Table 1.
Proportion of TikTok video themes for all videos in each month
| Themes | Theme operational definitions | Subthemes | Subtheme operational definitions | January 2020 |
February 2020 |
March 2020 |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n | Percent | n | Percent | n | Percent | ||||
| Not relatedbc | Not applicable | 10 | 4% | 17 | 6% | 67 | 26% | ||
| Intended validity | Video's intended use | Informativeac | Providing useful or entertaining information | 50 | 20% | 29 | 12% | 36 | 19% |
| Narrative reliability | Narrator's reliability including text on screen, audio, and video components | Incorrect/Misleadingbc | Not in accordance with fact or omitted facts | 77 | 32% | 64 | 27% | 37 | 20% |
| Intended to informc | Free or mostly free from factual error | 4 | 2% | 7 | 3% | 15 | 8% | ||
| Video production | Style video was recorded and edited | Actionac | Real-time footage | 136 | 56% | 160 | 69% | 176 | 96% |
| Postprocessing effects | The use of additional effects and filters | 28 | 11% | 34 | 14% | 32 | 17% | ||
| Static imagesac | One or more images featured | 4 | 2% | 29 | 12% | 32 | 17% | ||
| Text on screena | At least one word or emoji featured in the video | 108 | 45% | 131 | 56% | 122 | 66% | ||
| Video sentiment | Video's prevailing mood or attitude | Humor/parodybc | Quality of being amusing or comic | 98 | 41% | 93 | 40% | 125 | 68% |
| Fearabc | Quality of using unpleasant emotions to motivate behavior or change beliefs | 52 | 22% | 32 | 14% | 14 | 8% | ||
| Empathyc | Quality of relating or sharing the feelings of another | 7 | 3% | 12 | 5% | 19 | 10% | ||
| Neutralc | Does not evoke emotions | 15 | 6% | 22 | 9% | 35 | 19% | ||
| Video content | Objects featured | Exposé | Evoking “revealing the truth” of a subject matter | 27 | 11% | 18 | 8% | 18 | 10% |
| Healthac | Featuring objects such as masks, PPE, hand sanitizer and other cleaning products | 44 | 18% | 68 | 29% | 66 | 36% | ||
| Maps | Featuring maps, charts, or other geographic representations | 5 | 2% | 6 | 3% | 4 | 2% | ||
| Dancing | Featuring individual(s) dancing | 22 | 9% | 14 | 6% | 20 | 11% | ||
| Healthcare workers | Featuring individuals dressed in scrubs, white coats and those who explicitly note their medical credentials | 9 | 4% | 12 | 5% | 9 | 5% | ||
| Political | Featuring images of discussions of public affairs of a country or countries | 6 | 2% | 11 | 5% | 11 | 6% | ||
| Racial commentbc | Evoking racial stereotypes or explicitly discussing racial discrimination and prejudices | 29 | 12% | 22 | 9% | 3 | 2% | ||
| Technology | Featuring a video of a video, Google Home, YouTube video, WhatsApp text history | 27 | 11% | 22 | 9% | 33 | 18% | ||
PPE = personal protective equipment.
a
p value < .05 comparing January with February 2020.
b
p value < .05 comparing February with March 2020.
c
p value < .05 comparing January with March 2020 (two-proportion Z-test).