Advances in Communications and Media Research

In a society predicated on information, the media has a pervasive presence. From government policy to leisure television, the information age touches us all. The papers collected in this book constitute some of today's leading analyses of the information industry. Together, these essays represent a needed foundation for understanding the present state and future development of the mass media. Current trends in communications as well as media impact on public opinion are studied and reported on. Topics include teacher practices with mobile technology integrating tablet computers into the early childhood classroom; making personal and professional learning mobile; signalling theory predicting aggressive behaviours in video games; a social network study of friendship networks among college students; a critical reflection on Facebook-research methods and optical mediation; polling with mobile devices on university campuses; the impact of gender and field of study on Iranian students' English web pages usage; and adoption of ICT-based market information and farm-gate prices received.