The Crisis Tsunami. Social Representations of the Economic Crisis in the Italian Press

Abstract

This research investigates social representations of the Italian economic crisis conveyed by representative Italian newspapers between 2007 and 2013. Its aim is to highlight the content of those representations as well as their objectification through the use of metaphorical language. More than 6,000 headlines were collected from four widely distributed Italian newspapers: 'Il Corriere della Sera, La Repubblica, Il Giornale,' and' Il Manifesto'. The texts underwent a lexicometric analysis using the TaLTaC2 software. The results showed that the crisis was represented for the most part as an “illness coming from afar” or as an “inevitable disaster” that was shaped somehow by an “agentic entity”. These interpretations elaborated an event about which little or nothing could be done except for to suffer/endure or to try to stem the rising tide. Implications for personal attitudes and agency are also discussed.

Keywords

• Economic crisis
• Italian newspapers
• Social representations
• Metaphors
• Quali-quantitative methods
• Lexicometric analysis