Understanding the Self: Lesson about Digital-Self

This is all bout your self in the digital world.

1. DIGITAL SELF
SELF AND OTHERS IN CYBERSPACE

2. WHAT ARE THE USES OF SOCIAL
MEDIA?

6. Digitalselfisamaskweputontodrawin
theinnovativeworld.Withthedigital
technologiessuchaswebpages,online
games,virtualworlds,socialmedia,smart
phones,Internet,self-extensionisextensive.

7. EXTENDED SELF
Thedefinitionofselfcreatedby
theexternalobjectswithwhichone
surroundsoneself.

8. RUSSELL W. BELK’S DIGITAL
MODIFICATIONS OF THE
EXTENDED SELF

9. DEMATERIALIZATION
•ATTACHMENT AND SINGULARIZATION
-The emergence of dematerialized and nonmaterial possessions raises the question of
whether consumers can become as attached to immaterial possessions as they can to
material possessions (which include digital devices) and whether we can gain status and
an enhanced sense of self from vurtual possessions.
•ALMOST BUT NOT QUITE THE SAME (WHAT VIRTUAL POSSESSIONS LACK)
-Digital virtual possessions appear to lack some of the characteristics that invite
attachment to material possessions.

10. REEMBODIMENT
•ATTACHMENT TO AVATARS
-Those who have an avatar may have in-world autobiographical memories attached to
this character, including their interactions and friendships with other avatars, their missions
and experiences, and in some cases even virtual sex, marriage, and divorce (Boellstorff,
2008).
•PROTEUS EFFECTS
-Even slight differences between our real world bodies amd virtual reality bodies can have
effects on our behavior.

11. REEMBODIMENT
•MULTIPLICITY
-Virtualworldparticipantscanhavemultiple
charactersinordertoeithergainanonymitytoact
outofcharacteronlineortoexploredifferent
personalitypossibilities.

12. SHARING
•SELF-REVELATION
-Thesharingofinformationaboutselfonlinefacilitatedbythedisinhibition
andconfessionaleffectsmeansthatitisnowfareasiertopresentour
selvesinwaysthatwouldhavebeenawkwardatbestinpredigitaltimes.
•LOSSOFCONTROL
-Becauseofothers’sharing,contemporaryprocessesofselfmanagement
arenotfullyunderourcontrol.

13. SHARING
•SHARED DIGITAL POSSESSIONS AND AGGREGATE SELF
-Theactsofsharingeitherthefilesorinformationaboutthesubjectmatter(e.g.,amusical
orfilmgenre)onforums,inblogs,orviaratingsandcommentsonsiteslikeAmazonand
iTunes,createfeelingsofgroupidentity(BrownandSellen2006;O’HaraandBrown
2006).
•SHAREDSENSEOF(CYBER)SPACE
-Onlinethirdplacesprovideananchorforonlineaggregatesenseofselfthatissharedwith
andmutuallyconstructedbyotherregulars.

14. CO-CONSTRUCTION OF SELF
•AFFIRMATIONSEEKING
-Friendsalsohelptoco-constructandreaffirmeachothers’
senseofselfthoughtheirpostings,tagging,andcomments.
•BUILDINGAGGREGATEEXTENDEDSELF
-Sharedexchangesbetweenparticipantscanbeseenasajoint
expressipnofthecoupleorgroupwhocomposedthem.

15. DISTRIBUTED MEMORY
•DIGITAL CLUTTER
-Without judicious planning, given the sheer abundance our digital traces,
those left behind may well be left with an unfathomable surfeit of files,
links, e-mails, and other digital flotsam and jetsam.
•NARRATIVES OF SELF
-following the principle of sorting on the way out, we now seem more
content to collect cues for a series of self-related vignettes that we hope will
somehow selectively cohere into an integrated sense of self.

16. DISTRIBUTED MEMORY
•DIGITAL CUES TO SENSE OF PAST
-The proliferation of our online photos, videos,
posts, blogs, and timelines also provides cues that
link us to memories constituting both individual and
collective sense of past.

17. SELF-PRESENTATION
Theactofexpressingonselfand
behavinginwaysdesignedtocreatea
favorableimpressionoranimpression
thatcorrespondstoone’sideals(Myers
&Twenge,2017).

18. TWO TYPES OF SELF-PRESENTATION
•PLEASINGTHEAUDIENCE
-Atypeofself-presentation
whichtriestomatchselfto
theaudience’sexpectations
andpreferences.
•SELF-CONSTRUCTION
-Thistypeofself-
presentationtriestomatch
oneselftoone'sownideal
self.Theexpressionofthe
audience-pleasingmotive
variesacrosssituations.

19. MULTIPLE ASPECTS OF SELF
ACTUAL SELF
-Referstothe
attributes an
individualpossesses.
IDEAL SELF
-Referstothe
attributes an
idividualwould
ideallypossess.
OUGHT SELF
-Referstothe
attributes an
individualoughtto
possess.

20. IMPACT OF ONLINE INTERACTION ON SELF
Individualsshapetheimpactof
technologyhasontheirlivesby
choosingwhichtechnologytouseand
howtouseit.

21. THE END

22. ACTIVITY: ESSAY
Hassocialmediaaidedinyourgrowth
asaperson?Explain.