https://doi.org/10.1140/epjds/s13688-023-00412-7
Regular Article
Using word embeddings to analyse audience effects and individual differences in parenting Subreddits
1
Science Foundation Ireland Centre for Research Training in Foundations of Data Science, Limerick, Ireland
2
Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Limerick, Castletroy, Limerick, Ireland
3
Centre for Social Issues Research, University of Limerick, Castletroy, Limerick, Ireland
4
Department of Psychology, University of Limerick, Castletroy, Limerick, Ireland
5
Department of Psychology, School of Applied Human Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
6
Department of Psychology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
7
School of Sociology, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
8
Geary Institute for Public Policy, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Received:
17
March
2023
Accepted:
21
August
2023
Published online:
20
September
2023
This paper explores how individuals’ language use in gender-specific groups (“mothers” and “fathers”) compares to their interactions when referred to as “parents.” Language adaptation based on the audience is well-documented, yet large-scale studies of naturally-occurring audience effects are rare. To address this, we investigate audience and gender effects in the context of parenting, where gender plays a significant role. We focus on interactions within Reddit, particularly in the parenting Subreddits r/Daddit, r/Mommit, and r/Parenting, which cater to distinct audiences. By analyzing user posts using word embeddings, we measure similarities between user-tokens and word-tokens, also considering differences among high and low self-monitors. Results reveal that in mixed-gender contexts, mothers and fathers exhibit similar behavior in discussing a wide range of topics, while fathers emphasize more on educational and family advice. Single-gender Subreddits see more focused discussions. Mothers in r/Mommit discuss medical care, sleep, potty training, and food, distinguishing themselves. In terms of individual differences, we found that, especially on r/Parenting, high self-monitors tend to conform more to the norms of the Subreddit by discussing more of the topics associated with the Subreddit.
Key words: Gender stereotypes / Parenting / Audience effects / Word embeddings / User embeddings / Reddit / Natural language processing / Computational social science
© The Author(s) 2023
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