus on short-form-video in social media campaigns and want to find out why do they preform so well and what is the secret behind it.

Goal
The goal of this master thesis is to investigate the impact of design elements (trends, storytelling, camera techniques) in short-form video on social media platforms (Instagram and TikTok), with the aim of providing insights and recommendations for optimizing engagement in social media campaigns. with the focus of the target group Gen Z and Gen Alpha.

Hypothesis:
The use of design elements, such as visual aesthetics, narrative and trends, in short-form video on social media notably influences audience engagement, including views, shares and comments. By understanding these design elements, media designers can enhance the effectiveness of social media campaigns for brand promotion and communication.

Classification in the field of Media Design
This master thesis would be relevant for the field of media design for several reasons:
– Media trends: Short-form content with focus on video is becoming more and more popular on social media platforms. Understanding the role of short films in social media campaigns can provide valuable insight into the media field.
– Engagement and attention: Maintaining audience attention is very important. Short-form video is designed to brief and engaging. Which could be a media design strategy to hold audience interest.
– Visual storytelling: an important element in the field of media design is visual storytelling. Short-form video rely strongly on visual storytelling techniques to deliver a narrative within a short amount of time.
– Brand image and Communication: Social media campaigns are aiming to build and promote a brand. Short-form video can convey a brand’s message in a creative way.

Status of the art in research
Since short form video is quite new, there are not a lot of scientific papers about it. There are a lot of papers and books about traditional marketing where the essence of marketing can be taken from and put those findings in the new form of marketing. Also interviews and best practice will be done about this topic to figure out what the real reactions/results are of certain social media campaigns.

Theory reference
This master thesis can use theoretical references theory in narrative, visual communication, digital media, user engagement, advertising and branding and social media.  

Method
The method will be based on three pillars:

1. Theoretical Framework,
– Conduct literature to establish strong theoretical foundation.
– Identify key theories relevant for short-form video, media design and user engagement on social media.

2. Best practice, Interviews and User feedback
– Case studies on successful short-form video campaigns on social media
– Conduct interviews with professionals in media design and digital marketing
– Collect user feedback through surveys and analyse existing user interactions on social media platforms

3. Implementation to own campaign and analysis
– Design and execute own campaign for Cycling race Acht van Bladel
– Gather and analyse data, Performance, engagement and user interactions
– Compare findings with theoretical framework, best practice and user feedback to draw conclusions

Material and sources
Material that can be used for this master thesis are:
– Academic Journals, for insights into user engagement, visual communication and media theories
– Books, by experts in media design, digital storytelling and social media
– Case Studies, successful social media campaigns that use short-form video
– Interviews and Expert opinions, with professionals in the fields of media design, advertising and digital marketing
– Social media platforms, they often release reports and analytics that can be valuable of understanding user behaviour and engagement.
– Surveys and User feedback, to gather data on user preferences and responses to short-form video on social media.
– Other theses, this can help me with a base for my own research and highlights where I can contribute new insights.

Literature (temporary)
Brown, R. E., Jones, V. K. & Wang, M. (o. D.). The new advertising: branding, content, and consumer relationships in the data-driven social media era. Volume 1 Traditional advertising transformed (Volume 1).

Brown, R. E., Jones, V. K. & Wang, M. (o. D.). The new advertising: branding, content, and consumer relationships in the data-driven social media era. Volume 2 New Media, New Uses, New Metrics (Volume 2).

Coker, K. K., Flight, R., & Baima, D. M. (2017). Skip it or view it: The Role of Video Storytelling in Social Media Marketing. Researchgate.

Structure (temporary)

  1. Title
  2. Abstract
  3. Introduction
    – Background
    – Research Problem
    – Objectives, the specific goals
    – Significance of the study, why is this thesis relevant?
  4. Literature Review
    – Relevant theories such as narrative, visual communication, digital media, user engagement, advertising and branding and social media
    – Identify gaps in the literature that this thesis aims to fill.
  5. Theoretical Framework
  6. Method
    – Theoretical Framework
    – Best Practice, Interviews, User Feedback
    – Own campaign implementation and Analysis
  7. Results/ Data analysis
    – Evaluate
    – Present and analyse the data
    – Interpret the findings
  8. Discussion
    – Compare findings in relation to existing literature.
    – Address any limitations of this study and suggest directions for future research
    – The potential impact of the findings on the field of media design
  9. Conclusion
    – Summary of findings
  10. Recommendations
    – Practical recommendations for media designers, marketers
    – Suggest strategies for optimizing short-form video in social media campaigns
  11. References
  12. Appendices

Timeline[1]
February – March
Weeks 1-2: Refine topic
– Finalize topic, align with interests and goals
– Refine research question
Weeks 3-4: Conduct first literature review
– Begin a literature review, identify key theories related to short-form video, media design and social media campaigns.

April – May
Week 5-6: Develop theoretical framework
– Build theoretical framework based on the literature
– Define key concepts and theories that will guide the research
Week 7-8: Plan best practice analysis and Interviews
– Identify relevant case studies
– Plan and prepare of interviews with industry professionals

June
Week 9-10 Conduct Best practise analysis and interviews
– Analyse successful short-form video campaigns and extract insights
– Conduct and transcribe interviews with industry professionals
Week 11-12 Collect user feedback
– Develop surveys to gather user feedback on short-form video
Week 13-14 Design and implement own campaign (achtvanbladel)
– Develop detailed plan for own short-form video campaign
– Implement the campaign

July – September
Week 15-16 Analyse campaign data
– Analyse data collected from own campaign
– compare them with theoretical framework, best practices and user feedback
Week 17-18 Write draft chapters
– Begin writing thesis chapters, Introduction, literature review, method
Week 19-20 Refine and finalize thesis
– Edit end refine Thesis
– Ensure arguments are well-supported and structure is cohesive.
Week 21-22 Finalize and submit
– Make final revisions and polish thesis.
– Submit the final version of thesis.

[1] ChatGPT is used to create a guidance for a timeline for Topic assignment Master‘s thesis, February 03. 2024

by Kris Van Hout -

Impulse #1 – Master thesis research

We had to do some research about the master thesis form previous years. We had to choose on and analyze it. I choose for the one of Florian Reithofer (CMS17) – Projektmanagement für motion designer. This thesis was about how motion design studios and freelancers face the challenge of freedom and unstructured thinking combined with completing milestones and finishing deadlines in time. Something what I also struggle with as a freelancer so I that’s why I choose for this one.

I think it was really interested to see how the thesis was build up compared what I’m used to of my bachelor thesis that I wrote in the Netherlands. I saw a lot of theory but less practical stuff what I would have expected. I also could not find a good result of the thesis (which is possible) but there was not really a product with the thesis only a theory of what could be the best way of managing a project.

Besides that, the thesis was well structured and well designed. Which was very pleasant to read. I also found a lot of other theses in the library that were less clear. But it gave some insight what is possible for my thesis. I discovered it’s quite open what the end result could be.