Vlogs and Vloggers: Exploring Chinese PhD Vloggers’ Communication Methods and Motivations

Abstract

Smartphone cameras and widespread internet access have lowered the barriers for recording and sharing personal experiences, making video blogging (vlogging) an increasingly popular practice. Existing research has examined how vloggers and influencers attract and engage audiences, with emphasis on commercially oriented creators whose content is tied to sponsorship, brand promotion, or financial gain. Building on this scholarship, this study shifts the focus to non-commercial vloggers, particularly PhD vloggers, who use vlogging as a communication tool to share their experiences, document their lives, and build audiences. This study addresses that gap by focusing on Chinese PhD vloggers, a distinct subgroup of content creators, who use their academic identities and doctoral experiences to shape their online image and personal brand.

The study employed a qualitative approach, combining in-depth semi-structured interviews with 25 Chinese PhD vloggers and a multimodal analysis of selected sequences from three representative vlogs (chosen from a corpus of 300 vlogs). Interview transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis to discuss vloggers’ motivations and strategies, while multimodal analysis was utilised to examine how vloggers used different modes (e.g., visual, verbal, gaze, gestures) to engage their audiences.

Findings revealed that Chinese PhD vloggers strategically combine authenticity and performance to engage viewers. They use personal storytelling by incorporating genuine aspects of their daily lives and academic journeys, highlighting both challenges and successes to create relatable and engaging content. Additionally, visual self-presentation techniques, such as attention-grabbing thumbnails and carefully curated profile photos, are employed to draw audience’s attention. Emotional appeals, particularly expressions of empathy and humour, further strengthen vloggers’ connections with audiences. Based on these key findings, this thesis proposes a pathway model outlining key steps for building personal brands and sustaining audience engagement within the competitive vlogging environment.

Beyond these communication strategies, this research highlights PhD vloggers’ motivations for content creation, such as emotional self-care, community building, and a tool for challenging negative stereotypes surrounding PhD students. They also harness their online presence for benefits, such as reputation enhancement, monetisation opportunities, heightened social capital, and career advancement.

By situating vlogging practices within the Chinese context, this research underscores how individuals negotiate authenticity, performance, and audience expectations in digital spaces. This interdisciplinary research has contributed to the broader understanding on digital media studies and communication studies, while also integrating sociological theory (e.g., Goffman’s dramaturgical framework) into the analysis of digital life. It offers both conceptual and practical insights into self-presentation and audience engagement, thereby guiding practitioners in the vlogging realm.