Previous research has demonstrated that a societal stigma exists against individuals involved in on-line relationships. This study was designed to examine the impact that stigmatizing discourse from off-line family and friends has on the overall quality of such relationships. Participants in this study consisted of 159 on-line relationship partners who completed a web-based survey. The survey asked participants to recall messages that they had received about their online relationship from their off-line family and friends, and to fill out a questionnaire addressing their level of stigma consciousness and their perceptions of the quality of their on-line relationship. Trained coders then rated the messages from family and friends for levels of disapproval, severity, and explicitness. Results demonstrated that more severe, disapproving, and explicit messages from off-line family and friends correlated with higher levels of stigma consciousness on the part of the on-line relationship participant. Additionally, relationship participants who experienced more stigma consciousness were less satisfied with the overall quality of their on-line relationships. The theoretical and methodological implications of these results for on-line relationship are discussed.

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Are student ratings of communication instructors due to "easy" grading practices?: An analysis of teacher credibility and student-reported performance levels.

Gamification is the concept of infusing elements of gameplay (competition, incentives, story/narrative, collaboration, problem-solving, etc.) into non-game activities in order to make those activities more compelling. Recently, game designers have begun stressing the need for greater “maturity” in the field of gamification with greater focus on the importance of designing applications for optimal user experience. One hurdle to achieving maturity in the field is the fact that even gamification experts question “What exactly are the essential elements of gameplay that optimize user engagement and enjoyment?” Thus, the goal of the current chapter is to provide a comprehensive listing of the elements of gameplay that are essential to user engagement, and to provide examples of how each of those elements has been applied successfully in game design in the past. The chapter reviews 14 essential gameplay elements including: chance, control, creativity, completion, spectacle, status, strategy, unification, rules, narrative, recognition, collaboration, escapism, and enjoyment.