Zhao X, Mao Y. The Identity Lies in the Words of Crowd-Funders: Help-Seekers' Identity Construction in Chinese Online Medical Crowd-Funding Discourses.
HEALTH COMMUNICATION 2023;
38:363-370. [PMID:
34251913 DOI:
10.1080/10410236.2021.1951959]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Ineffective identity construction of crowd-funders for medical events is a major factor blocking donations from arriving in time to help patients in need. There is a dearth of report on the discursive veins of identity construction in a web-based crowd-funding scenario in Eastern setting, such as in China. This is the first Chinese study aimed to discursively observe, analyze and evaluate identity construction of crowd-funders in online fundraising setting. Content and discourse analyses were employed, with focus on linguistic and interactional dimensions of 500 pieces of online fundraisers' personal statements (collected from https://www.qschou.com). Findings indicate that three different types of fundraisers' identities (as a family member/ a patient/ the disadvantaged) were constructed through discursive strategies oriented toward ethos, expertise and emotion respectively. The findings are conducive to offering online help-seekers an array of identity-motivated discursive strategies to make more prospective backers engage in a medical donative event. Results highlight that crowd-funders need support and training to obtain the expected amount of donation, focusing on enhancing the rhetoric toward sincerity, honesty and morality.
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