Identity and Interaction online

For this topic we were asked 'What are the implications of the online for sociological understandings of identity and interaction? I have commented on Christie Brindley's blog post this week, but I will copy my comment to this post as well!

'Hi Christie! This is a fascinating topic and I completely agree with what you are arguing. I was particularly drawn to your post because you mention the 'trolls' who created the controversial Facebook page 'Cancer is funny cause people die' – I am actually using this exact page for my research project.

What I found interesting is that the creator of the page and many of the 'trolls' who comment on the page are anonymous, and even though some of the other people keep their real names next to their comments, I think the internet changes the dynamics of interactions and how the self is presented. Hugh Miller (1995, 3) argues that “it is easy to make a fool of yourself on the Web; there is little to stop you doing it, but doing it will cause you little pain.” When Goffman was writing, he was referring to face-to-face interaction, or maybe via the telephone. On the internet, the self can remain totally anonymous, but even if some parts of the self are revealed, the computer screen offers protection. Therefore people are able to test the boundaries with more ease than in the 'real world'.

As there is much less accountability on the internet, people are also able to express their feelings without taking into perspective how someone else may feel. This relates to the idea of front sage and back stage because “the decontextualised nature of the computer” means that someone may choose to disregard the socially unacceptable behaviour of what is normally the 'front stage' and instead express what has been lurking in the 'back stage' of many individuals. They do not have to show respect for different cultures or people.'

Brooks, E, Heyman, N and Pyon, J, 'Social Interaction on the Internet: An Application of Erving Goffman's Sociological Theories', McMaster University, accessed 9 September 2012, http://socserv2.mcmaster.ca/soc/courses/soc4j3/stuweb/cyber9/flmg.htm

Heritage, John. 1984. 'The Morality of Cognition' in Garfinkel and

Ethnomethodology. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Matthews, Steve 2012, “Authenticating an Online Identity”, in The American Journal of Bioethics, Volume 12, no 10, pp39-41.

Miller, H (1995) 'The Presentation of Self in Electronic Life: Goffman on the Internet', Nottingham Trent University, http://www.dourish.com/classes/ics234cw04/miller2.pdf