Dr. Katrina Hinson
University: Tarleton State University
Description of Work:
Currently, my primary research focuses on the narrative spaces created as a result of the collision of social media and health care. Much can be learned from the study of this collision, both for technical and professional communication professors in terms of how we use social media and how we teach students to see its value as well as healthcare practitioners who want to know more about how patients use social media for their day to day care. Additionally, the way in which narrative is used in these spaces also opens up to further examine exactly what these narratives do/don’t do and how they do it; and, this opens up a space to consider what ‘is/is not or “acts as” narrative in social media. Along these lines is an additional study being developed around the ‘folklore’ of Facebook illness groups and how stories get told/retold and codified as anecdotal or as ‘fake’ and what if any efficacy or therapeutic gains might be possible through such Facebook folklore. Do social media groups in and of themselves function as “folk-groups” and if so, to what end. How might understanding these types of exchanges influence or shape physician/patient interaction and more importantly how might this information be utilized to better meet patient needs. I’m also interested in how these social media narratives influence identity formation and/or are performative acts in and of themselves; I’m interested in the autoethnographic relationship of Facebook illness groups and participant posts and a piqued interest in an ‘ethic of self-representation’.
Socials:
Twitter @KLHinson