What People Tweet: A Methodological Approach to Exploring Language Functions in Content from Twitter

Abstract

This paper presents a methodological approach to explore the functions of the contents published by Twitter users, using as a theoretical foundation the model of Jakobson. Once the analytical tool was designed, it was validated with a case study. As an example of its applicability, the content published by the most active users in the following and follower section of a personal Twitter account were analyzed. Eleven thousand two hundred tweets were analyzed. From that analysis, some treats are proposed that could serve later to generate profiles. These profiles could illustrate, in what way Twitter users publish their content to inform, to brag, to judge or simply to play with language. The results explore the possibility of by means of function analysis and construction of users profiles, it might be plausible to reflect on the nature of 2.0 communication and its effcts on our interactions with one another.