Hitchhiking Experiences and Perception of Affective Label Polarity in Social Networking Sites—Potential Memetic Implications for Digital Visual Content Management

Abstract

Digital Visual Content (DVC), as sets of meanings, constitutes a pictorial representation of phenomena and may lead users of Social Networking Sites (SNS) to specific behavioral activities, i.e., connected with the expression of emotions. The goal of this research paper was to create a methodology of analysis and visualization of SNS users’ emotional responses to the hitchhiker archetype, built on the basis of a semantic decomposition of photos shared by hitchhikers in a closed group of Facebook users. Hitchhiker, as an archetype of authentic and sustainable tourism, was used as an illustrative example. ABSA (Aspect-Based Sentiment Analysis) methodology was used for a semantic decomposition of 300 randomly selected photos, applying the theoretical framework of information ecology. As a result, collections of single meanings (aspects) were distinguished and grouped into four main denotation groups: “Hitchhiker environment”, “Activities of hitchhikers”, “Season” and “Heritage”. Having created a holistic view of the archetype from aspects appearing at different frequencies, it was assumed that the archetype could be viewed as a meme. Given this memetic archetype and the emotional response associated with it, it could be considered a subject of cultural selection, conditioned by the influence of several factors, e.g., user demographics. The results allow for the development of the premises for research related to the dynamics, evolutionary analysis, and visualization of memes as well as emotional responses of visual content recipients.