Artificial intelligence tools are increasingly used in editorial work, bringing significant benefits and new creative opportunities. However, they also raise ethical and professional challenges that require careful consideration. This research investigates the ethical risks associated with the use of AI in the Romanian media system, focusing on phenomena such as algorithmic bias, misinformation, disinformation amplification, and transparency. The analysis also addresses the risk of diminishing human editorial control and the trend toward content standardization.
The research methodology is qualitative, involving 15 semi-structured interviews with media professionals in Romania (10 experienced journalists and 5 editors-in-chief). The results highlight an ambivalent position towards AI integration. Although respondents recognise the operational advantages of automation in optimising workflows, they express consistent concerns about ethical vulnerabilities, reduced editorial responsibility, and the potential amplification of structural dysfunctions already existing in the Romanian media landscape.
Participants co-explain the need to adopt clear ethical codes for the use of AI in newsrooms, as well as coherent, enforceable legal regulations. In the absence of such mechanisms, the uncontrolled integration of AI risks accentuating superficiality, commercial pressures, and the dilution of professional standards. This study advocates a hybrid working model in which AI serves as a tool to complement journalistic practice, without substituting for professional judgment or compromising public trust.

Introduction: Online discussions about nutrition unfold across heterogeneous digital communities that extend beyond explicitly health-focused forums and spaces. Yet, it remains unclear how nutrition-related discourse is distributed across broader social domains and whether its thematic embedding reflects the Social Determinants of Health (SDH) framework. To address this question, we systematically mapped Reddit communities using a taxonomy derived from Wikipedia’s curated content categories.

Methods: Approximately 60,000 subreddits were classified into thematic domains, derived from Wikipedia’s curated content taxonomy using large language models (LLMs) with enforced structured outputs. Nutrition-related subreddits were then identified and aligned with SDH domains, using an LLM-assisted approach followed by manual verification. To examine how nutrition discourse is distributed across social contexts at the community level, we conducted analyses using two complementary perspectives: an unweighted approach capturing community diversity and an activity-weighted approach capturing discourse intensity.

Results: In the unweighted analysis, 65% of nutrition-related subreddits were classified under health care access and quality, while 35% were distributed across non-health SDH domains, including lifestyle and individual behavior (24%), economic stability (6%), social and community context (3%), and education access and quality (1.5%). However, the activity-weighted analysis revealed a clear distributional asymmetry: although health-oriented communities are more numerous, discourse intensity is disproportionately concentrated in lifestyle-centered spaces. Specifically, while lifestyle- and individual behavior-focused communities represent only 24% of nutrition-related subreddits, they generate 40% of total nutrition-related activity, compared with 47% generated by health care-focused communities.

Conclusions: A clear distributional asymmetry in online nutrition discourse was revealed in this study. Our findings demonstrate that digital nutrition communication is not confined to formal health contexts but is embedded within broader social domains central to the Social Determinants of Health framework. Methodologically, the study illustrates the value of LLM-assisted taxonomy mapping for large-scale, domain-level analysis in computational social science.

Historically, children have been recognized as central to social work practice: vulnerable yet powerful levers of social change. Yet adult, institutional, and policy lenses often silence their experiences. Globally, child-centered practice has shifted from charity and welfare models toward rights- and strengths-based frameworks that recognize children as capable social actors who bear agency and voice. Despite this evolution, many children in contexts of poverty, migration, and informal urban settlements remain excluded from state protections and basic services.

This study examines how a non-state actor, the Children of the World India Trust (CWIT), operationalizes child-centered practice in the Sai Nagar and Sambhaji Nagar settlements of Navi Mumbai. Adopting a bottom-up, qualitative case-study design, the research draws on a year-long field immersion through participant observation, reflective field notes, and informal interviews with children, parents, and staff. Data were thematically analyzed across education, nutrition, and holistic development, and framed by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and ecological perspectives on development.

Findings show that CWIT functions as a stabilizing microsystem within children’s everyday ecologies, proving crucial and transformative in children's lives through consistent care, participation-based learning, and resilience-building engagement. Interventions focused on building literacy and education for all emerged as empowering, nutrition catering to children’s basic needs, and structured recreation and co-curricular activities as fostering a sense of self-expression. These actions create a ripple effect, extending beyond the child to their families and communities, promoting overall changes in parental mindsets and the community’s approach.

The study argues for reframing child-centered social work from an abstract ideal to a practice of everyday relationships and systems-level scaffolding. To strengthen child welfare in underserved urban contexts, policy and practice must center children’s voices, enable participation, and support NGOs that translate rights-based theory into sustained, context-responsive action, positioning children as co-authors of their development.

This study explores the impact of social media networks on the maintenance of romantic relationships among undergraduate students at the University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka. Within a digitalized social space shaped by modernity, interpersonal relationships face unique challenges. Factors such as personal busyness and digital communication often lead individuals toward virtual relationships. As connectivity is increasingly interpreted as a core characteristic of intimacy, people resort to virtual spaces to fulfill their social needs. Adopting a qualitative approach, this study gained an in-depth understanding of student experiences through semi-structured interviews with 30 selected participants at the University of Ruhuna. The data collected was analyzed using thematic analysis to identify digital behavior patterns. The findings reveal that while technology has simplified communication, it has simultaneously fostered digital jealousy and suspicion among romantic partners. Constant digital socialization often undermines mutual trust, leading to conflicts within relationships. A significant observation is that although technology facilitates connectivity, it tends to diminish emotional security. The study concludes that maintaining relationships through digital methods in the modern era has become more challenging compared to traditional romantic dynamics. This shift profoundly impacts the formation and sustainability of social institutions. Therefore, in the digital age, enhancing individuals' “Mental literacy”, which refers to an individual's capacity to critically and rationally navigate the events occurring within their digital environment while simultaneously possessing the ability to mitigate the resulting psychological distress, is crucial for maintaining healthy and sustainable relationships.

The rapid integration of artificial intelligence into manufacturing environments fundamentally reshapes worker identity, organizational hierarchies, and labor relations. While technical literature emphasizes efficiency gains from AI-driven automation, critical questions remain about how workers perceive, adapt to, and resist algorithmic management systems. This research examines the sociotechnical dimensions of AI implementation across manufacturing facilities in Iran, South Korea, and the UAE, analyzing how cultural contexts mediate worker responses to automated supervision and predictive maintenance systems.

Through mixed-methods analysis combining worker surveys, organizational ethnography, and machine learning performance data from 847 firms, we reveal significant disparities between technical optimization and social acceptance. Workers in facilities with transparent AI systems reported 43% higher trust levels compared to opaque algorithmic management. Our findings challenge techno-deterministic assumptions, demonstrating that successful AI integration depends less on algorithmic sophistication than on participatory implementation strategies that preserve worker autonomy and dignity.

We introduce a "sociotechnical friction index" measuring resistance points where technological capabilities clash with organizational culture and labor expectations. Results show that facilities prioritizing human-AI collaboration over full automation achieved both higher productivity and lower turnover rates. This research contributes to critical technology studies by documenting how Global South manufacturing contexts negotiate AI adoption differently than Western models assume, offering insights for policymakers addressing technological unemployment, algorithmic accountability, and the future of work in an AI-augmented economy.

In a globalised context where cultural diversity and sustainability are central concerns within the built environment, religious architecture increasingly reflects processes of cultural adaptation and social coexistence. In Bali, mosque architecture offers a distinctive case of acculturation between Islamic architectural principles and a Hindu-majority cultural context. Rather than adopting standardised mosque forms, many mosques in Bali demonstrate adaptive design approaches shaped by local cultural norms and sustainability considerations.

This study adopts a qualitative research design based on secondary data. Data sources include peer reviewed academic literature, architectural drawings, planning and regulatory documents, and publicly available visual records of selected mosques in Bali. A thematic analysis approach is employed to examine how cultural acculturation and sustainability are articulated through architectural form, spatial organisation, and symbolic representation.

The analysis identifies recurring design strategies, including selective localisation of architectural elements, moderated religious symbolism, and contextual spatial adaptation influenced by Hindu Balinese traditions. These strategies demonstrate how mosque architecture responds to cultural context while maintaining religious function and visibility.

The study concludes that mosque architecture in Bali operates as a form of social technology through which Islamic Hindu acculturation contributes to cultural sustainability and social harmony. By framing architecture as a socio-technical practice, this research contributes to social science discussions on Society and Technology and highlights the role of the built environment in sustaining pluralistic and culturally diverse societies.

Introduction: Older adults residing in long-term care facilities often face challenges such as reduced autonomy and limited opportunities for personal growth. While Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR) offers potential for psychological support, evidence regarding its acceptance and feasibility among this population, particularly for those without cognitive impairment, is limited. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility, user engagement, and safety of an IVR intervention designed around Ryff’s Psychological Well-Being dimensions, contrasting active versus passive participation.

Method: An exploratory pilot study was conducted with 12 residents of a long-term care facility (aged 67–95) without cognitive impairment. Participants were assigned to three groups: Active IVR (interactive tasks within WebXR environments), Passive IVR (observational experience of the same environments), and Control. The intervention comprised eight sessions. Assessment included the Ryff Psychological Well-Being Scale (pre-post), the NPT-ES scale (engagement/social interaction), and presence/satisfaction questionnaires.

Results: Although pre–post statistical analysis of the Ryff scale showed no significant changes—consistent with the pilot's exploratory sample size—feasibility indicators were highly positive. Both IVR groups reported high scores in presence and strong engagement (NPT-ES), with participants expressing enjoyment and positive social interaction. Crucially, rejection rates and adverse effects (cybersickness) were negligible, with most participants feeling safe and willing to repeat the experience, regardless of the active or passive modality.

Conclusions: Implementing IVR interventions for older adults in residential care is feasible and safe, generating high satisfaction and positive engagement. While the eight-session pilot did not yield statistical shifts in deep psychological constructs, the high acceptance suggests IVR is a promising tool for social enrichment and meaningful engagement. Future research should scale up the sample size to test clinical efficacy.

Keywords: Virtual Reality; Older Adults; Feasibility; Ryff’s Well-Being; Long-Term Care; Quality of Life.

Introduction
The recent surge in the development of digital labor platforms in India has heightened worries about the issue of income instability and financial insecurity among gig workers. The allocation of tasks, pricing, incentives, and performance assessments are controlled by computerized management systems that tend to bring uncertainty in earnings. At the same time, financial vulnerability is made worse by the lack of access to formal social protection mechanisms. Although earlier studies have addressed the subject of algorithmic control and labor precarity in isolation, there is very limited empirical information that addresses worker perceptions of fairness, income stability, and social protection as a combined factor in income volatility in emerging economies.

Methods
This study used a validated 20-item Likert-scale measure to collect primary data on 220 gig workers on ride-hailing, food delivery, logistics, and home-service platforms in India. Cronbach's alpha (α >.79) was used to assure reliability. A five-factor model with 67.27 percent of overall variance was supported by Exploratory Factor Analysis. Multiple regression analysis was done to discover predictors of income volatility.

Results
The regression model was statistically significant (R² = .419, p < .001). Perceived Income Stability (β = .278, p < .001), Algorithmic Fairness (β = .231, p = .001), and Perceived Social Protection Adequacy (β = .188, p = .005) significantly predicted income volatility. Social Security Awareness was not statistically significant (p = .073).

Conclusions
The conditions of structural platforms and subjective perceptions of fairness, stability, and institutional support play a role in the volatility of incomes in the Indian gig economy, in addition to other factors. To decrease economic precarity within digital labor markets, policy reforms must focus on earnings predictability, algorithmic transparency and sufficient social protection systems.

Social movements are central to Bangladesh’s political and social fabric; scarcely a month passes without one emerging. These movements have repeatedly shaped governance, transforming popular grievances into tangible political and policy outcomes that redefine the nation’s democratic and socio-economic landscape. This study examines the dynamic interplay between public policy and social movements, highlighting how policies can generate public discontent, signal social necessity, and be actively reshaped through citizen mobilization. Drawing on a qualitative, document-based narrative conceptual methodology, the study analyses historical records, news reports, government documents, and scholarly research to explore political and socio-economic mobilizations, encompassing both historical and contemporary episodes. Findings reveal that social movements operate as structurally embedded actors within the governance ecosystem, functioning as informal accountability mechanisms that influence policy content, amplify public scrutiny, and reinforce democratic responsiveness. Policies perceived as unjust, exclusionary, or poorly implemented often serve as triggers for collective action, while weak institutional channels increase the reliance on extra-institutional participation. The study identifies cyclical patterns in which policy decisions, mobilization, and state responses interact recursively, producing adaptive governance outcomes. Moreover, social movements are shown to contribute to broader societal debates, shaping public discourse, highlighting structural inequities, and fostering civic consciousness. The paper concludes with recommendations for participatory policy design, strengthened institutional responsiveness, and the cultivation of formal channels for citizen engagement. It further suggests directions for future research, including longitudinal studies to assess long-term impacts, comparative analyses across national and regional contexts, and the examination of digital mobilization and social media as transformative tools for collective action in contemporary governance. By elucidating the mutually constitutive relationship between policy and social movements, this study contributes to a deeper understanding of Bangladesh’s evolving democratic landscape and the mechanisms through which citizens influence governance outcomes.

Digital platforms have evolved into core infrastructures of contemporary social life; however, their continuous transformation generates persistent forms of collective uncertainty. This paper introduces the concept of platform anxiety to explain how algorithmic environments produce socially shared experiences of instability, unpredictability, and perceived loss of control. Rather than framing anxiety as an individual psychological condition, this study conceptualizes it as a structurally mediated phenomenon emerging from socio-technical design.
Methodologically, the research adopts a qualitative design based on thematic analysis of in-depth user narratives and observed platform interaction practices. The empirical material consists of qualitative data collected from [n = …] active social media users, focusing on their everyday experiences of visibility, algorithmic change, and communicative self-regulation across major digital platforms. Data were analyzed through iterative coding procedures to identify recurring interpretive patterns and adaptive strategies.
The findings indicate that rapid interface changes, opaque algorithmic decision-making, and continuous visibility pressures intensify reflexive self-monitoring and reshape communicative norms. Users respond by developing micro-level risk management strategies, including selective self-disclosure, temporal withdrawal, and identity modulation. These practices significantly influence trust formation, participation patterns, and perceptions of agency within digital environments.
This paper argues that platform anxiety constitutes a defining condition of hyperconnected societies, affecting not only individual well-being but also the structure of digital public interaction. By framing uncertainty as a systemic outcome of platform architecture, this study contributes to interdisciplinary debates in communication theory and digital sociology and offers a robust conceptual framework for analyzing the long-term social consequences of algorithmically mediated communication.