Hospital, interdisciplinary, nursing, technology, work environment.

The agenda‐setting function of the mass media was first established in the 1970s. Since then, research on agenda‐setting has expanded to include six areas of research. The first category is the original hypothesis, which examines the cognitive effects of news on consumers. The second category, sources of the media agenda, concerns how competing actors in public debate affect public opinion and includes agenda‐building research. The third category, the policy agenda, deals with the effect of news media on policy. The fourth category is contingent conditions, which explains circumstances that may affect the agenda‐setting process. The fifth category is the second level, which shows that there is an affective component to the agenda‐setting process. The sixth category investigates the function of the agenda‐setting process in social media and the Internet. More recently, research has examined visual agenda‐setting and the third level of the agenda‐setting effect.

This study reports findings from what is, to the authors’ knowledge, the first nationally representative survey of public attitudes toward honor-based violence (HBV) in a Middle East country affected by such violence, and one of very few if any such national surveys undertaken in any context. In a telephone survey of 1,050 adult citizens of the Arab Gulf state of Kuwait, we collect attitudinal and behavioral measures of support for HBV. Facilitated by vignettes, item order randomization, and other survey best practices designed to reduce social desirability bias, the survey measures both support for HBV in principle and support for legislation permitting it. We also assess the correlates of views toward honor-based crimes, including demographic attributes (age, sex, and education), social indicators (economic status, religiosity, and tribal attachment), and political indicators (political interest, engagement, and ideology). These unique data permit investigation into the individual-level predictors of support for HBV among citizens of a country that has experience with HBV and laws that afford reduced punishment for perpetrators of honor killing. Results reveal, first, considerable levels of public support in Kuwait for HBV. Half of citizens report agreement that physical violence is justified as punishment for female adultery, whereas a third of both men and women say they would support a law permitting violence against a female adulterer. The strongest positive predictors of individual support for HBV are tribal attachment, religiosity, and support for political Islam. Surprisingly perhaps, permissive views of HBV are most likely among the youngest generation of Kuwaitis. The findings have important implications for understanding the factors that help explain the existence and persistence of HBV in the Middle East, in Islamic contexts, and elsewhere where it occurs.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore the role of the physical environment in patient satisfaction ratings as communicated in narratives on the social media platform such as Facebook. Design/methodology/approach Publicly available Facebook reviews (n = 4,502) of a reputable healthcare system in the USA were analyzed. A thematic analysis was conducted to explore architectural elements of the physical environment that play a role in patient satisfaction. Findings Facebook reviews were examined for the presence of design-related factors within the physical environment. Of the 627 posts (14 per cent) with relevant content, 56 involved factors related to the physical environment. The factors include: location, parking, cleanliness, privacy, waiting rooms, music and temperature. The results showed that environmental and design-related factors are part of patient satisfaction in hospitals. Research limitations/implications Not all Facebook reviews contain narrative information. Nevertheless, the impact of the built environment can manifest in online reviews of healthcare systems. Future patient satisfaction research should examine variables related to the built environment on social media ratings. Practical implications Social media feedback about the physical environment can help in understanding factors influencing patient satisfaction, which can have an implication for architectural design. Social implications The patient satisfaction is related to the physical environment of healthcare facilities. Some social media narratives reflect it and can be used to improve patient satisfaction. Originality/value Although some studies examine social media narratives on patient satisfaction, fewer studies examine these narratives in relation to the built environment. Created by a team of interdisciplinary researchers, this study provides a novel approach to examine social media ratings.

Kuwaiti students intending to major in mass communication face a long process that begins in high school. A survey of students at Kuwait University examined whether the process led to disillusionment of the mass communication field and/or mass communication education. Findings show that all respondents viewed the field of journalism positively. Respondents also viewed journalism education in a positive light. Students majoring or minoring in journalism differed from majors in other disciplines in several ways: They were more likely to be female and younger, and were more likely to agree with statements that mass communication is a good field for women, journalists make a good living, the field is highly respected, and friends would support their decision to major in mass communication. This is a significant finding because it demonstrates that mass communications is considered a safe industry for women even when the role of women in the public sphere does not have many decades of precedent. The results also suggest that the more active the students were in selecting a major, the more positive they felt about mass communications education. Students who had published works or internship experience were more likely to declare a major in mass communications. All students agreed that their education increased their appreciation for the field of mass communications. These findings demonstrate that journalism education can be beneficial even in nations where the media system is not completely free.