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Authors William R. Cupach and Brian H. Spitzberg synthesize the expanding multidisciplinary base of knowledge about obsessive relational intrusion (ORI) and stalking, presenting a comprehensive scholarly consideration of these behaviors. Their inclusive approach is reflected in the breadth of research represented, including social, clinical and forensic psychology, psychiatry, counseling, communication, criminal justice, law enforcement, sociology, social work, threat assessment and management, and family studies. The work also draws upon the multidisciplinary scholarship on social and personal relationships. The chapters in this volume: provide historical and definitional frames for studying unwanted relationship pursuit, and consider the role of such sources as the media, law, and social science research in shaping the contemporary multifaceted and multifarious conceptualizations of stalking; elaborate the authors' assumption that much unwanted relationship pursuit owes to complications inherent in the processes of constructing and dismantling relationships, examine the factors that conspire to create slippage between two persons' conceptions of their \"shared\" relationship, and explore the cultural practices associated with relationship dissolution that tend to reinforce persistence in unwanted pursuit; chart the topography of unwanted pursuit, offering a unique and comprehensive synthesis of relevant research bearing on several issues, and a review of the temporal stages and characteristics of stalking; consider promising theories and variables for explaining the occurrence of unwanted pursuit; and discuss the issues pertinent to threat assessment, managing unwanted pursuit and offering a comprehensive typology of victim consequences of pursuit. The volume concludes with thoughts about \"correcting courtship.\" Drawing on the interpersonal competence literature, Cupach and Spitzberg speculate on ways in which enhancing relatio

Surveillance plays a vital role in disease detection, but traditional methods of collecting patient data, reporting to health officials, and compiling reports are costly and time consuming. In recent years, syndromic surveillance tools have expanded and researchers are able to exploit the vast amount of data available in real time on the Internet at minimal cost. Many data sources for infoveillance exist, but this study focuses on status updates (tweets) from the Twitter microblogging website. The aim of this study was to explore the interaction between cyberspace message activity, measured by keyword-specific tweets, and real world occurrences of influenza and pertussis. Tweets were aggregated by week and compared to weekly influenza-like illness (ILI) and weekly pertussis incidence. The potential effect of tweet type was analyzed by categorizing tweets into 4 categories: nonretweets, retweets, tweets with a URL Web address, and tweets without a URL Web address. Tweets were collected within a 17-mile radius of 11 US cities chosen on the basis of population size and the availability of disease data. Influenza analysis involved all 11 cities. Pertussis analysis was based on the 2 cities nearest to the Washington State pertussis outbreak (Seattle, WA and Portland, OR). Tweet collection resulted in 161,821 flu, 6174 influenza, 160 pertussis, and 1167 whooping cough tweets. The correlation coefficients between tweets or subgroups of tweets and disease occurrence were calculated and trends were presented graphically. Correlations between weekly aggregated tweets and disease occurrence varied greatly, but were relatively strong in some areas. In general, correlation coefficients were stronger in the flu analysis compared to the pertussis analysis. Within each analysis, flu tweets were more strongly correlated with ILI rates than influenza tweets, and whooping cough tweets correlated more strongly with pertussis incidence than pertussis tweets. Nonretweets correlated more with disease occurrence than retweets, and tweets without a URL Web address correlated better with actual incidence than those with a URL Web address primarily for the flu tweets. This study demonstrates that not only does keyword choice play an important role in how well tweets correlate with disease occurrence, but that the subgroup of tweets used for analysis is also important. This exploratory work shows potential in the use of tweets for infoveillance, but continued efforts are needed to further refine research methods in this field.

Existing influenza surveillance in the United States is focused on the collection of data from sentinel physicians and hospitals; however, the compilation and distribution of reports are usually delayed by up to 2 weeks. With the popularity of social media growing, the Internet is a source for syndromic surveillance due to the availability of large amounts of data. In this study, tweets, or posts of 140 characters or less, from the website Twitter were collected and analyzed for their potential as surveillance for seasonal influenza. There were three aims: (1) to improve the correlation of tweets to sentinel-provided influenza-like illness (ILI) rates by city through filtering and a machine-learning classifier, (2) to observe correlations of tweets for emergency department ILI rates by city, and (3) to explore correlations for tweets to laboratory-confirmed influenza cases in San Diego. Tweets containing the keyword \"flu\" were collected within a 17-mile radius from 11 US cities selected for population and availability of ILI data. At the end of the collection period, 159,802 tweets were used for correlation analyses with sentinel-provided ILI and emergency department ILI rates as reported by the corresponding city or county health department. Two separate methods were used to observe correlations between tweets and ILI rates: filtering the tweets by type (non-retweets, retweets, tweets with a URL, tweets without a URL), and the use of a machine-learning classifier that determined whether a tweet was \"valid\", or from a user who was likely ill with the flu. Correlations varied by city but general trends were observed. Non-retweets and tweets without a URL had higher and more significant (P<.05) correlations than retweets and tweets with a URL. Correlations of tweets to emergency department ILI rates were higher than the correlations observed for sentinel-provided ILI for most of the cities. The machine-learning classifier yielded the highest correlations for many of the cities when using the sentinel-provided or emergency department ILI as well as the number of laboratory-confirmed influenza cases in San Diego. High correlation values (r=.93) with significance at P<.001 were observed for laboratory-confirmed influenza cases for most categories and tweets determined to be valid by the classifier. Compared to tweet analyses in the previous influenza season, this study demonstrated increased accuracy in using Twitter as a supplementary surveillance tool for influenza as better filtering and classification methods yielded higher correlations for the 2013-2014 influenza season than those found for tweets in the previous influenza season, where emergency department ILI rates were better correlated to tweets than sentinel-provided ILI rates. Further investigations in the field would require expansion with regard to the location that the tweets are collected from, as well as the availability of more ILI data.

Despite the central role that communication skills play in contemporary accounts of effective health care delivery in general, and the communication of medical error specifically, there is no common or consensual core in the health professions regarding the nature of such skills. This lack of consensus reflects, in part, the tendency for disciplines to reinvent concepts and measures without first situating such development in disciplines with more cognate specialization in such concepts. In this essay, an integrative model of communication competence is introduced, along with its theoretical background and rationale. Communication competence is defined as an impression of appropriateness and effectiveness, which is functionally related to individual motivation, knowledge, skills, and contextual facilitators and constraints. Within this conceptualization, error disclosure contexts are utilized to illustrate the heuristic value of the theory, and implications for assessment are suggested.

The “Me Too” movement, founded by activist Tarana Burke, began in 2006, before Twitter became the viral platform for political activism and news media that it is known for today. The reemergence of the Me Too movement on Twitter in 2017 sparked a widespread focus on the societal issue of sexual misconduct. This study examines sexual assault disclosures as an aspect of such misconduct through the context of the Me Too movement on Twitter. Through the use of content analysis, online disclosures of sexual assault (N = 1,459) are examined for variations of sexual explicitness and attainment of social functions per the functional theory of self-disclosure. Specifically, this study explores associations between Twitter network structure and (1) levels of sexual explicitness and (2) retweet count. Through manual coding and statistical analysis, the study finds associations between sexual explicitness of online disclosures and retweet count as well as associations between network structure and sexual explicitness of disclosures. The study shifts the focus of disclosure discourse from dyadic communication to the contemporary context of networked social media. Implications for theory and practice are discussed, which include, but are not limited to, the exploration of associations between disclosing and catharsis, disclosing that may be characterized as neutral or conflicted, and disclosing sexual assault without being sexually explicit.

A meta-analysis of 108 samples across 103 studies of stalking-related phenomena, representing almost 70,000 participants, reveals an average prevalence across studies of 23.5% for women and 10.5% for men, with an average duration of almost 2 years. The average proportion of female victims across studies was 75%, and 77% of stalking emerged from some form of prior acquaintance, with 49% originating from romantic relationships. New typologies of stalking behavior, coping responses to stalking, and symptomology due to stalking victimization are reported. Across 42 studies, the average physical violence incidence was 33%, and 17 studies produced an average sexual violence incidence of slightly greater than 10%. A summary of 32 studies of restraining orders indicated that they are violated an average of 40% of the time and are perceived as followed by worse events almost 21% of the time.

The pandemic spread rapidly across Italy, putting the region’s health system on the brink of collapse, and generating concern regarding the government’s capacity to respond to the needs of patients considering isolation measures. This study developed a sentiment analysis using millions of Twitter data during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in 10 metropolitan cities in Italy’s (1) north: Milan, Venice, Turin, Bologna; (2) central: Florence, Rome; (3) south: Naples, Bari; and (4) islands: Palermo, Cagliari. Questions addressed are as follows: (1) How did tweet-related sentiments change over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, and (2) How did sentiments change when lagged with policy shifts and/or specific events? Findings show an assortment of differences and connections across Twitter sentiments (fear, anger, and joy) based on policy measures and geographies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results can be used by policy makers to quantify the satisfactory level of positive/negative acceptance of decision makers and identify important topics related to COVID-19 policy measures, which can be useful for imposing geographically varying lockdowns and protective measures using historical data.

This handbooks series aims to integrate knowledge of communication structures and processes. It is global in orientation, dedicated to cultural and epistemological diversity as well as different scholarly approaches. The series features volumes on 'messages, codes and channels', 'mode of address: communication situations and context', 'methodology in communication science' and 'application areas'. The latter features volumes devoted to a large range of specialist areas of communication science. The series as a whole aims at meeting the needs of undergraduates, postgraduates, academics and researchers across the area of communication studies.

This study investigated the extent to which social support mediates negative effects of stalking and obsessive relational intrusion (ORI) victimization. A survey of 1,068 respondents indicated that (a) ORI/stalking victimization is positively related to negative symptoms and trauma; (b) five different types of coping responses are positively related to negative symptoms; (c) four domains of social support reveal small but significant negative relationships with negative symptoms; and (d) females are more threatened by unwanted pursuit than male victims, and male pursuers are more threatening than female pursuers. Structural equation modeling indicates that the influence of ORI/stalking on negative symptoms is mediated by the use of coping strategies and the adequacy of social support. Discussion speculates on the functional theoretical value of coping and support processes in managing unwanted pursuit and stalking.

The Dark Side of Close Relationships II is a completely new and up-to-date version of the original volume published in 1998, featuring new topics and authors. The volume showcases cutting-edge work on important topics by prominent scholars in multiple disciplines. It sheds light on the paradoxical, dialectical, and mystifying facets of human interaction, not merely to elucidate dysfunctional relationship phenomena, but to help readers explore and understand it in relation to a broader understanding about relationships. As previous Dark Side investigations have revealed, negative or dysfunctional outcomes can occur in relationships even though positive and functional ones are expected, and at the same time, positive silver linings are often found in some dark relational clouds. Such nuanced approaches are needed to better account for the complexity of close relationships. A unique and provocative collection, this volume will appeal to relationship researchers in communication, social psychology, family studies, and sociology. \"They succeed in presenting a coherent volume that incorporates myriad disciplinary perspectives, including communication, psychology, anthropology, and sociology.\" - CHOICE, April 2011 William R. Cupach received his Ph.D. in Communication Arts & Sciences from the University of Southern California. Currently he is Professor of Communication at Illinois State University. In addition to numerous monographs and journal articles, he has co-authored or co-edited twelve books. He previously served as Associate Editor for the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships and is a past President of the International Association for Relationship Research. Brian H. Spitzberg received his Ph.D. in Communication Arts & Sciences from the University of Southern California. He is now a Professor in the School of Communication at San Diego State University. He has conducted extensive research on topics related to interpersonal communication skills and competence. He has published numerous scholarly articles and chapters, as well as co-authoring or co-editing the previous four editions related to the dark side, and two books on interpersonal competence. 1. Overview of the Dark Side of Relationships Research Daniel Perlman and Rodrigo J. Carcedo 2. May-December Paradoxes: An Exploration of Age-Gap Relationships in Western Society Justin J. Lehmiller and Christopher R. Agnew 3. Fairytales and Tragedies: Narratively Making Sense of the Dark Side (and the Dark Side of Making Sense) of Personal Relationships Jody Koenig Kellas, Erin K. Willer, and Haley Kranstuber 4. Dark Sides of Computer-Mediated Communication David C. DeAndrea, Stephanie Tom Tong, and Joseph B. Walther 5. Internet Matching Services: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (Disguised as Attractive) Susan Sprecher 6. Affectionate Communication is Good, Except When it isn’t: On the Dark Side of Expressing Affection Kory Floyd and Perry M. Pauley 7. Infidelity: When, Where, Why Irene Tsapelas, Helen E. Fisher, and Arthur Aron 8. Relational Turbulence: What Doesn’t Kill Us Makes Us Stronger Denise Haunani Solomon and Jennifer A. Theiss 9. In-Laws or Outlaws: The Dark and the Bright in In-Law Relationships Mary Claire Morr Serewicz and Rebecca A. Hosmer 10. Dark Clouds with Silver Linings: The (Dys)Functional Ambivalence of Stepfamily Relationships Paul Schrodt and Dawn O. Braithwaite 11. Women’s Relationships with Incarcerated Men Susan A. Miller and Diane H. Felmlee 12. The Meaning of Girls’ Social Aggression: Nasty or Mastery? Erin K. Willer and William R. Cupach 13. Intimate Partner Violence and Aggression: Seeing the Light in a Dark Place Brian H. Spitzberg 14. Narcissism and Relationships: From Light to Dark Joshua D. Foster and Jean M. Twenge 15. Living Single: Lightening Up those Dark, Dopey Myths Bella DePaulo