IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/sagope/v13y2023i1p21582440231160480.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Resilience and (Dis)empowerment: Use of Social Media Among Female Mainland Low-Skilled Workers in Macao During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Author

Listed:
  • Bei Ju
  • Hai Min Dai
  • Todd L. Sandel

Abstract

The role of social media in a resilient process is associated with the co-constitution of structural forces and users’ agency. During COVID-19, how women—particularly low-skilled labor migrants—used social media for empowerment is underexplored. By taking a socio-techno approach, this study qualitatively examines mobile phone-based social media usage among female mainland low-skilled workers in Macao when coping with the pandemic. The enabling yet constraining role of social media has been identified through semi-structured interviews. Social media use is a double-edged sword: on the one hand, social media is appropriated to relieve stress and anxiety, open access to updated COVID-19 related information, and manage contagious risks; on the other hand, it reinforces existing constraints and thus hinders resilience, due to female migrant workers’ high risk of addictive social media use and limited information literacy. Moving beyond the Information and Communication Technology empowerment, a more inclusive approach is recommended in the long term to cope with the risks and uncertainties posed by the pandemic.

Suggested Citation

  • Bei Ju & Hai Min Dai & Todd L. Sandel, 2023. "Resilience and (Dis)empowerment: Use of Social Media Among Female Mainland Low-Skilled Workers in Macao During the COVID-19 Pandemic," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(1), pages 21582440231, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:sagope:v:13:y:2023:i:1:p:21582440231160480
    DOI: 10.1177/21582440231160480
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/21582440231160480
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/21582440231160480?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. José van Dijck & Thomas Poell, 2013. "Understanding Social Media Logic," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 1(1), pages 2-14.
    2. Liu, Jun & Zhao, Hui, 2021. "Privacy lost: Appropriating surveillance technology in China’s fight against COVID-19," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 64(6), pages 743-756.
    3. Can Tang & Liqiu Zhao & Zhong Zhao, 2020. "Does free education help combat child labor? The effect of a free compulsory education reform in rural China," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 33(2), pages 601-631, April.
    4. Song Yueping & Wu Hantao & Dong Xiao-yuan & Wang Zhili, 2021. "To Return or Stay? The Gendered Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Migrant Workers in China," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(1-2), pages 236-253, April.
    5. Kaya, Tugberk, 2020. "The changes in the effects of social media use of Cypriots due to COVID-19 pandemic," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    6. Dang, Hai-Anh H. & Viet Nguyen, Cuong, 2021. "Gender inequality during the COVID-19 pandemic: Income, expenditure, savings, and job loss," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    7. Connor, Jade & Madhavan, Sarina & Mokashi, Mugdha & Amanuel, Hanna & Johnson, Natasha R. & Pace, Lydia E. & Bartz, Deborah, 2020. "Health risks and outcomes that disproportionately affect women during the Covid-19 pandemic: A review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 266(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jung, Haeil & Kim, Jun Hyung & Hong, Gihyeon, 2023. "Impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on single-person households in South Korea," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    2. Mariek Vanden Abeele & Ralf De Wolf & Rich Ling, 2018. "Mobile Media and Social Space: How Anytime, Anyplace Connectivity Structures Everyday Life," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(2), pages 5-14.
    3. Elena Ellmeier & Melanie Koch & Thomas Scheiber, 2023. "Saving behavior along the income distribution during the COVID-19 pandemic," Focus on European Economic Integration, Oesterreichische Nationalbank (Austrian Central Bank), issue Q1/23, pages 7-21.
    4. Farooq, Ali & Laato, Samuli & Islam, A.K.M. Najmul & Isoaho, Jouni, 2021. "Understanding the impact of information sources on COVID-19 related preventive measures in Finland," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    5. Chen, Yuanyuan & Wang, Haining & Cheng, Zhiming & Smyth, Russell, 2023. "Education and Migrant Health in China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    6. Liu, Yu-li & Wu, Yanfei & Li, Changyan & Song, Chuling & Hsu, Wen-yi, 2024. "Does displaying one's IP location influence users' privacy behavior on social media? Evidence from China's Weibo," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(5).
    7. Luis-Millán González & José Devís-Devís & Maite Pellicer-Chenoll & Miquel Pans & Alberto Pardo-Ibañez & Xavier García-Massó & Fernanda Peset & Fernanda Garzón-Farinós & Víctor Pérez-Samaniego, 2021. "The Impact of COVID-19 on Sport in Twitter: A Quantitative and Qualitative Content Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-20, April.
    8. Adermon, Adrian & Laun, Lisa & Lind, Patrik & Olsson, Martin & Sauermann, Jan & Sjögren , Anna, 2022. "Earnings losses and the role of the welfare state during the COVID-19 pandemic: evidence from Sweden," Working Paper Series 2022:20, IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy.
    9. Fukai, Taiyo & Ikeda, Masato & Kawaguchi, Daiji & Yamaguchi, Shintaro, 2023. "COVID-19 and the employment gender gap in Japan," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    10. Tang, Can & Zhao, Zhong, 2022. "Informal institution meets child development," MERIT Working Papers 2022-032, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    11. Combs, Elizabeth K. & Crouse, Sean R. & Bell, Katherine D. & Truong, Dothang, 2024. "Willingness to Fly during the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    12. Estela Marine-Roig & Eva Martin-Fuentes & Natalia Daries-Ramon, 2017. "User-Generated Social Media Events in Tourism," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-23, December.
    13. Sun, Yue & Zhao, Liqiu & Zhao, Zhong, 2024. "Hukou Status and Children's Education in China," IZA Discussion Papers 16763, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Martin Echeverría, 2023. "Experiencing Political Advertising Through Social Media Logic: A Qualitative Inquiry," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 11(2), pages 127-136.
    15. Rosa Luz Durán, 2022. "COVID-19 and heterogeneous vulnerabilities in the Peruvian labor market: implications for social inequalities and for gender gaps," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 39(1), pages 129-156, April.
    16. Celina Navarro & Gemma Gómez-Bernal, 2022. "The Use of Social Media by Spanish Feminist Organizations: Collectivity From Individualism," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 10(2), pages 93-103.
    17. Basu, Arnab K. & Dimova, Ralitza, 2021. "Household Preferences and Child Labor in Rural Ethiopia," IZA Discussion Papers 14062, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    18. Dolata, Ulrich, 2017. "Social movements and the Internet: The sociotechnical constitution of collective action," Research Contributions to Organizational Sociology and Innovation Studies, SOI Discussion Papers 2017-02, University of Stuttgart, Institute for Social Sciences, Department of Organizational Sociology and Innovation Studies.
    19. Valentina Rivera & Francisca Castro, 2021. "Between Social Protests and a Global Pandemic: Working Transitions under the Economic Effects of COVID-19," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-21, April.
    20. Koch, Michael & Park, Sarah, 2022. "Do government responses impact the relationship between age, gender and psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic? A comparison across 27 European countries," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 292(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:sagope:v:13:y:2023:i:1:p:21582440231160480. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.