Richard Howard

Richard Howard

A smiling man with light skin, covered in numerous freckles, looks directly at the camera. He has blue eyes, brown hair, and a full, thick brown beard and mustache. He is wearing a white collared shirt with the top button undone, under a navy blue textured blazer. The background is a plain light gray.

Richard Howard is a 26 year old professional communication student at Ryerson University. Pursuing a Bachelor of Arts with minors in both philosophy and public relations, he aims to incorporate both his philosophical training, as well as his history as an electrical engineering student at the University of Waterloo, into his communication approach.

Research

This study investigates the potential relationship between social media use and feelings of nihilism. A quantitative survey of 39 subjects aged 18-28 was used to determine the extent to which a correlation between social media use and feelings of nihilism exists.

A research poster split into two columns. The left column, on a dark blue background, presents the main finding in large text: 'Young adults aged 18-28 who used social media more often, reported experiencing feelings of nihilism less frequently.' Below this text is a QR code and the author's name, 'Richard Howard.' The right column, on a lighter purple background, is titled 'WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FEELINGS OF NIHILISM AND SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE?' and outlines the study's introduction, method, and analysis. The introduction defines nihilism. The method details a quantitative study using digital surveys with a sample of 18-28 year olds. The analysis section describes the use of SPSS and results from bivariate, partial, and linear regression, indicating a negative correlation between feelings of nihilism and social media usage (p < 0.05), and that nihilism is more closely associated with mental health problems than social media usage.
Lightning Talk
Project Webpage

Project Tags

Social media, philosophy, nihilism, mental health, communication, technology
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