Response to Ricardo's question

“In your research there is a sense of negativity towards the use of SNS and its affects, would you say that in your finding SNS have all negative effects? Explain.

            I would agree that in looking over this review there is a bit of negatively toward social networking sites. As I was writing the review of literature it definitely made me more aware of some of the negative aspects and consequences of social media websites and online self-presentation. There has been a lot of research done that looks into the more psychological end of what happens when we create a certain image of our lives online or are witness to others lives as social media allows, and can have negative effects. This also ties back into Jessica’s question, as a negative consequence of  social media sites would definitely be fear of missing out, which is fead by Facebook. Beyond that there are a lot of other issues with decreased self-satisfaction in looking at other people’s lives so much, and how seemingly perfect they may appear.

However, there are certainly not exclusively negative effects. What first comes to mind as a benefit is the way social networking sites facilitates communication between people who might not other wise be able to. These websites also promote the maintenance of connections and the formation of new friendships. They allow one and other to be more up to date with and involved in our fiends and families lives. Additionally, social networking sites can increase one’s rate of self-disclosure which further promotes making connections and friendships, as well as increases their social capital. Therefore, while that can also have negative implications, it is certainly not to say that social networking sites have all negative effects.

Trepte, S., & Reinecke, L. (2013). The reciprocal effects of social network sites and the dispositions for self-disclosure: A longitudinal Study. Computers In Human Behavior, 29(3),1102-1112.

Response to Jessica's Question

“Throughout your research did you find any studies that compare and contrast how much people actually believe what they see on Facebook to what they know as reality? Or how can this construction of reality feed into the idea of FOMO (fear of missing out)?”

I think this is a great question! From a personal standpoint I absolutely think Facebook can be a contributor to the fear of missing out, also known as FOMO, for a lot of people. Seeing pictures of events that you did not participate in, and the fun it looks like your friends in the photos are having, can definitely be a cause of this feeling. This also ties back in to the idea that everyone’s life looks great on Facebook, so we can feel like ours isn’t measuring up, and that we are missing out. There was not too much scholarly research done on this topic yet, but there was a great article in the New York Times that cites Facebook and other social networking sites as a large perpetrator in the creation of FOMO in today’s day and age. Wortham (2011) claims that when we see photos or posts about events that we did not go to, we immediately question our decision and become afraid we have made the wrong choice in deciding how to spend our time. This can be a cause major indecision and internal conflict.

Furthermore, Wortham claims that, seeing other’s Facebook posts about events we have elected not to go to allows us to imagine how things would be different if we have made other choices, which contributes to FOMO. Since Facebook is very much a live stream, constantly updating and refreshing, we can get around the clock reminders of what is going on within our social circles, and events we are not taking part in, which further influences one’s FOMO (Wortham, 2011). Therefore, FOMO is very much a real affliction driven by online social media use, so it follows that people must believe a lot of what they see online to be a real representation of peoples lives, or if would not generate such a strong response.

Wortham, Jenna. "Feel Like a Wallflower? Maybe It’s Your Facebook Wall." Business Day. The New York Times, 9 Apr. 2011. Web. 4 May 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/10/business/10ping.html?src=recg&_r=0>.

Work Cited

Hongladarom, S. (2011). Personal Identity and the Self in the Online and Offline World. Minds & Machines, 21(4), 533-548. doi:10.1007/s11023-011-9255-x

Hum, N. J., Chamberlin, P. E., Hambright, B. L., Portwood, A. C., Schat, A. C., & Bevan, J. L. (2011). A picture is worth a thousand words: A content analysis of Facebook profile photographs. Computers In Human Behavior, 27(5), 1828-1833. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2011.04.003

Imonen, P. (2013). Visual identity in Facebook. Visual Studies, 28(2), 122-135. doi:10.1080/1472586X.2013.801634

Matic, I. (2011). The Social Construction of Mediated Experience and Self Identity in Social Networking. International Journal Of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, 5(11), 13-21.

Sun, T., & Wu, G. (2012). Traits, Predictors, and Consequences of Facebook Self-Presentation. Social Science Computer Review, 30(4), 419-433. doi:10.1177/0894439311425978

Van Dijck, J. (2013). ‘You have one identity’: performing the self on Facebook and LinkedIn. Media, Culture & Society, 35(2), 199-215. doi:10.1177/0163443712468605

Zhang, Y., Tang, L., & Leung, L. (2011). Gratifications, Collective Self-Esteem, Online Emotional Openness, and Traitlike Communication Apprehension as Predictors of Facebook Uses. Cyberpsychology, Behavior & Social Networking, 14(12), 733-739. doi:10.1089/cyber.2010.0042  

Zhao, S., Grasmuck, S., & Martin, J. (2008). Identity construction on Facebook: Digital empowerment in anchored relationships. Computers In Human Behavior, 24(5), 1816-1836. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2008.02.012

A Review of Literature

Who we are and who we wish we could be: Discontinuity in online identity presentation

A Review of literature

Natalie Chormann

April 29, 2014

Introduction:

            With the undeniable and incredibly extensive rise in the use of social media websites, particularly the widespread popularity of Facebook, the concept of an online identity has been born. One’s online identity is typically defined as how individuals express themselves through computer mediated communication (Dijck, 2013). However, this concept does not come without implications. Often times in self-presentation one is able to control and way one depicts themselves through their profiles and pictures is not the full story of who they are as a person. This begs the question, who are we online? How can these manipulated and idealized versions of ourselves that we are creating be a true representation of ourselves? How does this differ from one’s offline identity, and why? These questions are worth further exploring in understanding the concept of online self-presentation and identity.

So often in todays world we superficially judge each other based on what we see online. Do they have an interesting profile picture? Have a lot of people liked it? If so we assume they must be a likeable person worth getting to know. If not we wonder why they do not have more friends. Has anyone written on his or her wall in awhile? Why not? Do other people not like them? All these basic and superficial assumptions are based on what someone puts forth as a portrayal of himself or herself online, and people are very much aware they are being judged by it (Zhang, Tang & Leung, 2011). Profile pictures that do not receive enough likes are often deleted. Unflattering photos are untagged while photos of interesting or fun events are edited. All this is done to promoted to create the best possible virtual life for oneself; a life others will find attractive. This presentation is important since often times we befriend those judged on what we see online or through the all too common Facebook “stalking’ of another (Zhang et al). Yet, previous research notes that one’s profile is disjointed and disconnected from who they really are, and therefore one’s online identity fails to be an accurate, or even a reasonable, depiction of who they are (Dijck, 2013). What is new and worth exploring is how people are trying to create the ideal version of themselves, of who they wish they could be, on Facebook. There are even tutorials on how to do so! http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Your-Life-Seem-Awesome-on-Facebook. Prior research has noted the discrepancy between one’s identity online and offline, but what is yet to be investigated is how people are using Facebook profiles to create a perfect life for themselves, the life they wish they were living and want others to believe they have. Therefore, this review of literature will explore how one’s online identity on Facebook fails to be accurate depiction of one’s true self as it is an idealized version of themself and creation of the life they wish they lived.      

Self-Perfectionism:

            In a day and age where Photoshop is common, it is not surprising that people would succumb to self-perfectionism while creating their online identity. Photos in particular are often edited by the user to ensure that they are depicting themselves in the way they wish to be seen. This is especially prevalent in profile pictures, (Hum, Chamberlin, Hambright, Portwood, Schat, & Bevan, 2011) and is evidenced in this made for Facebook tutorial: http://www.photoshop.com/tutorials/11765Facebook. These altered or filtered pictures create the image that the person wants to be associated with, regardless if it is a real representation of them or not. Through the use of photographs in online profiles on Facebook, people are able to construct what Imonen (2013) refers to as a “construction of one’s reality through visual art”. Essentially one is able to pick and choose the reality and identity they want others to believe they have through the photographs they upload.

            Furthermore, the ability to be selective in what is posted or not posted, to essentially edit out parts of one’s life that may be less attractive, is not a possibility in identity construction that is based on face-to-face interaction (Zhao, Grasmuck & Martin, 2008). This selectivity also allows for the formation of a perfect version of themselves to be created through this type of profile, (Dijck, 2013) as is showcased in this picture, https://www.facebook.com/331525866867768/photos/a.331526123534409.77403.331525866867768/331526126867742/?type=1&source=11. This lends itself to the conclusion that the identity people create for themselves online not only differs from their offline identity, but is also the idealized life they wish theirs looked like. Through digitally edited and selectively chosen photographs and posts, online identities are an altered depiction of a more perfect version of one’s life which they wish they lived.

Online vs. Offline identity:

The attributes one is known for online may be quite different from how they are recognized offline. Hongladarom, (2011) notes that social networking sites can present a new persona or identity to that does not actually share many real life affinities, recognizing the discontinuity between online and offline identity. Online identity also allows for the creation of a new kind of self (Hongladarom, 2011). This further evidences the divide between online and offline identities, as online they are a more perfect version of oneself that one has constructed. Zhao et al (2008) also notes the importance of how online identities differ in not containing our “true selves” or our “real selves” but instead contains our “hoped for selves”. These “hoped for selves” are not able to created offline, and are often who people wish they could be. The following article explores a real life experience with this divide in identity, and the creation of a seemingly perfect life on Facebook http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dani-shapiro/the-truth-about-my-perfect-life_b_4413101.html. Therefore, there is an obvious disparity between online and offline identity as the online identity provides opportunities to create a self that face-to-face contact does not, and allows one to create what they wish their life looked like, a more perfect version.

Desire for Social Gratification:

            Desire for social gratification is a driving force in many people’s presentation of their online selves. (Zhang, Tang & Leung, 2011) This alters the way people present themselves. Dijck (2013) claims, “young adults especially shape their online identities to gain popularity and hopefully reach a level of comfortable connectedness”. Therefore, social payoffs play a large role in influencing what information one decides to selectively promote on their profile. These profiles become a tool for shaping one’s identities into what will receive the most positive response from others, and are controlled and manipulated to specifically do so. Therefore, people are modifying their self-presentation for social acceptance (Dijck, 2013).

            Additionally, Zhang et al (2011) argues, “we are what we post”. One chooses what information to share and associates oneself with that image in order to gain social gratification. Sun, and Wu (2012) also see this ability to modify one’s online self-presentation as a tool to gain social gratification. Getting “likes” or positive comments on pictures or posts is the most immediate form of this social gratification, and posts that do not receive them can be removed (Sun & Wu, 2012). This manipulation of one’s image for social gratification leads to a discrepancy between one’s online and offline persona as the online self is selectively tailored to others reactions in a way real life cannot be, and creates an idealized version of the self that one wishes they could be. 

Conclusions and Future Directions:

Ultimately, we are not who we present ourselves to be online. Despite one’s profile on Facebook claiming to be a representation of one’s identity online or their cyber selves, these profiles are not an accurate depiction of who they truly are. Through the research I have presented it is fair to conclude that one’s online identity instead relies on self-perfectionism, differs from offline identity and is based in receiving social gratification. Social perfectionism is easily succumbed to as people strive to present themselves in they way they think others will find most attractive, which contributes to the creation of a “prefect life”. Additionally, the ability to alter and selectively choose what information and pictures to present while omitting others is not a capability that is possible for face-to-face interactions. This furthers the idea that what is online is not a true representation of our true selves. Instead it is who one wishes they could be. Finally, much of one’s online identity on Facebook is built almost entirely around the desire for social gratification, which further contributes to presenting an online identity tailored to this desire and a identity differs from that offline. Altogether one’s online identity is a more perfect version of what they wish their life looked like, and want others to believe they live. This created “perfect life” is even joked about in this photo, http://www.rottenecards.com/card/38021/our-lives-may-seem-perfect-on.

It is very difficult not to fall prey to it this type of online presentation; therefore it is important to be aware of it. One peek at Facebook and you glimpse picture of a friend looking beautiful at a fun event, and you want your life to look just as appealing. The lives we create online through the photos, posts, information and status that we consciously and thoughtfully chose to display is a picture of the lives we wish we had. This is important to recognize as it is easy to get caught up in the image of it all and lose touch with who we truly are. Often times in reality no one’s life looks quite as good as it’s portrayal online. Therefore, this creation of an idealized version of oneself and life is an important phenomenon to recognize and further explore. This also opens the door to explore a deeper interpretation as to why people are aspiring to achieve a seemingly perfect online presence, and the consequences it may have for future research.

Introduction to my blog

One’s online identity and the ways in which they construct it, is the topic I wish to investigate for this research project. This topic feels very relevant to today's social climate, as most of today’s youth, and now even adults, use social networking sites, and have a carefully constructed online identity. After the past few articles from class as well as presentations surrounding this topic, I found myself wanting to further research how social gratification plays into this construction and presentation of one's identity online. The profiles and identities many people have online are very carefully created and put together, based on how people respond to what they post, and therefore may not be an accurate representation of themselves, as they are tailored to how people respond to them, and what looks the most attractive. This clearly alters the way people are presenting themselves online, and I would like to look into this phenomenon further as well as its implications. The ability to omit and enhance aspects of our lives in our online identities creates a online identity that differs greatly from our offline identity. Online we are able to put forth the most attractive version of our lives online and edit out the less appealing parts in order to receive optimal social gratification. Therefore, there is a notable gap between our on and offline identities. Our online identities showcase the best parts of ourselves and lives which we want people to see, and how we wish our lives looked. I wish to explore this occurrence and the creation of a “perfect life” or "idealized self" through people’s self-presentation on Facebook.