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SocialMediaandtheConstructionof“Self”:

HowOurNewSociotechnicalEnvironmentis

ChangingtheConstructionofIdentity

LucieCaffrey

AresearchpapersubmittedtotheUniversityofDublin,

inpartialfulfilmentoftherequirementsforthedegreeof

MasterofScienceInteractiveDigitalMedia

2017

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DECLARATION

IhavereadandunderstandtheplagiarismprovisionsintheGeneral

RegulationsoftheUniversityCalendarforthecurrentyear,foundat:

http://www.tcd.ie/calendar

IhavealsocompletedtheOnlineTutorialonavoidingplagiarism,

‘Ready,Steady,Write’,locatedathttp://tcd-

ie.libguides.com/plagiarism/ready-steady-write

Ideclarethattheworkdescribedinthisresearchpaperis,except

whereotherwisestated,entirelymyownworkandhasnotbeen

submittedasanexerciseforadegreeatthisuniversityoranyother

university.

Signed:________________

LucieCaffrey

11/05/2017

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PERMISSIONTOLENDAND/ORCOPY

IagreethatTrinityCollegeLibrarymaylendorcopythisresearch

Paperuponrequest.

Signed:___________________

LucieCaffrey

11/05/2017

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Iwouldliketotaketheopportunitytothankmysupervisor,SusanGill,forhersupport,beliefandkindnessthroughoutthisprocess.Iwouldliketothankmyparentsfortheirunendingsupportthisyear,Iwoulddefinitelynothavemadeitthisfarwithoutthem.AndIwouldalsoliketothankmyfriendsandclassmateswholistenedandsupportedmewithouthesitationwhentheywereneeded.Thankyouguys!

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SUMMARY

Theproliferationoftechnologywithinthepast20yearshasbroughtaboutafundamental

changeinthewaysocietycommunicates,operatesandrelatestoitself.Asthelinebetween

humansandtechnologyisbecomingincreasinglyblurred,technology,throughitsfeatures

andconnectivecapabilities,isexpandingindividual’sconceptionandconstructionof‘self’.

Thepapertakesaqualitativeapproachtothecurrentresearchandtheoreticalfoundations

ofidentityconstructiontodistinguishthevitalcomponentsofempiricalidentitycreation

thatarenecessaryforthedevelopmentofthe‘self’.Thisframeworkisthenusedtoexamine

therelationshipbetweenthe‘self’andtechnologyinordertodeterminehowournew

sociotechnicalenvironmentisimpactingthetraditionalprocessofidentityconstruction.

Asaresultoftheanalysis,thispaperidentifiestwomainaspectsofidentitycreationthatare

impactedthroughourrelationshipwithtechnology;thestoringofmemoryandtheprocess

ofself-reflection.Bornoutofnewnorm,arestructuresofinteraction,communicationand

thinkingpatternswhichareintrinsicallychangingthewayweshapeoursenseof‘self’.

Ultimately,itisfoundthatouronlineenvironmentsarefacilitatingtheenhancementofour

narcissisticqualitiesandthecultivationofa‘self’thatisintrinsicallydictatedbyexternal

‘others’,wherethetraditionallyinternalinfluencesonthe‘self’arebecomingexternalized

andoursenseofagencyisconsidered‘illusory’.Itistheorizedthatthroughthe

implementationofself-reflectivepracticesinouronlineenvironments,individualsmay

reclaimnotonlyabettersenseoftheiridentitybutalsoreclaimtheiragencywithinthese

newonlineenvironments.

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TABLEOFCONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 1

LITERATUREREVIEW 3

EMPIRICALFOUNDATIONSFORIDENTITY 3

POSTMODERNIDENTITYTHEORIES 4

METHODSFORSOCIALIDENTITYCONSTRUCTION 6

THEDEVELOPMENTOFIDENTITY:MEMORYANDSELF-REFLECTION 8

INTEGRATINGTECHNOLOGYASPARTOFTHE‘SELF’ 10

SOCIALMEDIAANDTHESOCIALCONSTRUCTIONOFSELF 15

FREEDOMOFCONSTRUCTION:OFFLINEVS.ONLINESOCIALENVIRONMENT 16

IDENTITYCONSTRUCTIONTHROUGHSOCIALMEDIA 24

AGENCYWITHINSOCIALMEDIAPLATFORMS 28

CONCLUSION 32

BIBLIOGRAPHY 34

1

INTRODUCTION

Withinthepast20years,afundamentalsocietalshifthasoccurredthroughtheintroduction

ofavastarrayoftechnologicaldevices.Thelasttenyearshasparticularlybroughtan

unprecedentedtransformationinthewaysocietycommunicates,operatesandultimately

relatestoitselfwiththeproliferationofcommunicationplatformsaccessedviaour

smartphonedevices.Asglobalmobilephonepenetrationrateshaveincreasedfrom4%in

1997to51%in2007andwereatanall-timehighof93%in2013(Kornstein,2015),these

devicesarenowbecominganinherentpartofwhoweareasindividuals;openingthe

barriersofcommunicationtotherestoftheworldandchangingthewayinwhichwe

interactwitheachotherand,mostimportantly,ourselves.Asthefirstgloballyconnected

society,wehaveneverbeforeseenaninventionhavesuchanimpactsorapidly,withglobal

penetrationlevelsincreasingfrom1%to93%withina20-yeartimeframe(Kornstein,2015).

Asthisimmersionhasoccurredsoquickly,societyhashadlittletimetotrulyadapttothis

newtechnologicalenvironment.

Withinthisnew‘sociotechnical’society,istheallureofconstantdistractionwhereweare

relentlesslyberatedwithnewcontent,imagesandtheopportunitytoconnectwithconstant

accesstotheworldviaoursmartphones.Withtheemergenceofthisageofnetworkingand

connection,ourultimateaimistobeconnectedwithasmany“others”aspossibleatevery

moment.Whereonceourultimatearchitypewastheideaofthenuclearfamilyconnecting

aroundthedinnertable,wenowaspiretoa“FacebookUtopia”,connectingwiththeworld

throughanonlineenvironment(Fischetti,2014).Bornoutofthisnewnorm,arestructures

ofinteraction,communicationandeven,aswillbeexploredlater,thinkingpatternswhich

areintrinsicallychangingusasindividuals.Asthelinebetweenhumansandtechnology

increasinglybeginstoblurwiththeintroductionofnewinnovations,itisimportantto

examinetheimpactthatthedevelopingdependencyonthesetoolswillbegintohaveonthe

constructiontheof‘self’.Caughtinthetransitoryperiodbetweenthepre-technologyera

andtotaltechnologicalimmersion,wearethegenerationthatisattheforegroundofthis

fundamentalshiftandassuchitisimportantthattheseconceptsareexaminednowsothat

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aswebegintorelyonmoretechnology,weareawareoftheintrinsicnatureofthisclose

technologicalrelationshipandimpactthatthiswillhaveonthe‘self’andsociety.

Thepaperthatproceedsthiswilltakeaqualitativeanalysisapproachtothecurrentresearch

andtheoreticalfoundationsregardingidentitycreationtocompileaneffectiveanalysisof

theimpactofthesenewtechnologiesontheconstructionofidentityandthe‘self’withinthis

newsociety.Theanalysisfirstlyoutlinesthevarioustraditionaltheoriesofbothidentity

constructionandself-representationinordertodevelopaframeworkunderwhichtherest

ofthepaperwillbecarriedout.Theproceedingsectionwillthencompriseofashortanalysis

ofthedevelopmentandimpactoftherelationshipthatexistsbetweenhumansand

technology,specificallyinvestigatingthewaysinwhichourinternalizationoftechnologyis

impactingoursenseof‘self’.Aswearesimultaneouslyconstructingourselvesasboth

individualsandmembersofasocietythroughoursocialmediaplatforms,thethirdsection

willformanin-depthaccountofhowthestructureofthesenewcommunicationplatforms

impactstheconstructionofthe‘self’.Finally,thefourthsectionwillcompriseofananalysis

ofthedegreeofagencythatexistswithinourrelationshipwiththesetechnologicaltools.

Ultimately,thepaperwillproposecertainelementsofidentityconstructionthatare

imperativetotakeintoaccountifwearetoretainaspectsofthe‘self’thatarevitalto

identitycreationaswemoveforwardintoaworldoftotaltechnologicalimmersion.

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LITERATUREREVIEW

EMPIRICALFOUNDATIONSFORIDENTITY

Beforeanalysinghowtechnologyisshapingthe‘self’intoday’stechnologicalenvironment,it

isfirstlypertinenttoconstructafoundationfortheanalysisbyexploringthevarious

theoreticalframeworksthathavebeendevelopedinrelationtoidentityconstructionand

self-representation.

Empirically,therehavebeentwoprevailingtheoreticalapproachesunderwhichonecan

examinetheunderlyingfoundationsofidentity;themodernistorpostmodernist

methodologies.Traditionallytakenwiththecontextofamodernistapproach,identitywas

classifiedastaticanddefiniteelementofthe‘self’,whereindividualsengagedinactivitiesin

orderto‘discover’theirtrue‘self’throughouttheirlifetime(Berzonsky,2016).Themore

conventionalofthetwoapproaches,theoristspositingthisframeworkviewidentityas

“specifiable,measureable,orderedandinsomecasesrational”.Fundamentally,identityis

stableandformingoutofthismodernistapproachisthebasisofmorefixedidentitytheories

(Howard,2000).Incontrasttothis,Hallin1996hypothesizedthatratherthanidentity

representingone“stableself”,itismorea“strategic,positional”concept,citingthat

“identitiesarepointsoftemporaryattachmentstothesubjectpositionsthatdiscursive

practicesconstructforus”(Howard,2000).Bornoutofthishypothesis,isthepostmodernist

approachwhichsupportsamorefluidconstructionofidentity.Incontrastto‘discovering’

theirtrueidentity,individuals‘construct’theirsenseof‘self’throughvarioussocialand

culturalcontexts(Berzonsky,2016).Howardtheorizesidentityas“multiple,processual,

relational,unstableandpossiblypolitical”(Howard,2000).Therehasbeenampleresearch

sincethedevelopmentofthepostmodernapproachthatsupportsthismorefluid

constructionofidentity.Blumer(1969)heldthatratherthanfixed,the‘self’iscreated

throughdynamicprocessesthatareinherentlysocialinnatureas“theselfonlyachievesits

centralexistenceinsituatedactivity”(Fisheretal.,2016).AccordingtoFisheretal.(2016)

thereisamultitudeofselvesavailabletoanindividualatanymoment,termedbyAraland

Walkertobe“ashiftingarrayofaccessibleselves”,whichanindividualwillchoosetoportray

dependingontheparticularcontextoftheinteraction.Consequently,whilesomeaspectsof

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identityarearguablyfixed,suchasageandnationality,therestofouridentitiesare

intrinsicallysocialinnature(TaggandSeargeant,2014).Ultimately,Kellner(1995)suggested

thatthefunctionofthepostmodernidentityis“leisure”andthattherefore,itwas

“groundedinplay,gamesmanship,andinproducinganimage”(IqaniandSchroeder,2016);

Giventhefluiditythatthetechnologicalenvironmentgivesindividualsandtheprominence

ofthesocialwithinoureverydaylivesitismostappropriatetoexaminethedevelopmentof

ouridentitiesundertheconstructofpostmodernidentityconstruction.Inthefollowing

section,thefundamentalaspectsofpostmodernidentityconstructionwillbeexamined

withintheframeworksoftwoprominentidentitytheories;socialidentitytheoryand

symbolicinteractiontheory.

POSTMODERNIDENTITYTHEORIES:SOCIALIDENTITYTHEORYANDSYMBOLICINTERACTIONTHEORY

JudithHoward(2000)inherpaper“SocialPsychologyofIdentities”,outlinesthe

fundamentalaspectsoftheorizedidentitywhichshesuggestsisconstructedintheinterplay

betweensocialcognitionandsymbolicinteraction.

Withinsocialcognitiontheoriesindividualsarepositedtohavelimitedcognitiveabilities

wherebytheymustimplementastreamliningstrategywhenconsumingthevolumeof

informationthattheyencou8nteronadailybasis(Howard,2000).Inrelationtothisissocial

identitytheory,whichpostulatesthatidentityarisesfromaprocessof“depersonalization”

(CarterandGrover,2010)throughwhichindividualsidentifythemselvesintermsofthe

socialgroupsinwhichtheyinteract.Themainunderlyingfunctionofthistheoryisthat

identityisconstructedandmanagedthroughaframeworkofdirectimpression

management.Thisprocessof‘depersonalization’caneasilybeusedastheunderpinning

psychologicaltheorytoanalyzeidentitycreationviasocialmediasites.Heavilymediatedby

impressionmanagementandthefeedbackfromothers,identitiescreatedviatheseonline

sitesareheavilyinfluencedbytheothermembersofthesocialmediagroupsinwhich

individualsinteract.Thusmimickingtheactionspositedwithinthetheory–individualswill

“favorgrouptraitsmorethanuniquecharactertraits”(Howard,2000).

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Underthesymbolicinteractionistapproachtoidentityconstruction,individualsattach

symbolicmeanings,developedandcommunicatedthroughinteraction,toobjects,

behaviours,themselvesandotherpeople(Howard,2000).Withinthisframeworklanguageis

avitalcomponent(Howard,2000).Empiricalstudiesrelatingtolanguage,mediaandidentity

constructionhaveshownthatbothverbalandnon-verbalformsareequallyvitalinthe

processofidentityconstruction(Howard,2000).Underthisapproach,Turkle(2005)

examineshowweconstructidentitiesbyrecognizingsimilaritiesintheclassificationofan

alternativeobjectthroughwhichwecanmakeanalogiestoeaseourcomprehensionofthe

newobject/person/behaviorbeingidentified.Breakingdownthisframeworkfurther,itcan

beexaminedundertwoprefixes.Firstly,thestructuralistapproach-whichpositsthat

identitiesareformeddependingonsocialhierarchiesandthepositionandroleanindividual

holdswithinasocialstructure.Thesecondmethodthatcanbeexamined“emphasizesthe

processesofidentityconstructionandnegotiation”andtheorizesthatindividuals

strategicallyconstructtheiridentitiesonthebasisofsocialinteractions.Whethertakenfrom

astructuralistorstrategicview,thefundamentalpropositiontobothisthepremisethat

identityisintrinsicallylinkedtoandformedthroughoursocialinteractions.

Fisheretal.(2016)outlineMead’s1934theoryofthe‘self’intheiranalysisoftheonline

constructionoftheidentity.Combiningaspectsofbothsocialidentitytheoryandsymbolic

interactiontheory,Meadcoherentlysplittheidentityintotwoparts;‘I’and‘Me’.Firstly,‘I’

wasreferringtoanindividual’sdesireto‘discover’theiridentitythroughobservationoftheir

ownbehaviorandsubsequentlyalteringthisafteraprocessofself-observationand

feedback.Secondly,‘Me’wasanaspectofidentityformulatedfromthesocialandcultural

interactionsoftheindividual.Asthistheorytakesintoaccountbothaninherentindividual

identitythatisuniquetooneselfandalsotheimpactofthesocialcontextswhereinthe

individualoperates,itismostappropriatetoutilizeanapproachsuchasthiswhen

conductingthefollowinganalysis.

Withtheproliferationoftechnologyandthefundamentalchangesthathavenowoccurred

withinthe‘self’,socialconditionsandinteractionsnowplayandevenbiggerroleinthe

shapingofouridentity.Taylor(2011)positsthattraditionallyourmainsocialinfluencers

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wererestrictedtofamily,friends,school,ourcommunity,extracurricularactivitiesandtoa

lesserextentmedia,whichallpromoteda“healthier,positivemessageaboutwhowewere

andhowweshouldperceiveourselves”.Nowourenvironmenthaschangedsubstantially

andwiththatthebalancebetweeninternalandexternalinfluencershasshifted.Nowweare

beingdrivenbyinfluencersthatarenolongerasinnocentandself-promotingastheyonce

were.Insteadofreinforcingourself-identity,ourtechnologyinfluencersshowusa‘portrait’

ofwhoitwantsustobe,“tappingintoourmostbasicneedstofeelgoodabout[ourselves],

accepted,andattractive”(Taylor,2011).Individualsnowhavethefreedomandopportunity

tocreatetheiridentitiesonlineinavarietyofdifferentways,asGoffmanposits,“identities

arelikemasksthatcanbewornandtakenoffindifferentcontextsofsocialinteraction”

(TaggandSeargeant,2014).Crandall(2007)theorizesthat“presentationalculture”present

throughouthistoryhasnowemergedwithgreaterintensityasindividualshavethe

opportunitytopaymuchmoreattentiontothe‘self’thaneverbeforethroughonline

profiles(TaggandSeargeant,2014).Herethe‘self’referstotheparticularaspectsofidentity

thatindividualschoosetoportraytothepublic.Giventhispresentationalculture,the

followingsectionwillcompriseofananalysisofthevarioustheoriessurroundingthewaysin

whichindividualscanchoosetorepresentthe‘self’.

METHODSFORSOCIALIDENTITYCONSTRUCTION

Accordingto“theFatherofAmericanPsychology”,WilliamJames(1890),the‘self’is

constructedoffoursubclassesof‘self’whichworktogethertoformulateanindividual’sself-

concept;thematerialSelf,thespiritualSelf,thepureEgoandthesocialSelf.Intermsofthis

analysisthemostpertinentofthesetoexamineisthesocialSelf.James(1890)holdsthatas

humanswehaveaninnatedesiretobenoticedandgetrecognitionfromthosearoundus

andassuchhetheorizesthat“amanhasasmanysocialselvesasthereareindividualswho

recognizehim”(James,1890).Prus(1997)wouldtermthispartoftheselfasthe“relational

self”(Fisheretal.,2016).Whatmotivatestheconstructionofthis‘rationalself’?An

explorationofthreeprominentmethodstoself-representationwillnowbeexamined.

Empirically,inpsychologicalresearchitisfoundthatindividualsportraythemselvesin

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accordancewiththreemaintheories;theself-enhancementtheory,theself-verification

theoryandself-discrepancytheory.

Buildingontheabovesocialconstructionofidentity,Bareket-Bojmeletal.(2016)highlight

thatself-enhancementtheorypositsthatindividualsaredriventorepresentthemselvesbya

desiretomaximizepositiveandminimizenegativeimpressionsonothers.McDougall(1933)

andKoffka(1935)highlighthow“self-enhancementisacentralgoalofhumanexistence”

(Swannetal.,1989)andself-enhancementtheoryasamethodofself-presentationhas

receivedsupportbymanyempiricalstudies.Langman(1998)identifiedthevitalcomponents

thatshapeidentitytobe:“seekingattachmentstoothers,pursuitofrecognitionanddignity;

feelingsofempowerment;avoidingfearandanxiety”(Howard,2000).

Ontheotherhand,self-verificationtheoryholdsthatindividualsaremoreinternallydrivento

representthemselvesaccordingtotheirown“firmlyheldself-views”(Bareket-Bojmeletal,

2016).Swann,PelhamandKrull(1989)theorizethatindividualsdosoby“soliciting

feedback”fromtheirsocialinteractions.Withinthistheoryitispositedthatindividualswill

seektoportraythemselvesinsuchawaysothatotherswillviewthemincongruencewith

howtheyinternallyidentifythemselves,evenifthisrequiresthemtohighlighttheir“flaws

andlimitations”(Swannetal.,1989).Brownetal.(1988)suggestthatthisallowsthe

individualtoexertasenseofcontrolovertheirenvironment(Swannetal.,1989).Within

thisframework,Taylor(2011)emphasizesthatweareinherentlysocialcreatureswhouse

thefeedbackfromothersasavitalcomponentintheevolutionourself-identities.

Thethirdandfinaltheorywhichcanbeexaminedisself-discrepancytheory.AccordingtoHu,

ZhaoandHuang(2015)self-discrepancytheorypositsthatthe‘self’iscomprisedofthree

differentelements;theactualself,idealselfandtheoughtself.The‘actualself’,comprising

oftheattributesthattheindividualbelievestheyactuallypossess,the‘ideal’comprisingof

thosetheyaspiretopossessandthe‘ought’comprisingofthosetheyfeeltheneedor

obligationtopossess(Huetal,2015).Withtheoveralltheorypositingthatindividuals

constructtheiridentitytoensurethediscrepancybetweentheiractualselfandtheiridealor

oughtselvesisminimized.Taylor(2011)proposesthatwecreateouridentityusinga

combinationofourself-awareness-aswe“evaluateourthoughts,feelings,andbehavior

basedonpastexperience,currentneedsandfuturegoals”-andalsofromexternal

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conditionsandfeedbackwhichweinternalizetoshapeouridentity.Healsopositsthe

fundamentalimportanceofoursocialinteractionsinthedevelopmentoftheself.

Intermsofwhichtheoryindividualsdeploy,Swannetal.(1989)conductedananalysisto

inferinwhichcontexteachframeworkismorelikelytobeutilized.TheoristssuchasTaylor

andBrown(1988)andAhadzadehetal.(2017)heldthatindividualswithlowerself-esteem

weremorelikelytoengageinself-verificationandself-discrepancyprocesses,whereasFreud

postulatedthatthoseindividualsandnarcissistictendenciesaremorelikelytoemployself-

enhancementmethodologiesinordertorepresentthe‘self’(Swannetal.,1989).

Giventhatthebasisofidentityconstructionhasbeenidentified,itisnowappropriateto

examinetwoaspectsofidentitythatarevitaltotheconstructionanddevelopment

processesthatareinherentwithintheconstructionofthe‘self’.

THEDEVELOPMENTOFIDENTITY:MEMORYANDSELF-REFLECTION

Asexaminedabove,identityconstructionisinfluencedheavilybythesocialinteractionsand

socialenvironmentswithinwhichtheindividualoperates.Itisnowpertinenttoexaminethe

aspectspresentwithinthe‘self’thatarefundamentalinthedevelopmentandevolutionof

identity.Withinallformsofidentityconstruction,therearetwofundamentalaspectsthat

areirrefutableinthedevelopmentandconstructionofthe‘self’;thestoringofmemoryand

theabilitytoself-reflect.

Throughouthistory,manysociologistsandphilosophersincludingPlato,CarrandTurklehave

citedtheimportanceofmemoryintheshapingofthe‘self’.Traditionally,identitieswithin

societywerefoundedthroughacollectivememorydiscourse,withmembersofthe

communityrelyingoneachindividual’sspecificmemoriestomakeupaparticularpartofthe

collectivememory.AsWegnerandWard(2013)posited“anyoneindividualisincomplete

withoutbeingabletodrawontherestofthegroup”.Individualidentitieswerebasedona

relianceofthegroupandinordertofunctioneffectively,socialconnectionswereof

paramountimportance.Wecanseethisimportancereflectedinthetheoriesabove,which

postulatethesignificanceofoursocialinteractionsandenvironmentsthroughoutthe

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processofidentityconstruction.Foucault(1999),identifiedtheimportanceofthecollection

andrecollectionoftheinformationthatonehears,readsorthinksascentraltotheshaping

of‘self’(Weisgerber&Butler,2016).Notjustforthegoodoftheindividualbut,inFoucault’s

mind,thisprocessofstoringinformationwasanactof“self-care”thatisindicativeof“an

attitudetowardstheself,othersandtheworld”(Weisgerber&Butler,2016)throughwhich

individualscantransformthemselvesandinturnaidintheshapingofthecommunity.

Inherentlylinkedtomemory,thedevelopmentofidentityisalsobornoutofthefeedback

processintrinsicinsocialinteractions.Ascanbeseenfromtheabove,identityisconstructed

asaresultofthesocialcontextsandinteractionsoftheindividual,whereapresentational

strategyisselectedandindividualsareemploying“variousidentitieswithindifferent

contexts”(Carter&Grover,2010).Thisconceptisdeterminedovertimeresultingfrom

observationandcomparisonrelativetoothers,theirpersonalgoals,theperceptionand

responseofothersand,importantly,theirself-evaluations(Carter&Grover,2010).Inany

givensituation,throughaprocessofself-reflection,individualscanalterorchangetheir

identityinaccordancewith,andasaresultoftheperceptionofotherswiththeoverall

outcomebeingthat“theidentitybecomesverifiedandself-esteemprotectedorenhanced”

(Carter&Grover,2010).Ultimately,whatJames(1890)termed‘club-opinion’,isoneofthe

‘strongestforcesinlife’andhastheabilitytoalterandchangeanindividual’sidentityonce

thisself-reflectiveprocessisenacted.ResearchconductedbyBurke(2006)alsosupported

thistheory,highlightingthatonceanindividualenteredintoapatternofrepeatedlyaltering

theirbehaviorinresponsetofeedbackfromtheenvironmenttheiridentitywouldultimately

change(Carter&Grover,2010).Furthermore,Charngetal.(1988)conductedresearchwhich

concludedthat“repeatedbehaviourscanbecomeingrainedintoaperson’ssenseofself”

(Carter&Grover,2010).

Ascanbeseenfromtheabove,therolethatmemoryandself-reflectionplayinthe

constructionandsubsequentdevelopmentofidentityiscrucial.Identity,intrinsicallylinked

toshiftsinhistoricalculturalconfigurations(Howard,2000),iscurrentlyundergoingaradical

transformationprocesswithourofflineandonlinelivesbecomingincreasinglymergedintoa

“sociotechnical”versionofsocietythatisincreasinglyimpactingthesetraditionalprocesses.

Aswedevelopouridentitiesinthisnewemergingsocietyitisnowpertinenttoexaminethe

changingidentitythatthe‘self’isexperiencinginthewakeofthesedevelopments.

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INTEGRATINGTECHNOLOGYASPARTOFTHE‘SELF’

Thissectioncomprisesofananalysisofthechangingidentityofthe‘self’thathas

accompaniedthedevelopmentandproliferationofsmartphonedevices.Withglobalmobile

devicesandconnectionsgrowingfrom7.6billionin2015to8.0billionin2016andtheCisco

VisualNetworkingIndexForecastpredictingthatthenumberofmobiledeviceswillincrease

to11.6billion(i.e.1.5mobiledevicespercapita)by2021,ourrelationshipwithourmobile

devicesisofincreasingimportance.Withadoptionratesofthesedevicesrisingonadaily

basis,Katz&Aakhus(2002)attributesthedrivefor“perpetualcontact”asthereasonforthe

growthindevicesthatallowusconstantcontacttotheworldatalltimes(Vishwanath&

Chen,2008).Withpredictedgrowthlevelsofthesedevicessetasoftheabove,itis

worthwhileexamininghowtheintimaterelationshipwiththesedevicesbeganandtheways

inwhichthisrelationshipisbeginningtoalterhowindividualsidentifythe‘self’.

Firstly,ourrelationshipwithtechnologybegantochangeashuman’simbuedcomputerswith

socialandhumancharacteristics,resultinginaninteractionstylereflectingmoreofahuman-

humancommunicationformratherthanahuman-computerorhuman-toolform.Ample

researchhasbeencarriedoutastothereasonsbehindourspecificintoxicationwith

technology.Turkle(2005)suggeststhatthisrelationshipwithtechnologymaycomefromthe

factthathumansstruggletoidentifywhatthesedevicesactuallysignify.Naturally,withinthe

processofattributinganidentitytoanobject,humanswillattempttofindasuitableanalogy

thatwillbeusedinordertocreateaconnectionbetweentheidentityofthenewobjectand

theidentityofthecomparableobject.Forexample,intheidentificationofanairplanethe

analogyofabirdcanbeused(Turkle,2005).Theclosestanalogythathumanscanmakefor

thecomplexandlogicalfunctionoftechnologicaldevicesisthatofthehumanbrain,andasa

result,attributinghumancharacteristicsandtraitstothecomputerbecomesmorenatural

(Turkle,2005).AlthoughitispositedbyTurkletobeactivelyenactedbyindividuals,within

psychologythisprocessistermed“Anthropomorphism”anddeemedtobeaninnate

elementofhumannature.Whetheractiveorinnate,theprocessofanthropomorphismis

evidencedasindividualsseektopersonalizeourdevices,alteringandindividualizingring

tones,phonecovers,wallpapersetc.(Wang,2017).Thispersonalizationisphysical

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representationoftherelationshipwehavewithourdevices,activelyhighlightingour

inferenceofcharacteristicsandpersonalityontothem,becomingnotjustourpersonaltool

butanactualbeinginandofitself(Turkle,2003).Theabovetheoryregardingthehuman-

technologicalrelationshipisthefundamentalconceptoftheComputersasSocialActors

paradigm,whichstatestherelationshipbetweenindividualsandcomputersis“inherentlya

socialone”(Wang,2017).

Empiricalresearchhighlightshowdesignersofourdevicesareplayinguponour

anthropomorphictendenciesinordertocreatecloser,human-likerelationshipsbetweenthe

individualandtechnology,withtheexchangeinterfacesthatweengagewithcomputers

throughessentiallydesignedtomimicthe“communicationcycleofhuman-human

interactions”(Kim&Sundar,2012);takeforexampletheuseoftheAppleassistantSiri.

Wheninterfacesaredesignedlikethoseinchatroomsorsocialmediaplatforms“usersare

morelikelytofeelastrongersenseofsocialpresenceduringtheirinteractionsthenifthe

interfacewassimplyuser-systeminteractions”(Kim&Sundar,2012).Designedtoelicita

‘realismheuristic’fromtheuser,thisremindstheuserofhumantohumancommunication

“positivelyinfluencing”informationcredibilityand“providingtheillusionofarealisticnatural

interaction”(Kim&Sundar,2012).Sundar(2004)showsthatthelongertherelationshipone

haswiththesedevicesthemorelikelyforthissocialassociationwithcomputerstobeboth

“automaticandmindless”.Consequently,aswecanseefromtheaboveanalysis,the

inherenthumanattributionofsocialcharacteristicstoobjectsisunsurprisingespeciallywhen

coupledwiththefactthattheseinstinctsareutilizedbydesignerstocreatestrongbonds

betweenhumanandtechnology.

Notonlydoweinteractwiththesetoolsassocialbeingsbutourrelationshipwithtechnology

hasgonebeyondjustinteractingwiththesedevicesonapurelysociallevel.Whenfirst

introducedasadevice,thecomputerwasviewedasatoolforproductivityandefficiency,

allowingindividualsmorefreetimetofocusonmoreimportanttasks.Asthesetoolshave

developedhowever,therelationshipbetweenindividualandtoolisbecomingblurred.First

positedbyBelk(2016)inhisresearch,itistheorizedthatindividualshaveinfactbegunto

changethewayinwhichweareidentifyingthe‘self’,internalizingthesedevicesasan

extensionofthe‘self’.Thisconceptofinternalizationisnotonethatisnewtosociety.Tools

haveconsistentlybeencreatedandthenincorporatedaspartofthe‘self’throughoutthe

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courseofhistory;theknifebecameanextensionofthehand,increasingourphysical

strength;clothesbecameanextensionofourskin,increasingourprotection;(Case,2010)

andnowtechnologyisbecominganextensionofourcognition.Thefundamentaldifference

withthisinternalization,inherentlylieswithinthefactthatratherthananextensionofour

physicalselves,technologyisexpandingourmentalandcognitive‘self’,anextensionthatis

unprecedentedandwiththattheeffectofwhichis,asofyet,illusive.Belkwasthemost

recentofmanyresearcherstoconductananalysisintothisfundamentalchangeinthestate

of‘self’,ultimatelyinferringthatthisinternalizationandextensionofselfmaybearesultof

manydifferentfactorsincluding;theperceptivecontrolthatindividualshaveovertheobject,

culturalinfluencesthatinfermeaningonpossessions,technologicalfactorssuchassocial

presence,mobility,informationrichness,taskcharacteristics,urgencyoftask,information

needs,theneedforindividuation,technologicalinnovativeness,uncertaintyavoidance,

powerdistanceandcollectivism(Vishwanath&Chen,2008).

ArepresentationoftheinternalizationofthesetoolsisalsohighlightedbyBelk(2016).With

theconstantdistractionofwhatishappeninginouronlineworldincessantlycallingus,we

arerarelypresentinourofflinesurroundings.Thishasnowbecomesoingrainedinsociety

thatanewfear,identifiedas“nomophobia”,isbeginningtotakehold(Belk,2016).Moreand

moreweheartheterm“FOMO”-a“fearofmissingout”onwhatishappeningonoursocial

networks-whichratherthanatrivialpopularizedterm,isbecominganactualizedfearin

society.ResearchbyBelk(2016)hasshowntechnologytohavebecomesuchanextensionof

selfthatwhenpeopleareremovedfromtheabilitytoconnectonlinethey“feelphantom

vibrationsfrommobilephones,evenwhentheyarenotcarryingone”,likeningittothe

effectof“phantomlimbsyndrome”.Thisdescriptionisclearlyaverydramaticandimportant

oneandevidentfromitishowdependentonthisconstantconnectiontotechnologyweare.

Furtherresearchstudiesalsohavebeenconductedwhichconfirmhowthisinternalizationis

affectingoursenseof‘self’.Ashighlightedabove,theimportanceofmemorywithinidentity

constructioniscitedbymanytheorists(Plato,Turkle,Carr)andasthisinternalizationoccurs

weareexperiencingafundamentalchangeinthefunctionofourmemory.Wegner&Ward

(2013)conductedananalysisoftheeffectthat,notonlytheutilizationofGooglehasbut

evensimplytheopportunitytoaccessGooglehasonourassessmentofcognitiveability.

Theirresearchsuggeststhatwearemovingawayfromtraditionalstructuresandperceptions

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ofsocietyinrelationtoourcognitivepatternsandmemories.Asexploredearlier,wherewe

oncereliedona“distributedmemory”systemwherebyindividualsbenefitfromthe

collectivememoryofthecommunity,wearenowremovingtheexternaldependencyon

eachotherandreplacingitwitha“transactivememorysystem”withourdevices,which

Wegner&Ward(2013)termthe“Googleeffect”.Whenwehaveaccesstotheseinformation

systemswerelylessonourowncognitiveabilities,allowingfortheoutsourcingofmemory

tothesedevices.Ourconstantaccesstothisoutsourcedmemoryonlyenhancingour

dependencyonthesetoolsas“peopleareoftenunabletofixdetailsintheirownthoughts

wheninthepresenceoftheircyberbuddy”(Wegner&Ward,2103).Resultsfromtheir

researchfurtherhighlighthowevenwhenusingGoogletoanswerquestions,subjectshadan

increasedsenseoftheirowncognitiveability.UsingGooglehadgivensubjects“theillusion

thattheirownmentalcapabilitieshadprovidedtherightanswer”andgavethemasense

thatGooglehadbecomeanexpandedpartoftheirown“cognitivetoolset”(Wegner&

Ward,2103).Thisresearchcanbeviewedunderthecontextofstructuralsymbolic

interactionism,whichpositsthatindividualsmay“incorporatecapabilitiesofthematerial

objecttowhichtheyhavebecomeemotionallyattachedintotheirindividualself-concepts”

(CarterandGrover,2015).

Inhisbook“TheShallows”,Carr(2010)identifiesthewaysinwhichourinteractionwith

technologyisprofoundlyalteringourneurologicalpatternsultimatelychangingthewaywe

think,processandstoreinformation.Withinthedisjointedanddistractingworldof

technology,ourthoughtpatternsarebecomingincreasingly‘fragmented’,notallowingtime

forindividualstofocusononetopicformorethanafewsecondsandmeaningthat“our

workingmemoryisconstantlyfilledwithnewinformationatapacefasterthaninformation

canbeprocessed”(Carr,2010).Inadoptingsuchacloserelationshipwiththesetools,Carr

(2011)indicatesneurologistshavenproventhataswelearnandutilizenewinteractive

features,weareconstantlymodifyingthefunctionsofthebrainwith“oldfunctions

becomingoverwritten”bynewfunctionsrequiredinordertosuccessfullyoperatethese

tools.Ultimately,thisprocessleadstothe“shorttermmemory[being]regularlyflushedto

makeroomfornewinput”andleavinglittleinformationbeingprocessedintoourlongterm

memory(Carr,2011).

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Ascanbeseenfromtheaboveanalysis,notonlyisourneedfor‘perpetualcontact’driving

ustointeractwithourdevicesasiftheyweresocialactorsbutweareinherentlychanging

fundamentalaspectsofthe‘self’throughourinteractionandutilizationofthesedevices.In

thechapterthatfollows,thesemodificationswillbeexaminedinmoredetailintermsofthe

effectthatourtimespentonsocialmediahasonoursenseof‘self’.

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SOCIALMEDIAANDTHESOCIALCONSTRUCTIONOFSELF

Thetechnologicalfoundationonwhichoursocietyisnowbuilthasunsurprisinglyleadtoa

shiftinthewayweareinteractingonline,allowingnewwaysinwhichweexpressourselves

andmaintainsocialrelationships.Intheonlinesphere,self-representationismainlycarried

outthroughsocialmediaplatforms,whichhavebrokendownbothphysicalconstraintsand

normalsocialcuesthatexistinfacetofaceinteraction,givinguserstheabilitytointeract

acrosstimeandspacethroughacuratedversionofthe‘self’.AccordingtoStatista,global

socialnetworkingaudiencesexceeded2billionusersin2016,withthemostpopularsites,

FacebookandInstagramattracting1.86billionand700millionmonthlyactiveusers

respectively(Statista.com,2017).ResearchfromthePewResearchCentrefoundthatin

2015approximately74%ofadultinternetusershaveatleastonesocialmediaaccountand

52%maintainmultipleprofiles(Keatingetal,2015).Astudyintothelifestylehabitsof

individualswithinthistechnologicaleraapproximatedthatusersspentapproximately118

minutesperdayonsocialmediasites(Statista.com)anditispredictedbyMediakikthat

withinourlifetimeindividualswillspendanaverageof5.25yearsonsocialmedia(Cohen,

2017).Whencomparedtotheirfindingsofmorefundamentaltasks,whereonaveragewe

spend3.41yearseatinganddrinkingand1.83yearsgrooming,weseetheproportionoftime

spentonthesesocialmediasitesissignificantandthereforetheimportanceoftheeffectsof

thesesitesontheuserisincreasing(Cohen,2017).Asinvestigatedintheprevioussections,

ourrelationshipandconstantinteractionwithtechnologyisfundamentallyalteringwhowe

areasindividualsaswebegintoconstructnewideasofwhoandwhatwearethrough

interactionwithnewdevices.Whatfollowsinthissectionwillbeananalysisofhowouruse

ofsocialmediaisdevelopingnewwaysofidentityconstruction;firstly,throughananalysisof

thestructureoftheenvironmentwhichiscreatedthroughtheseplatformsandthenby

conductinganinvestigationintotheimpactoftheseenvironmentsonthevitalcomponents

ofidentityconstructionhighlightedearlier–thestoringofmemoryandtheself-reflective

process.

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FREEDOMOFCONSTRUCTION:OFFLINEVS.ONLINESOCIALENVIRONMENT

Throughoursocialmediaplatforms,wehaveafreedominidentityconstructionwhichis

unprecedented.Thisfreedomcomesintheformoftheabilitytoconstructanidentityonline

thatdoesnotnecessarilyconstitutewhatistermedunderself-discrepancytheoryasour

‘actualself’(Huetal,2015).Viaouronlineprofiles,individualscanconstructaversionofthe

‘self’thatcanbeasauthenticorasdeceptiveastheywish.Requiringnoauthenticationof

identity,wehaveneverbeforehadaccesstoaplatformwhichhasgivenussuchfreedomto

expressadifferentversionofour‘self’.Whetheritbethe“actual”,“ought”or“ideal”(Zhao

etal,2015)thatisportrayed,onlineweareunconstrainedbyrealitywhereweareinhibited

byphysicalconditions.Representingtheselfincongruencewithwhatoursocialpeersdeem

acceptableisnotanewphenomenonasmultipletheorieshavecited.In1959,longbefore

theproliferationofthesesites,Goffmanwasproposingthatpresentationoftheselfwasa

“performance”andvanDijck(2013)proposesthatsincethesesiteshavegainedsuch

prominenceinsociety“theneedforamultiple,compositeselfhasonlyincreased”.Weare

freetobeandactasweessentiallywish,exploringmultipleelementsoftheselfthatmake

upthestructureofouridentitiesSowhatdoesthissenseoffreedommeanforthe

constructionofself?

Itisfirstlypertinenttoexaminethesocialcontextinwhichwearespendingalarge

proportionofourdailylives.Consideringtheaboveliteraturewhichpositstheimportanceof

theinfluenceofsocialcontextinwhichweoperate,thedifferencesinthesocialcontexts

betweenofflineandonlinesocialenvironmentswarrantsexamining.Thereareanumberof

separatefactorsoftheseonlineenvironmentsthatfacilitatedifferencesinthewayinwhich

weinteractwitheachotherincomparisontofacetofaceinteractions.Meshi,Tamirand

Heekeren(2015)conductedanin-depthanalysisthathighlightedfourfundamental

differencesinhowthesocialnormsprevalentonthesesitesareinherentlydifferentfrom

offlinesocialinteractions.

Firstly,theyhighlighttheintrinsicallydifferentstructurewithinthenatureofinteractionvia

theseplatforms.Wehavemovedfromsomewhatrestrictedcommunicationopportunitiesto

havingaccesstobillionsof‘others’,fundamentallyalteringourformofcommunicationfrom

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reciprocalinteractionto“unidirectional”,withMeshietal.highlightingthatthisfosters

unlimitedopportunitiesfor“one-sidedconversation,takingturnafterturnforthemselves”

(Meshietal.,2015).Ratherthanconnectingwiththosealreadywithinthesocialcircle,

individualshaveaccesstobillionsofotheruserslocatedallovertheworldatanytime,

highlightinghowtherestrictivespatialandtemporalconditionsofofflineenvironmentshave

beenexponentiallyexpanded.Anotherfeatureoftheseenvironmentsisthepublicnatureof

thecontentpostedasmostinteractionsthattakeplacecanbeaccessedatanytimeandif

carriedoutinthemorepublicfeaturesoftheappscanbeaccessedbyanyone.Wearenow

inherentlypublicbeings,opentofeedbackfromthosearoundus.Accordingtoself-

verification,self-representationandself-discrepancytheory,thisopportunityforfeedbackis

acriticalelementtoidentityconstructionandthesefeedbackandself-reflectiveprocesses

shouldallowustobetterdevelopandconstructouridentities.

Withlackofauthenticationofidentityonline,ensuringthatyouareinteractingwithan

authenticidentitycanprovetobeverydifficult.Hu,ZhaoandHuang(2015)suggestthat

virtualidentitiesofferanescapefrom“real-worldrestraintssuchassocialnorms,legislation

andresponsibilities”.Undertheframeworkoftheself-discrepancytheory,theyargueforthe

benefitsofthefreedomthatcomefromtheconstructionofvirtualidentitiescitingthe

following;“thereconstructionvirtualidentityreflectsmoreoftheidealselfandthusmakes

theindividualmoresatisfied;theindividualthereforedoesnotneedtofulfilltoomuch

ought-self;thereconstructedvirtualidentitycanprotecttheindividual’sprivacyandthus

avoidpotentialrisks”.Aninherentissueintheirresearchistheiroverrelianceonthe

propositionthatFacebookisanonymousonlineenvironmentwhereusersareunlikelyto

‘treatitasavenueforexpressingtheir‘hiddenselves’”asusersarerequiredtorevealtheir

namesinafixedinstitutionalcontext(Huetal.,2015).Thisisclearlyaproblematicviewpoint

asitiswidelyknownoftheabundantamountoffalseprofilespresentonthesesitesasthey,

intruth,requirelittleverificationinordertosetupaprofile.However,researchconducted

byBaraket-Bojmeletal.(2016)foundthatregardlessofwhetherindividualsareinteracting

asanauthenticordeceptiveformof‘self’,asaresultofthelackofphysicalconditionsand

consequencestheystillfeelunidentifiable.Consequently,althoughthesesitesenable

freedomofexpression,theelementofanonymitythatcomesalongwiththiscanalsoprove

harmfultosocialinteractionsasitishypothesizedthatthisanonymitycanleadtomore

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aggressiveandnarcissisticbehaviours.Thisisanimportantconceptwhichwarrantsfurther

discussioninthefollowingsectionrelatedtothewaysinwhichthecurationofthe‘self’

onlineallowsforthedevelopmentofthesebehaviours.

Asexploredearlierwithinthecontextoftheinteractionistapproachtoidentityconstruction,

language,bothverbalandnon-verbal,playsavitalroleinthedevelopmentofidentity.

Throughoursocialmediaprofileslanguagecanbeutilizedinmultipledifferentformatsthat

allowforawiderrangeofexpressionforindividuals.Nolongerconstrainedbytheirphysical

face-to-facereality,userscanportraytheiridentitybothlinguisticallyorvisuallythroughtext,

images,videosandcontent.Thefreedomexperiencedwithinthesecontextsallowsforthe

variousiterationsofvanDijcks(2013)“multiple,compositeself”tobeportrayedwithout

havingtobeevidencedthroughnormalphysicalconstraints.Thelossofphysicalindications,

particularlythoseofthecommunicationcuesinherentinbothbodylanguageandverbal

tone,isamajordifferenceininteractionsonlineversusoffline.ProminentPsychologist

AlbertMehrabiansuggeststhatindividualsdeduce55%ofcommunicationfrombody

languageand38%fromverbaltone,thelossofthevitalcuesmeansthatwearenowmostly

communicatingthroughtheremaining7%ofofflinecommunicationcues(Mehrabian,1972).

Withthisfundamentaldifference,thereisnoquestionthatourinteractionsonlineare

foundedonacompletelydifferentbasisthenofflinecommunication.

Lovink(2017)describesthecurrentsocialmediaenvironmentasonethatisobsessedwith

itself,inastateof“auto-informationandauto-intoxication”.Weisgerber&Buttler(2016)

suggestthatthisenvironmentofover-stimulationandbombardmentofinformationhasled

towhattheyterman“attentioneconomy”,wherecontentisdesignedtobedisruptive,

interruptinganddistractingtheuseraseachinterestgroupattemptstogarnerattention.

Berardiwasalsoamajorcontributortothisnotionashesuggeststhatthecyber

environmentiscreatingascenariowhere“ourfullengagementasbothconsumersand

producersofinformation”is“impossible”(Weisgerber&Buttler,2016).Carr(2010),“while

thenetdemandsourcompleteattention,itscattersitatthesametime”.Inorderfordeep

thinkingtooccur,Carr(2010)postulatestheimportanceofacalmandattentivemind,

highlightingvariouspsychologicalstudiesthatstateempathyandcompassionalsoarisefrom

this“settledmind”.Thishypothesisiscrucialtotheargumentdevelopedlaterinthispaper

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pertainingtoquestionofwhetherindividualswithinthisenvironmenthaveessentialability

ofself-reflection,andassuchwillberevisitedwithinthatanalysis.

Intrinsicinourrelationshipwithandviatheseplatformsistheassumptionbymost

individualsthatsocialmediaisadirectreflectionoftheofflineworld.Lovink(2017)highlights

howsociologistAlbertBenschoppositsthattheideaofasecondworldonlinedoesnotexist

andassuchdoesnotnecessitatedifferenttreatment.However,asoutlinedinthissection,

therearenumerousfactorswhichaccountforaneedfordistinctionbetweentheonlineand

offlinesocialcontextsthroughwhichidentityisdeveloped.WhatBenschopandmanyothers

failtorecognizeisthatthesocialmediaplatformsarenotadirectreflectionofouroffline

livesbutintruth,arecompiledofcuratedversionsof‘self’,‘other’andtheworld.

Internalizingaconstructedworld

Althoughthereareelementsoffreedomthattheabovehighlights,constraintsimposedon

therepresentationof‘self’alsoexistwithintheseenvironmentsthatareimpactingand

shapingtheconstructionofidentity;theconstraintsareevidentinmanyfeaturesincludinga

limitoncharactersallowedperpost(Twitter)andphotosallowedtobepostedatonetime

(Instagram).Ultimately,theseconstraintsarecultivatingacultureofeditingandcuration,

andifweareexaminingthisundertheguiseofself-representationtheories,onemust

heavilyeditwhatispostedtoensurethatthemostappealingformof‘self’isportrayedto

oureverpresentaudience.

TheImpactofaCuratedSelf

Astheabovesuggests,thereisafreedominidentityconstructiononlinewhichallowsfor

individualstoconstructthe‘self’inanywaytheychoose.Inaccordancewithsocialidentity

theory,Meshi,TamirandHeekeren(2015)havefoundintheirresearchthatamajor

motivationforsocialmediausewastheabilityforindividualstomanage“theimpression

theymakeonothers”,andthroughsocialmediasitesusershavetheopportunity“tocreate,

modify,ormaintainanimpressionofourselvesinthemindsofothers”(Ahadzadehetal.,

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2017).Bareket-Bojmeletal.(2016)highlightthatself-presentationmethodsusedtocurate

ouronline‘self’arehighlylinkedtothefeedbackprocessthatisamplifiedwithinthesesocial

platforms.Particularlywhenindividualsengageinself-derogatingorself-enhancingpractices

(dependingontheirinternalviewofthe‘self’)therecanbeaself-perpetuatingcycleof

behaviorandsubsequentidentitychangestimulatedbytheresponsewhichtheyreceive

fromtheironlinesocialnetwork;evidencedthrough‘likes’or‘comments’onFacebookin

responsetoapost,forexample.Bareket-Bojmeletal.(2016)highlightthatengaginginsuch

activitiescan“encouragethepersonwhopostedittopostmore[related]statements”and

asshownearlier,repeatedlyengaginginthesetypeofinteractionscanresultinthe

internalizationoftheseenhancingorderogatingidealsintotheindividual’sidentity(Charng

etal.(1988),Burke(2006)).Byconsistentlychangingidentitybasedonthisfeedbackloop

CharlesCooleysuggeststhatwewill‘cometoknowourselvesthroughthemirrorofother’s

reactiontous”(Belk,2016).

Asindividualsareemboldenedbydistanceandalackofsocialnorms,thecommunication

formthatdevelopsoutofthesecuratedselvesisprofoundlydifferentthenthatfoundin

offlinecontexts.ResearchconductedbyAboujaoudepostulatesanE-personalitythatevolves

throughtheseonlineconditions,portrayedthroughan“exaggeratedsenseofourabilities,a

superiorattitudetowardsother,anewmoralcodeonline,apronenesstoimpulsive

behavior,andatendencytoregresstochildlikestateswhenfacedwithanopenbrowser”

(Lopatin,2012).Theabilitytocuratethe‘self’ispostulatedtoallowidentityto“run

rampant”ultimatelycreating“anordinaryeverydayviciousness”that“characterizesmany

peoples’onlinelives”(Lopatin,2012).Aboujaoudesuggeststhatthephysicalrealitieswithin

whichweoperateinourofflineworldenforceconstraintsonindividual’sexpressionsof

“anger,aggressionandconcupiscence”andthelackoftheseinouronlineworldsallowsfor

theexpressionofa“moreassertiveandlessrestrained”versionofthe‘self’(Lopatin,2012).

Multipleresearchershavesupportedthishypothesis.Turkle(2012)foundthatforsome,

onlineplatformsprovidedaplaceto“actoutunresolvedconflictsandaplacetoplayand

replaypersonaldifficultiesonanewandexoticstage”.Duetoanewnormofunilateral

interaction,individualsarefreetosuccumbtoanunlimitedamountofself-disclosure.In

comparisontoofflineinteractionswherepeoplespendapproximately30%oftheir

interactionsspeakingaboutthemselves,onlinethisnumberjumpstocompriseof80%of

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socialinteractions,indicatingtheheavilynarcissisticculturethatexistsonthesesocialmedia

platforms(Meshietal.,2015).Andreassen,PallesenandGriffiths(2017)supporttheabove

findingspostulatingthatthesesocialmediaplatformsare“idealsocialarenasforindividuals

whoappreciateandareattractedtoengaginginego-enhancingactivities”.Arguingthatitis

individualswith“elevatednarcissistictraits”usetheseplatformstoengageininteractions

that“fulfillaneedforaffiliationandconfirmsthesenseofanidealizedself(Andreassen,

Pallesen,Griffiths,2017).

Asaresultoftheabove,Goffman(1959)mayhavelikenedtheseversionsofthe‘self’to

‘actors’takingpartinatheatricalperformance.Individualsareonstageinfrontofothers

where,incongruencewiththeself-representationtheoriespositedearlier,thepositive

aspectsofselfandthedesiredimpressionsarehighlightedandreinforcedthroughthe

inherentfeedbackloop(Bareket-Bojmeletal.,2016).Moreimagesofperfectlivesthatare

presentedwithinournewsfeedendangersrationalself-reflection,avitalcomponentofour

identityconstructionmethods.Asthesecuratedselvescannotcomparetoofflinerealities,it

diminishestheabilityforindividualstoevaluatethemselvesinaccordancewithtraditional

standardsof‘self’.Jackson(2002)identifiesthatthemoreapersonfeelsa“radical

diminution”oftheir‘self’theywilltryto“compensate”forthisbyengagingactivitieswhere

theyultimately“feelrecognized,complementedoraffirmed”.Theseneedscanbeanalyzed

withinWilliamJames’classicsocialidentityconstructiontheory,whichpositsthree

fundamentalinstinctiveimpulseswithintheconstructionofthe‘self’;bodilyself-seeking,

spiritualself-seekingand,themostrelevantforthisdiscussion,thatofsocialself-seeking

(James,1890).Jamesoutlineshowthisinstinctualneedisthedesiretobe“recognized”,not

justbythosewithinourofflinesocialcircleswhomweknowandlike,butbyanyonewhohas

thecapacitytonotice(James,1890).Ourinherentneedforrecognitioncandriveustoreach

forattentionwarrantedby“gossiporscandal”whichJamesoutlines“suitsthemifnothing

elseistobehad”(James,1890).Thiscanundoubtedlybewitnessedinthesocialmedia

environmentinwhichweoperatetoday.Howmanyofusareactingoutofthisneedfor

recognitionratherthanexpressingourtrueopinions?Ifnegativeattentioniswhatwecrave

whenwearefeelingunnoticedthentheobviouschoiceistheimmediategratificationthatis

garneredthroughouronlinefeedbackloop.Whetherthefeedbackisnegativeorpositive,

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thereisalwaysan‘other’readyandwaitingintheonlinespherewhowillrespondand

suddenlyourneedforconnectionissatisfiedandwefeellessalone.

ChristopherLaschwouldattributetheinternalizationthatiscentralinourrelationshipwith

technology,tothis“cultureofnarcissism”foundonline.AsTurkle(2003)highlights,society

hastheclassicproblemof“lonelinessandafearofintimacy”,ournewtechnologicalworld

providestheperfectsolution,givingusthe“illusionofcompanionshipwithoutthedemands

ofintimacy”(Turkle,2003).Thisincessantneedfordisconnectedintimacyiswhatisdriving

oursocietytorelymoreontechnologythenwedooneachother.Thedangersofthis

constanteditingofthe‘self’arefurtherhypothesizedbyTurkle(2003)asshehighlightsthat

aswebecomeaccustomedtotheconstanteditingof‘self’online,thiswillleadtoa

degradationofourofflinecommunicationskills.Thecomfortofbeingabletoheavily

constructandeditthe‘self’willdriveusawayfromrealface-to-facecommunicationand

furtherintothesafetyofouronlineworlds.Itcouldbearguedthatthesesitesallowforthe

freedomofexpressionandprovideanoutletforourfrustrationthatwedonothavewithin

ourofflinecontexts.However,aswearedriventothesesitesinourneedforrecognitionand

connection,wearespendingmoretimeconstructingthe‘self’throughthefeedbackdriven

byournarcissismandego.Inthisworldof“Ishare,thereforeIam”(Turkle,2012),itisnot

justonlinewherethisconstructionofsucha‘self’willhaveanimpact,thetransformationof

theoffline‘self’andthewaysinwhichwerelateandinteractwitheachotherofflinewill

undeniablybecomeanexpressionoftheseonlineversionsoftheself.

Withinthisegodriven,narcissisticconstructionoftheworld,weareindangerofbeing

removedfromtherationalitiesandrealitiesoftheofflineworld.Theissueinherentlylies

withinthefactthatthereisanexpectationfortheseenvironmentstobereflectiveofthe

realworld,wheninfact,thetwoaremutuallyexclusive.Itisourwrongfulexpectationthat

theseonlineworldsarereflectiveofourofflineworldsthatleadstotheultimateissuewithin

theseenvironments.Consideringtheeffectsoftheseonlineinteractionsareverymuch

becomingingrained,andinsomecases,damagingindividual’smentalhealth,thisheightened

worldofimpressionmanagement,opinionandnarcissismneedstobereconsideredassuch.

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TheImpactofaCuratedWorld

Intriguingly,itisnotjusthowwearechoosingtoidentifyourselvesonlinethatisimpacting

oursenseof‘self’.Alongwiththeheavyimpressionmanagementstrategiesthatmakeup

the‘self’online,theinformationandtheworldinwhichweinteractisheavilycuratedforus

basedonalgorithmsembeddedintotheverystructureoftheseplatforms.EliPariser(2011)

inhisTedTalk“Bewareonline“filterbubbles””,outlinesthewaysinwhichtwopeoplewith

separateethnicitiesandprofessionsgettwocompletelydifferentGooglesearchresults,

highlightinghowtheseplatformsareconstructinganidentityforustoconsume.Soalong

withtheidentitythatwecurateforourselveswhichwesubsequentlyinternalize,wearealso

givenanidentitybyoursocialmediaworldswhich,throughourimmersionandconsumption

ofit,becomesinherentlyapartofthe‘self’.

Thepowerofsocialmediaisitsabilitytoconnectmillionsofpeoplearoundtheworldwith

newideasandfacilitatewiderangingdiscussions,however,withcompanieslikeFacebook

constantlygivingan“algorithmicediting”oftheworld(Pariser,2011)individualsarein

actualityconsumingaworldfullofinvisibleboundariesthatmostarenotevenconsciousof.

Basedondemographics,contentsharingandonlineconsumptionpatternsFacebookwill

compileanidentityforeachuseraroundwhichaworldwillbeconstructed.Thisconstruction

willleadtoanonlineenvironmentthatgivesuserscompletelytailored,somewhatbiased,

information-reflectingbacktheworldaccordingtohowtheythinktheuserwantstoseeit

butnotnecessarilyhowtheyneedtoseeit.AsPariser(2011)highlights,moreandmoresites

onlineare“flirtingwithpersonalization”andsoon“itwillbeveryhardforpeopletowatchor

consumesomethingthathasnotbeeninsomesensetailoredforthem”.Kadushin(2012)

foundthatthoseindividualswithinsocialnetworks“sharethesamecharacteristics,values

andsocialstatuses”(White,2014)furtherreinforcingthebubblewithinwhichweare

consuminginformationandcontent.Sowhatarethedangersofthisconstruction?When

realitybecomesbasedonaworldthatisaneditedversionoflifeitcanhavehugeeffectson

society’sidentificationwithitselfasoursocialandculturalconstructsinfluenceouridentity

constructionsignificantly(Taylor(2011),Langman,(1988)).

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Ultimately,aswecontinuetointernalizethesesocialenvironmentsandtheextremesof

socialinteraction,suchasthoseexploredintheprevioussection,identitybecomes

reinforcedratherthandevelopedthroughinteractionwithauthenticallynewandbalanced

content.Althoughthethoughtofboundlessinformationatourfingertipsissatisfying,the

actualityoftheseplatformsisaworldofinvisibleboundariesthatmostarenotevenaware

of.Thesehiddenwallsthatpeopleoperateinonadailybasisareespeciallydangerousas

peopledonotquestionthecontenttheyareviewing.Iftheseworldsaretheninternalized

andimpactingthewayinwhichweareformingouridentities,thenwillwebecomeversions

of‘self’dictatedbythesesocialmediacompanies?Whilethisisaninterestingandsignificant

topicthatrequiresfurtherinvestigation,theextensionsofitaretoofarreachingforthis

paperandwarrantinvestigationatalaterdate.

Ascanbeseenfromtheabove,theinherentstructureofouronlineinteractionsare

fundamentallydifferentfromthosefoundofflineandassuchfutureidentityconstructionwill

meanthatindividualsarebasingtheiridentitieson,andinternalizingadifferentworldthan

everbefore.Inthefollowingsection,anexaminationoftheimpactofthesocialmedia

environmentoutlinedabovehasontwofundamentalaspectsofidentityconstruction

exploredearlier-memoryandtheprocessofself-reflection–willbecarriedout.

IDENTITYCONSTRUCTIONTHROUGHSOCIALMEDIA:THEIMPACTONMEMORYANDTHESELF-

REFLECTIVEPROCESS

Ashighlightedinvarioussectionsthroughoutthispaper,onevitalelementwithinthe

constructionofthe‘self’thathasbeenimpactedbyourinternalizationoftechnologyisthe

memory.Viasocialmediaplatformswearecollectingandstoringthe‘self’outsideofthe

physicalbody,alteringthewayinwhichwearerelatingtoandidentifyingthe‘self’.When

weinvestigatesocialmediaintermstheofcurationofthe‘self’thenwecanexamineit

undertheframeworkofFrenchphilosopherandsocialtheorist,MichaelFoucault’stheoryof

hupomnemata,wherethe“practiceofcollecting,annotatingandselectingtheinformation

25

thatonehears,readsorthinksiscentraltotheshapingofself”(Weisgerber&Butler,2016).

Takenwithinthiscontext,socialmediaprovidestheperfectoutletforthecreationof‘self’.

Individualshavetheopportunitytocultivateavirtualversionofthe‘self’throughthe

collectionofvideos,photos,articlesandfriendshipsonlinecoupledwithopportunityto

accessthisinformationatanytime.PsychologistErikEriksonlabels,notonlysocialmedia

but,cyberspaceasa“psychosocialmoratorium”givingustheopportunitytodocumenteach

ofourlifestagesandbuildourhistoryintotheseplatformswhich,ascitedearlier,isenabling

arelianceonthesesitesasaformofoutsourcedmemory(Turkle,2003).Conducivetothisis

theresearchconductedbyWegnerandWardexaminedearlier,whichsuggeststhatthis

outsourcingofpartofourmentalresourceswillallowustohavemoretimetotacklemore

productivetasksratherthanwastingtimememorizingmoremundanethings.Theyargue

thatthiswillnotnegativelyimpactoursenseofidentitybutallowindividualstobecomea

hybridbeingwithan‘Inter-mind’,creatinga‘trans-activepartnership’withatoolthatis

more‘powerfulthentheworldhaseverseenbefore’(Wegner&Ward,2013).Whattheyfail

toconsiderhowever,isthedisruptive“attentioneconomy”whichexistsonsocialmedia

platformsthatisdescribedintheprevioussection.Withintheseenvironment,insteadof

spendingmoretimeonproductivetasks,weareinfactjustdistractedbymorecontent,

conversationsandtailoringofthe‘self’.Theirresearchhasalsobeenrefutedbymultiple

researchersthathavepostulatedtheimplicationsanddangersofanoutsourcingofour

memoriestothesetools.Platodeclaredthisexternalizationofmemoryashisultimatefear,

theorizingthatitwouldleadtoasocietythatproduces“forgetfulnessinthesoulsofthose

whohavelearnedit”(Weisgerber&Butler,2016).Plato’sargumentwasinretaliationtothe

actofwriting,whichhethoughtofas“abastardformofdiscourse”andwhichheultimately

rejectedasareplacementandsubstituteforhumanmemory(Weisgerber&Butler,2016).If

hecouldseetheworldinwhichweoperatetoday,documentingourlivesviasocialmedia

platformsandwhere,asWegnerandWard(2013)suggest,wehaveinfactbeguntobecome

hybridmindsrelyingontheseexternalinformationsourcesinplaceofourownmemories,

whatwouldhemakeofthehumancondition?Plato’sfearsarealsosupportedbyresearch

conductedbyCarr(2010),whosuggeststhatmemoryisthetoolwhichshapesthe‘self’,

whichinturn“shapesandsustainsthecollectivememory”,ultimatelypositingthatifwe

“outsourcememory…culturewillwither”(Peters,2011).Givenourdisruptiveenvironment

andwiththedangersofoutsourcingourmemorytotheseplatformssupportedbymany

26

researchers,itisdifficulttosupportthefindingsthatthisoutsourcingofmemorywillaidin

thedevelopmentofthe‘self’.

Thestoringofthehistorical‘self’externallyinoursocialmediathroughtheprocessof

‘huponemnemata’canalsobeintrinsicallylinkedtothesecondsignificantfunctionwithin

identitycreation;self-reflection.This“writingoftheself”(Weisgerber&Butler,2016)isso

prevalentintoday’ssocietythat,accordingtoFoucault,theopportunityforself-connection

shouldbepresentineverymomentwespendcuratingandcollectingthisonline‘self’.

However,justaswiththeresearchconductedbyWegnerandWard,thevalidityof

Foucault’stheoryisimpactedbythedisruptiveenvironmentofoursocialworld.Although

theexpansiveinformationsourcethatthesocialwebprovidesisfargreaterthanthat

identifiedinFoucault’stheory,hispremisewasdeterminedbytheabilitytophysicallytake

timetowriteandcollectideas.Aspositedabovehowever,weareconstantlyand

consistentlybombardedwithnewthoughts,ideasandinnovationsviaourdevicesallowing

verylittletimeforself-reflection. Lovink(2017)highlightsthefrenziedenvironmentinwhich

weoperate,highlightinghowsocialmediaplatforms“plungeusintoastateofstupor”.We

areconstantlybeingintroducedtonewapplicationsandproducts“thatelegantlymakeus

forgetyesterday’sflavoroftheday.Wesimplyclick,tapanddragtheplatformaway,finding

somethingelsetodistractus.Withinweekswehaveforgottentheicon,bookmark,or

password”(Lovink,2017).Foucaultpositsthattheabilitytoself-reflectwithinthiscollection

processisvitaltothegrowthof‘self’andinthisworldofconstantentertainment,chatter

anddistractionthisprocessislostaswemovefromonetasktothenext,chasingefficiency

andfreshcontent(Weisgerber&Butler,2016).Foucaultwasnotthefirsttheoristto

postulatethis,astheabilityforself-reflectionisalsocentraltoNietzsche’stheoryonidentity

construction(Katsafanas,2012).One’sabilitytoself-reflectistheinnatequalitythatallows

usself-awareness,givingusthecapacityfortheconstructionofthe‘self’throughself-

assessmentandsubsequentchangingofbehaviorsleadingtogrowth(Katsafanas,2012).Also

atthebasisofTurkle’s(2003)analysisofonlinesocialexperiences,takingtimeforself-

reflectionwasconcludedtobethemostimportantaspectofourrelationshipswiththese

technologiesaswemoveforwardintofulltechnologicalimmersion.Finally,Platotheorized

thattheonly‘worthwhileattentionalformisanamnesis–thinkingwithinoneself”

27

(Weisgerber&Butler,2016)andasthisabilityispositedabovetobeincreasinglydifficult

withintodays’societyitbegsthequestionastohowthisfundamentalshiftinthecreationof

selfwillultimatelyimpactsociety.Ifwearenolongerinanenvironmentwhereself-

reflectionispossiblethenweareremovedfromafundamentalprocessthatallowsthefor

thedevelopmentof‘self’.

Asidefromthedisruptiveandconfusingenvironment,thereisanothermajorissuewith

Foucault’stheory.Ultimately,huponemnematawashypothesizedasa‘personalexercise’

whichshouldbe‘donebyandforoneself’(Wiesgerber&Butler,2016).However,according

tomostresearchregardingsocialmediainteractivity(Fisheretal.(2016),Goodings,Locke&

Brown(2007))mostbehaviorcarriedoutonthesesitesareactiveimpressionmanagement

forothers.PsychologistJimTaylorhassuggestedthatourcultureofsocialmediahasdriven

usawayfrom“self-expressionandself-awareness”andtowardsasocietyof“impression

managementandself-promotion”(Taylor,2011).Worryingly,hespeculatesthatthis

fundamentalchangeishappeningslowlyandwithoutourexpressknowledge,usingthe

disturbinganalogyofa“frogthatdoesnotsenseitisgoingtodieifplacedinwaterthatis

heatedslowly”(Taylor,2011).Ultimately,ourinnateidentityisbecomingexternalized,

constructedfromthefeedbackofaninherentlyflawedsocialsystemratherthanthe

traditionalinternallyderivedidentitythatwasexperiencedinthegenerationsbefore.

Inexaminationofthesocialofthings,JacksonbringstogetherthestudiesofMarx1964,

Appadurai1986,Hopkins,1998,Hornborg2001andMiller1991tohighlightthe“complex

waysinwhichobjectsbecomepersonalizedandpersonsbecomeobjectifiedinthecourseof

sociallife”(Jackson,2002).Inourincreasinglysocialworld,thisseemstopredictthefuture

ofoursocial‘self’.Asweinherentlybecomemoresocialbeings,preferringthecomfortof

onlinecommunicationandfreedomofexpression,thewayinwhichwearenowconstructing

the‘self’appearstobefacilitatingthepersonalizationofourdevicesandtheobjectification

ofeachother(Turkle,2003).Keen(2012)warnsthatifwecontinueonthispathwewillend

upinasocietycharacterizedbythe“lonelinessoftheisolatedmanintheconnectedcrowd”

(Lovink,2012).Perhapsasaresultofthelossofself-reflection,ratherthanbecomingmore

connecttoour‘self’weareinfact,becomingmoredisconnected.Althoughsocialmedia

28

doesprovideuswiththeopportunitytoforconnectionandstrengtheningofoursenseof

‘self’,unlesswebegintoimplementwaystoincorporateself-reflectionintoouronline

activity,thebenefitsofthesesiteswillultimatelybeunderminedbyourmisuseofthem.Itis

uptousasindividualstolearnhowtointeractwithtechnologyinsuchawayastoutilizeits

benefitswithoutlosingwhatmakesusinherentlyhuman.Ultimately,thishypothesisis

intrinsicallylinkedtotheroleagencyplayswithintheseplatformsandconsequentlythiswill

beexaminedinthefollowingsection.

AGENCYWITHINSOCIALMEDIAPLATFORMS

Asexploredabove,therearemanyfacetsthatconstructsociety’srelationshipwith

technology,particularlywithinthevariousaspectsofsocialmediaplatforms.Withthe

fundamentalchangesthataretakingplacewithineachindividualasaresultoftechnological

internalization,itisnowpertinenttoinvestigatethequestionofagencywithinthese

environments.

Firstly,thewaysinwhichthedesignandstructureofoursocialmediaenvironmentsimpact

anindividual’sagencywillbeexamined.Ashighlightedthroughoutthispaper,our

internalizationoftechnologyisfoundationallylinkedtooursocialinteractionwithitand

throughit.Althoughtheprocessofattributingsocialcharacteristicstotheseobjectsis

postulatedabovetobeinnatetohumannature,itispertinenttoidentifytheagencythat

existswithinthisconnection,i.e.whetherindividualsareactivelycreatingthesehuman

associationsoriftheyaredevelopingwithoutactiveawarenessfromtheindividual.Within

thiscontext,researcherssuchasNassandMoon(2000)andSundar(2008)haveexplored

theconsciousnessofthisattribution(Wangetal.,2017).Theirresearchfoundthatthesocial

treatmentofourdevicesisultimately‘subconscious’ratherthan‘mindful’innature(Wang

etal.,2017),developingandbecomingmoreautomaticthelongerourassociationwiththe

device.Furthermore,CarterandGrover(2015)highlightresearchbySchwarzandChin

(2007)thatthemoreindividualsincorporatetechnologicaltoolsintotheiremotionaland

psychologicalselfthemore“theindividualyieldsauthoritytotheITobject”.Thisfindingis

29

significantasitsuggeststhatindividualshavenowbeguntointernalizethesedevicesso

naturallythattheyarenotevenawarethatsuchaconnectionhastakenplace-leadingto

thedeductionthatagencyoveroursocialrelationshipwithtechnologydoesnotexistandas

wecontinuallybecomemoreimmersedinourtechnologicalworld,ratherthanresidingwith

theindividual,trueagencyisincreasinglybeingtransferredtoourtechnologicaldevicesand

theworldsthatareconstructedwithinthem.

Theimplicituseofalgorithmsdesignedtokeepindividualswithinacontentbubblethat

indoctrinatesthemwithintheconfinesoftheirownideashasavastimpactontheagencyof

theuser.Individualsratherthancreatingtheirownonlineworld,havetheirworldsare

curatedandboundedbasedonanidentityofthe‘self’constructedbythecreatorsofthese

sites(Pariser,2011).Pariser(2011)highlightshowthedangersoftheseeditedversionsof

theworldcomeasmostindividualonlinearenotawareofthefactthattheirworldsare

tailoredspecificallyforthem.Bornoutofthis‘ignorance’ofthetrueconstructionoftheir

world,agencywithinthiscontextistransferredfromtheindividualovertothedevelopersof

theseplatforms.

Thedesignprocessisfurtherutilizedbythedevelopersofthesesitesinordertoencourage

theadoptionoftheirplatforms.Buildingonresearchwhichpositstheimportanceofagency

asamotivatingfactorfortheuseoftheseonlineplatforms,Gangadharbatla(2008)has

highlightedthatadoptionratesarepositivelycorrelatedwithanindividual’s“confidencein

theirabilitytosuccessfullyunderstand,navigateandevaluatecontentonline”.Likewise,

Jackson(2002)suggeststhatadoptionratesspecificallydependon“howmuchwefeelwe

understanditandhowmuchcontrolwefeelwehaveoverit”.Bothstudiesindicatethatthe

moreagencyauserperceivestohavewithinanonlineenvironmentthemorelikelytheir

adoptionofthatplatform,regardlessoftheactualagencytheuserhas.Itisthereforeinthe

interestofthedevelopersofthesesitestoincludefeaturesthatgivetheuserasenseof

agencyinanenvironmentwhere,ultimatelyasemphasizedthroughthissection,manyofthe

environmentalfeaturesthatshapethe‘self’areoutoftheircontrol.

Thisagencythatisaffordedtotheuserbythecreatorsofthesesitescomesintheformof

thefreedomofexpressionwhichisinnatewithinsocialmediaplatforms.Thisallowsfora

largeamountofagencytobefeltbyindividualswithinthevirtualrepresentationofthe‘self’,

30

astheyhavetheabilitytorepresentthemselvesfreeoftheconstraintsofreality.However,

althoughindividualsareaffordedtheopportunitytoconstructanyversionofthe‘self’that

theywish,inactuality,oncethe‘self’iscreatedonline,individualsenterintoafeedback

processwhereultimatelytheindividual’sagencywithintherepresentationofthe‘self’is

underminedandinadvertentlygivenovertothe‘others’withinthesocialnetwork.Research

byBelk(2016)highlightshisconcernregardingthisprocess,ashesuggeststhatduetothe

natureofthisloopweareatriskofgivingcontrolofthe‘self’tothe‘others’withwhomwe

areinteracting.Although,agencyisultimatelygiventooursocialgroup,itcanbearguedthat

oneaspectoftrueagencyremainswithinthefirstiterationofthe‘self’onthesesocialmedia

sites.Yettohavebeeninfluencedbytheonlinefeedbackloop,this‘self’isonewherethe

individualhasmostagencyinitsconstruction.Overallhowever,thistrueagencyisultimately

supersededbythetransferaloftheagencywithinthedevelopmentofthe‘self’overto

‘others’inthesocialnetworksinwhichweoperate.

Throughtheaboveanalysisitispostulatedthat,althoughtheindividualshavethecapacityto

exertagencywithintheseplatformsexistswithintheopportunitytocreateaversionofthe

‘self’inwhicheverwaytheyplease,thestructuresanddesignoftheseenvironments

ultimatelymeanthatindividualsexertverylittleagencywithintheseenvironments.

Toofferacontrastingargumenttotheabove,empiricallywithinidentityconstructiontheory

thefundamentalconceptofagencycanberelatedtotheprocessofself-reflection.Research

byKatsafanas(2012)highlightsthatwithinthetraditionalperspectivesofidentity,many

scholarshavelinkedagencyto“thecapacityforreflection”,citingthatthelossofthisability

thathasbeenhighlightedaboveisleadingtoanignorancewithinthe‘self’.Thisconvenes

effectivelywiththeaboveanalysisofthenarcissisticnatureofouronlineworldsandaddsto

theargumentofthelackofself-awarenessthatisaninherentfeaturewithintheseonline

interactions.Nietzschewasoneprominenttheoristwhoconstructedhistheoryonidentity

aroundthepremiseofagency,postulatingthatindividualsmusthaveasenseofself

awarenessinordertoexertgenuineagency(Katsafanas,2012)andultimatelythat“ifan

agentisignorantofhisaction,thentheappearanceofagencyisillusory”(Katsafanas,2012).

Withinthisframework,controlisinextricablylinkedtoagencyandaccordingtoNietzsche,as

31

weloseourabilityforself-reflection,weareinturnlosinganaspectofcontroloverour

actions(Katsafanas(2012).

Whilstbothoftheaboveargumentsclaimthelackofagencythatindividualshavewithin

onlinecontexts,Nietzsche’sargumentsuggests,converselytothefirst,thatratherthan

arisingoutoftheactualcontrolthatindividualshaveovertheseenvironments,trueagency

andcontrolarefunctionsofself-awarenessandself-reflection.AlthoughNietzschestated

thatcontrolis“threatened”byaself-ignorancebornoutofalossofself-reflectionwithin

thesesites,Katsafanas(2012)alsocitesthatNietzscherecognizedthat“self-regulationisnot

somethingattainedimmediately”.Thisimpliesthatevenaswehaveyettodevelopsocial

structuresonlinethatinherentlyhaveself-reflectivetendencies,theseprocessescouldbe

developedovertimeaslongmoreattentionisgiventotheimportanceoftheseprocessesas

wecontinuetointeractanddeveloptheseplatforms.Vitaltothis,asdeductedfromthe

precedinganalysis,istheneedforindividualstobecomeawareoftheiractionsandthrough

thiswecanreclaimournotonlyabettersenseofouridentitybutalsoagencywithinthis

emergingsociotechnicalsetting.

32

CONCLUSION

Thispaperexploredthevariouswaysinwhichtechnologyandthenewsociotechnical

environmentisaffectingthetraditionalaspectsofidentityconstruction.Throughthe

modificationofthefunctionsofmemory,self-reflectionandconventionalsocialinteractions

ithasbeenfoundthatweareincreasinglybecomingmoredependentandintrinsicallylinked

toourdevicesandthesocialaspectsofthisnewculture.Asweincreasinglybecomemore

hybridbeings,informedandinfluencedbyoursocialnetworkingplatforms,itisarguedthat

wearebecomingdependentonthesocialrelationshipwithourdevicesandonline

connections,internalizingthesedevicesandenvironmentstobecomeextensionsofthe

‘self’.Ultimately,throughtheaboveanalysisitisfoundthatouronlineenvironmentsare

facilitatingtheenhancementofournarcissisticqualitiesandthecultivationofa‘self’thatis

intrinsicallydictatedbyexternal‘others’,wherethetraditionallyinternalinfluencesonthe

‘self’arebecomingexternalizedandoursenseofagencyisconsidered‘illusory’.

Jackson(2002)suggeststhataninherentpartof“humanrelationships[isthat]theotheris

potentiallyasourceoffulfilmentandoffrustration”.Intrinsicinthisideaisthe“struggle”

whichJacksonpositsasanaturalwayofbeing,with“everysituation[having]thepossibility

ofgivinguslifeortakingitaway”.Thisnaturallyreflectsthesituationpresentinour

relationshipwithtechnology.Ononehanditprovidesanewfreedomofexpressionand

unprecedentedopportunitiesforself-reflection,whichundertraditionaltheories,should

enhanceoursenseof‘self’.Ontheotherhand,asdescribed,theseworldsareplungingus

intoanenvironmentthatisheavilycurated,wherethe‘self’isdrivenbynarcissisticandego-

driventendenciesandwhereoursenseofagencyisillusory.This‘struggle’istheveryline

thatwemusttreadwhenwelookforwardintothefutureoftechnology.Ononehandgiving

usconnectiontoothers,accesstoinformationandarangeofbeneficialopportunitiesbuton

theotherweteeterontheedgeofdisconnectionwithselfandoverrelianceonvirtual

relationshipsanddevicesoverwhichwehavelittlecontrol.Asourrelationshipwith

technologydeepens,anawarenessofthetrueessenceofthesetechnologiesmustbe

developed.Theabilityforself-reflectionisoneinnatequalitythatislinkedtobothidentity

constructionandagency,andassuchtheprocessesofwhichweasindividualsmustlearnto

33

employwithinoursocialmediaenvironmentsifwearetodevelopanimprovedrelationship

withouronlineworlds.Evenifultimatelywecannotcontroltheseenvironmentsorthe

interactionsthattakeplaceonline,wecanatleast,throughaprocessofself-reflectionand

self-awarenessreclaimoursenseofagencyandultimatelyutilizetechnologyinorderto

betterconstructoursenseof‘self’,‘other’andtheworld.

34

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