Algorithmic Hauntings: miscarriage and grief in online social media

“发达经济体”的大多数准父母现在都在使用在线社交媒体来增强产前体验。这些媒体使用人工智能(AI)来分析用户的偏好，并向他们推荐最“相关”的内容。这样的人工智能在怀孕期间可能是有益的：一条满足个人需求的产科产品和服务的捷径。然而，当流产发生时，这种人工智能的适应速度很慢；婴儿服装的广告或“怀孕应用程序”的通知可能会在失去亲人后的几个月里在网上“困扰”他们。这些“闹鬼”使悲痛复杂化，并危及网络上易受攻击的人的安全。这些现象可能很普遍：社交媒体的使用无处不在，而四分之一的英国女性在怀孕前三个月流产，黑人和少数民族女性受到的影响不成比例。该项目将通过三个关键研究问题来调查女性流产后被在线怀孕内容困扰的经历：女性是如何被在线怀孕内容困扰的，流产后？是什么原因造成了这些困扰，以及现有或需要什么样的社交媒体监管？种族在这些“闹鬼”的经历中扮演了什么角色？总结研究表明，三分之一的女性在流产后患上创伤后应激障碍；BAME女性流产的可能性高40%，流产后更有可能患上严重的抑郁症。在这种背景下，通过在线怀孕内容“困扰”失去亲人的人是一种巨大的磨难；进一步加剧了悲痛；加剧了现有的精神疾病。尽管如此，这些“闹鬼”在社会学研究中仍然很大程度上没有被发掘。目前还不清楚对那些被网上怀孕内容“困扰”的人有什么保护措施。虽然一项新的网络安全法案旨在限制社交媒体上的非法内容，但流产后女性面临的那种“合法但有害的”内容仍将不受监管。社交媒体用户可以通过内置设置控制他们在网上看到的内容，但这些设置很难定位，而且通常会在“在线伤害”发生后进行调整。与此同时，NHS的助产士越来越多地开出“怀孕应用”的处方，几乎没有对它们的安全使用提供指导。这些工具在流产后的影响可能是复杂的，但尚未被探索。这项研究将考察女性流产后被在线怀孕内容困扰的经历；女性如何理解这些“闹鬼”；以及它们在构建悲伤和记忆中扮演的角色。它将审查这些“闹鬼”产生的人工智能，并询问社交媒体政策和监管中对被怀孕内容“困扰”的女性有什么保护措施。它将探索社交媒体在助产中的使用；询问这种做法是否解释了其更有问题的影响。最后，它将考虑种族如何影响那些“闹鬼”的经历，以及如何解决这一领域的不平等问题。这项研究建立在之前研究生研究的基础上，研究了Facebook在纪念死者方面的使用。它将通过约克大学的主要研究中心提供支持：死亡与文化网络、悲伤：人类情感体验研究，以及算法--算法、悲伤和失落。它将受益于这些网络和社交媒体公司之间的现有联系，以及怀孕丢失慈善机构Tommy‘s。这项研究为死亡社会学、数字媒体研究和心理健康研究提供了独特的贡献。它将影响未来对社交媒体的监管，以及Gitch和Mind等争取社交媒体公平的组织。该项目将提供一个针对助产士和心理健康专业人士的无障碍培训项目，主题是“社交媒体和流产”。这项培训将明确社交媒体在流产背景下的固有风险，以及如何改进其在健康环境中的使用。

A majority of prospective parents in 'advanced economies' now use online social media to enhance their ante-natal experience. These media use artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse users' preferences, and recommend to them the most "relevant" content. Such AI can be beneficial in pregnancy: a short-cut to maternity products and services that meet individual needs. However, when miscarriage occurs this AI is slow to adapt; adverts for baby clothes or notifications from 'pregnancy apps' can 'haunt' the bereaved online for months after loss. These "hauntings" complicate grief, and compromise the safety of vulnerable people online. They are likely widespread: social media use is ubiquitous, while 1 in 4 UK women miscarry in the first trimester, with black and minority ethnic women disproportionately affected. This project will investigate the experience of women "haunted" by online pregnancy content post-miscarriage through three key research questions: How are women "haunted" by online pregnancy content, post-miscarriage?What causes these "hauntings", and what social media regulation exists or is needed? What role does ethnicity play in how these "hauntings" are experienced?SummaryStudies indicate that 1 in 3 women develop PTSD following miscarriage; that BAME women are 40% more likely to miscarry, and more likely to develop severe depression post-miscarriage. In this context, the "haunting" of the bereaved through online pregnancy content is a significant ordeal; further complicating grief; exacerbating existing mental ill-health. Despite this, these "hauntings" remain largely unexplored in sociological research. It is unclear what protections exist for those "haunted" by pregnancy content online. While a new Online Safety Bill aims to limit illegal material in social media, 'legal but harmful' content of the kind faced by women post-miscarriage will remain unregulated. Social media users can control what they see online through in-built settings, but these are hard to locate, and typically adjusted after 'online harm' has occurred. At the same time, 'pregnancy apps' are increasingly prescribed by NHS midwives, with little guidance on their safe use. The impact of these tools post-miscarriage is likely complex, but has yet to be explored. This research will examine the experience of women "haunted" by online pregnancy content post-miscarriage; how women comprehend these "hauntings"; and what role they play in the construction of grief and remembrance. It will examine the AI from which these "hauntings" arise, and ask what protections for women "haunted" by pregnancy content exist in social media policy and regulation. It will explore the use of social media in midwifery; asking whether such practice accounts for its more problematic effects. Lastly, it will consider how ethnicity informs the experience of those "haunted", and how inequalities in this area can be addressed. This research builds on previous Postgraduate research on the use of Facebook in the memorialisation of the dead. It will be supported through key research centres at the University of York: Death and Culture Network, Grief: A Study of Human Emotional Experience, and ALGorithms - Algorithms, Grief and Loss. It will benefit from existing links between these networks and social media companies, and the pregnancy loss charity Tommy's. This research offers a unique contribution to research in the sociology of death, digital media studies, and mental health. It will impact future regulation of social media, and organisations campaigning for social media equity, such as Glitch, and Mind. The project will deliver an accessible training program on 'social media and miscarriage', designed for midwifery and mental health professionals. This training will pinpoint risks inherent to social media in the context of miscarriage, and how their use in health settings can be improved.