Lecture 5: Identity and self-presentation Flashcards
What is identity?
- Is not objective (you can define yourself)
- Not one thing (you have identities)
- Not statistic (You can/will change)
What is society says about identity…
- likes to define (“okay, but are are you x or y, really?”)
- likes simple definitions (“select one option…”)
- is resistant to change (“When we were young…”)
What is self-presentation according to Goffman’s classic formulation?
Interplay between individuals attempt to project a (1) contextually-appropriate image of who the are, (2) and audience reactions to this projection.
Explain what we mean with interactions are performances… (Goffman)
- Happening in regions (work, gym, bar, cafetaria)
- More and less acceptable (loosely “agreed upon”) performances per region
Explain what we mean with ‘frontstage’…
What we show the world
Explain what we mean with ‘backstage’…
What we show only a few people in the world (our “confidants’)
What are ‘confidants’?
The few people we show our backstage
Explain what the ‘hyperpersonal model’ is…
- Theory of computer-mediated communication (CMC
- Suggest that online communication can result in more personal and socially appealing than FTF communication
- Involving more composition and editing, as a function of that self-presentation being visible to the sender on the screen before and after it is communicated
What do we see on social media and self-presentation explained by frontstage/backstage?
- Tends to promote “frontstage” content
- image and video apps (Instagram, TikTok)
- “Broadcast” content (one to many) - A space for “backstage”?
- Private groups
- Ephemeral (temporary) content (snapchat)
- Anonymity (but is this “you”?)
What are the RQ’s? - self-presentation on social media (Bonazzi, 2018)
- How do people manage their identities (via self-presentation) on social media?
- How do they do this across platforms, considering different features, audiences, social norms?
- How do people do this with stigmatized identities?
What are the behavioral norms the social media user experience?
- Imagined audience
- Context collapse
What is context collapse?
Unwanted conflation of regions
What is the consequence of the audience (context collapse/imagined audience)?
User must make strategic choices about how to best deploy the features and affordances of their chosen social media platforms to achieve their self-presentation goals
What are some examples of consequences of the audience on the user?
- privacy settings, private groups, friend list curation, blocking
- visibility control
explain what ‘visibility control’ is
The extend to which a platform affords individual determination of what persona-linked content is visible to others
What are affordances?
- possibilities offered to the user
- design encourages of constrains action
- depends on what a user perceives
What are intended/anticipated features?
What designers have in mind
What is ‘user-driven/emergent?
arriving after conception
What are the finding of the research on ‘choice of platform’? - self-presentation on social media (Bonazzi, 2018)
- Participants used “different combinations of platforms in order to manage the different presentation of their LGBTQ+ identity to different audiences
- Participants used platforms as “regions” that are highly segmented
- Social norms and level of anonymity (identity persistence) also influenced choice of platforms
What are the finding of the research on ‘selective use of affordances’? - self-presentation on social media (Bonazzi, 2018)
- Selective use of affordances within platforms
- Like = acknowledgement, comment = endorsement
- to manage association/distance with LBGBTQ content when in mixed audience (e.g., family members not tolerant to identity)
- More intended/obvious affordances also used (e.g., blocking/removing who were intolerant of identity)
What are the design implications? - self-presentation on social media (Bonazzi, 2018)
- privacy over time:
- Changing identity, changing audiences
- what to do about old posts? - Less ideal: “memories” appearing
- previous identification, name, appearance - helpful tool: Audience settings over time
- New connections see posts since chosen date
What is the conclusion of the research? - self-presentation on social media (Bonazzi, 2018)
- Social media offer new opportunities to engage with similar others, express stigmatized or vulnerable identities
- While all of us consider self-presentation, the stakes and risks are higher for people with stigmatized identities
- Navigating self-presentation is better understood across platforms and considering audiences, affordances, and identity (personal social media ecosystem)
What is social comparison?
Human tendency to compare with others (Festinger, 1954)
On what does social media have an influence due to pervasive ideal body content? (body image research)
- body satisfaction
- disordered eating
- self-objectification
What is the self-objectification theory?
- Viewing oneself as an “object” based on one’s appearance
- Social norms -> individual beliefs and motivation
- Historically unique for women -> stricter standards = higher “body surveillance”
- social media can contribute to objectification
What is body positivity?
- “appreciation for the beauty and function of one’s body, and acceptance of one’s body despite idealized societal messages”
- “appreciation of the health, functionality, and features of an individual’s body that are not centered upon physical appearance”
- “Acceptance of a diverse range of body types”
What is not body positivity?
Not simply the absence of negative body image
What is the aim of body positivity on social media?
“The social media movement aims to challenge the thin-ideal media by
portraying bodies of diverse sizes, shapes, ethnicities, and abilities.”
What are the RQ of the research? - body positivity on social media (Nelson, 2022)
How does viewing body-positive vs thin-ideal content on social media affect:
* Body satisfaction (“Satisfied with my overall appearance”)
* Body appreciation (“I am comfortable in my body”)
* Self-objectification (“I am…” [finish the sentence x 10])
What was the conclusion of the research? - body positivity on social media (Nelson, 2022)
- Social media content focused on body image involves both…
…risks (potential furthering damaging ideals)
…and opportunities (enhancing body positivity) - Body positivity may not always have intended effects (e.g., can increase self-objectification)…
…though the question remains open (your thesis?) - Social media continues to challenge our understanding (and intervention) of how media shapes people’s body image
What is the role of gender on body image?
- Fitspiration posts -> worse body image
- Self-compassion posts à better body image
- No effect of gender! (statistically)
- More research needed on for example men, women, transgender, nonbinary
Is how we present ourselves, the same as who we are?
Self-presentation contributes to shaping our identity
Does how we view others, shape how we see ourselves?
Yes. Our own body image can come from the body images we see in media
How does social media change our self-presentation of our identity and body image?
- New extent of exposure
- Hyperpersonal model
- Frontstage performances
- Ecosystem of audiences and features
How does social media change the self-presentation of our identity and body image for people with less accepted (“stigmatized”) identities?
- Higher stakes = more careful presentation
- Opportunity to push back
* Social media communities of acceptance
* Movements for positivity and acceptance
