Structure of Communications and NarrativeConstruction of Social Movements within

Social Networking Sites:Purple People’s experience

Mario Orefice

Università Cattolica di Milano 09/20/2012

1. Theoretical background2. Case study3. Data collection/Analysis4. Main Findings5. Conclusions

Table of Contents:

Theoretical background 1/2

“[…] these particular organizations of groups whostruggle not only for re-appropriation of material

structure of production, but, also for collective controlupon social development, and then, for re-appropriation

of time, space, relationships in individuals everydaylives […]”

Alberto Melucci (1989, cit., pp. 151-152)

Theoretical background 2/2

Net as option(hybrid mobilization movements)

Net as axclusive way to prosume information(online information-based movements)

Net as birthplace(digital network-centred movements)

Social Movements could be observed according to their different relationships with the Net…

Research object 1/2

first italian digital network-centred movement;

well-known social actor in Italy;

extended network of nodes represented by geo-localizedFacebook public pages;

place for discussion in which often overlap topics of bothnational and local level;

scene of events/debates generally considered as significantduring social movement’s life.

Why Purple People?…

Research object 2/2

…and What about it?

R.Q 1What is communicative structure in which digitalnetwork-centred movement under examinationarticulates itself?

R.Q 2What are main features of those individuals whoapproach and/or affiliate with Purple People’sFacebook public pages?

Empirical phase 1/4

total sample = 100 Facebook Public Pages

Empirical phase 2/4

Empirical phase 3/4

Area 1. Content type

Area 2. Information sources

Area 3. Agenda settings

Area 4. Coordination/Action;

Area 5. Geographic features

Content analysis was carried out starting from the following macro-areas…

Empirical phase 4/4

Online questionnaire was developed around six macro-areas:

Area 1. Structural Variables

Area 2. Internet Use

Area 3. Social Networking Sites Adoption

Area 4. Individuals and Political System

Area 5. Social Networking Sites and their Political Potentials

Area 6. Individuals and Purple People’s online structure

Main findings 1/2

About content analysis we observed…

Pages (re)appropriation and creative uses

Adoption of indipendent information(production/propagation) system through creation of ashadow-agenda

Transition of communicative products from the nationalto (hyper) local level

Main findings 2/2

Internet and Social Networking Sites uses

Experiences and personal reflections around political system

Activities, connections, individual narratives around PurplePeople

...while results from online questionnaire were collected around…

Results from both methods highlight the following trends:

• “double level” structure in digital network of Purple People revealed thepresence of a large number of “dormant” Facebook Public Pages;

• crisis/collapse of main antagonist (Silvio Berlusconi) and internal struggles were found as main causes of both low level of

communicative interactions and shift of communications towards localand hyper-local level;

Conclusions 1/2

About contents

• absence of any theoretical systematization of main analysis techniqueson digital phenomena;

• unique and new case studies implemented unique and new researchmethods;

• internal validity in place of external validity;

• limits in defining the field of analysis

• difficulties in finding the right sampling techniques;

• limits in defining any statistical criteria as representative;

About methodology

Conclusions 2/2

Contact & details:mario.orefice@uniurb.it

Mario Orefice (Fb account)#oreficemario (Twitter account)