Home // SOTICS 2020, The Tenth International Conference on Social Media Technologies, Communication, and Informatics // View article
Authors:
Velta Skolmeistere
Keywords: role identities; self-presentation; social network sites; youth
Abstract:
Since the beginning of the Web 2.0 era, social network sites have been an important method of self-presentation in the digital environment. Although the result of self-presentation is often reduced to a distinct digital identity, it can also be seen as a reflection of the complexity of the individual’s self, which includes various role identities one can possess. What makes social network sites as a research field interesting is the potential of context-collapse. In opposition to real life, where one can organize different flows of behavior for different audiences and situations of role identity activation, this environment exposes the individual to a combination of various audiences, thus, it is the individual's choice to select which role identities will be presented. This article offers a pilot research that focuses on the habits of presenting role identities on various social network sites, aiming to understand which role identities (for example, being a student, an employee, a friend, etc.) are more likely to be presented on which of the most popular social network sites (Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat). The methodology includes an assisted paper-based survey (n = 76, first-year college students in Latvia), consisting of production task and Likert scale statements. The results offer an evaluation of the potential of the tested methodology and give insight into some differences between various social network sites in the context of role identity presentation, as well as help to understand some of the challenges of self-presentations that are perceived by the youth when trying to take care of their digital self.
Pages: 14 to 16
Copyright: Copyright (c) IARIA, 2020
Publication date: October 18, 2020
Published in: conference
ISSN: 2326-9294
ISBN: 978-1-61208-832-7
Location: Porto, Portugal
Dates: from October 18, 2020 to October 22, 2020