Exploring Reader-Generated Language to Describe Multicultural Literature

How do readers describe multicultural fiction works? While in library and information science (LIS) we have the language of appeal factorsand genre trendsto describe works of fiction, these linguistic choices may not be used by readers to describe their own responses and reactions to works that prov...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Denice Adkins, Jenny S. Bossaller, Heather Moulaison Sandy
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: East Carolina University 2019-04-01
Series:The International Journal of Information, Diversity, & Inclusion
Subjects:
Online Access:https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/ijidi/article/view/32591
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author Denice Adkins
Jenny S. Bossaller
Heather Moulaison Sandy
author_facet Denice Adkins
Jenny S. Bossaller
Heather Moulaison Sandy
author_sort Denice Adkins
collection DOAJ
description How do readers describe multicultural fiction works? While in library and information science (LIS) we have the language of appeal factorsand genre trendsto describe works of fiction, these linguistic choices may not be used by readers to describe their own responses and reactions to works that provide cultural affirmation of one’s own culture or exposure to learning different cultures. In this research, text mining processes are employed to harvest reader-generated book reviews and subsequently analyze the words readers use to describe award-winning multicultural fiction on the retailer site Amazon.com. Our goal with this study is to provide LIS professionals an insight into readers’ perspectives related to multicultural fiction. We describe our methodology of engaging in topic modeling as described by Jockers and Mimno (2013) as applied to multicultural fiction reviews. First, we explore the construction and processing of a corpus of reader reviews of multicultural fiction titles, then we model topics using a topic modeling toolkit to generate topics from these reviews. Through this analysis, we determine consistent terms used to describe multicultural fiction that can be used to indicate common reader experience and identify topics. Closing discussion reflects on whether librarians can use text mining of reader reviews to enhance their reader advisory services for readers seeking books that represent multiple and/or diverse cultures.
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spelling doaj.art-6a51c4ca2cb1412aab25eeeba0acf99b2023-08-02T04:35:40ZengEast Carolina UniversityThe International Journal of Information, Diversity, & Inclusion2574-34302019-04-013210.33137/ijidi.v3i2.32591Exploring Reader-Generated Language to Describe Multicultural LiteratureDenice Adkins0Jenny S. Bossaller1Heather Moulaison Sandy2University of MissouriUniversity of MissouriUniversity of MissouriHow do readers describe multicultural fiction works? While in library and information science (LIS) we have the language of appeal factorsand genre trendsto describe works of fiction, these linguistic choices may not be used by readers to describe their own responses and reactions to works that provide cultural affirmation of one’s own culture or exposure to learning different cultures. In this research, text mining processes are employed to harvest reader-generated book reviews and subsequently analyze the words readers use to describe award-winning multicultural fiction on the retailer site Amazon.com. Our goal with this study is to provide LIS professionals an insight into readers’ perspectives related to multicultural fiction. We describe our methodology of engaging in topic modeling as described by Jockers and Mimno (2013) as applied to multicultural fiction reviews. First, we explore the construction and processing of a corpus of reader reviews of multicultural fiction titles, then we model topics using a topic modeling toolkit to generate topics from these reviews. Through this analysis, we determine consistent terms used to describe multicultural fiction that can be used to indicate common reader experience and identify topics. Closing discussion reflects on whether librarians can use text mining of reader reviews to enhance their reader advisory services for readers seeking books that represent multiple and/or diverse cultures.https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/ijidi/article/view/32591Amazon reviewsappeal factorsmulticultural fictionmulticultural literaturetopic modeling
spellingShingle Denice Adkins
Jenny S. Bossaller
Heather Moulaison Sandy
Exploring Reader-Generated Language to Describe Multicultural Literature
The International Journal of Information, Diversity, & Inclusion
Amazon reviews
appeal factors
multicultural fiction
multicultural literature
topic modeling
title Exploring Reader-Generated Language to Describe Multicultural Literature
title_full Exploring Reader-Generated Language to Describe Multicultural Literature
title_fullStr Exploring Reader-Generated Language to Describe Multicultural Literature
title_full_unstemmed Exploring Reader-Generated Language to Describe Multicultural Literature
title_short Exploring Reader-Generated Language to Describe Multicultural Literature
title_sort exploring reader generated language to describe multicultural literature
topic Amazon reviews
appeal factors
multicultural fiction
multicultural literature
topic modeling
url https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/ijidi/article/view/32591
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AT jennysbossaller exploringreadergeneratedlanguagetodescribemulticulturalliterature
AT heathermoulaisonsandy exploringreadergeneratedlanguagetodescribemulticulturalliterature