Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Constructing Identity Online

Key Quotes (at least 5):

"After the arduous task of constructing your aesthetically pleasing and accurate chuck of the ‘net, you have to be diligent enough to keep it updated frequently.  Old information that is no longer of interest to your target group can drastically impact how you and your online identity are received by the public: you will look like a lazy vagabond if you simply dump a truck load of pertinent personal information on your site, but never update it for months at a time.  Band profiles are perfect examples of why this is important.  If someone visits a band profile and samples some of their tunes, they will most likely come back every once and a while to see if something new has been uploaded.  Obviously, if fresh, new content, isn’t always being provided, the listener will most likely lose interest and start frequenting a different band’s profile (one who is on top of things and releases new tracks once a month)." (Ryan Passey, http://www.pcmech.com/article/construct-your-online-identity-carefully/)

"While physical constraints such as the body, biological sex, race, or age can have a profound effect on self-definition and self-presentation (Collins & Kuczaj, 1991), many of these attributes become flexible in online environments. In a virtual world, one even gets to construct one's body. The anonymity afforded to youth within virtual worlds allows adolescents more flexibility in exploring their identity through their language, their role play, and the personae they assume" and http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol10/issue2/huffaker.html) 

"Sometimes referred to as netspeak, the language of the Internet entails both traditional linguistic forms and adapted ones that include slang and non-standard forms that are sometimes used in offline life. Netspeak is an emergent discourse that is shaped entirely by the creativity of its community (Crystal, 2001). The introduction of acronyms (e.g., "lol = laugh out loud," "brb = be right back"), plays or variations on words (e.g., "cya = see you", "latah = later"), graphical icons that represent emotions, called emoticons (e.g., :) or ;-{} ) or graphical icons that represent a real person in a virtual context, called avatars, are all examples of language produced by online communicators. This language continues to evolve and remains an important area of study when considering the ways in which Internet users interact and express who they are" and http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol10/issue2/huffaker.html) 

"In everyday terms the argument is that children are largely defined by the significant adults in their life, but in adolescence they have to make a series of self-defining choices to allow them to function as autonomous adults."Working with Adolescents: Constructing Identity. Contributors: John Head - author. Publisher: Falmer Press. Place of Publication: London. Publication Year: 1997. Page Number: 7.http://www.questia.com/read/103388342?title=Chapter%202%3a%20Acquiring%20a%20Sense%20of%20Identity). 

Key Links:

Constructing Identity and Community Online: http://proquest.umi.com/pqdlink?did=727231961&Fmt=7&clientId=25836&RQT=309&VName=PQD

Online Social Networking on Campus: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/01/08/network
Key Books and Articles:  

Online Communication: Linking Technology, Identity and Culture by Andrw Wood

Online Social Networking on Campus: Understanding what Matters in Student Culture by Ana M. Martinez Aleman and Katherine Lynk Wartman
 
Youth, Identity and Digital Media edited by David Buckingham

Case Study
Who is the artist/maker of the artwork/website/game?

What is its name?

When was it produced/released?

Describe it in detail

What is interesting/unusual/thought-rpovoking/aesthetically pleasing/puzzling about this artwork/website/game?

What are key issues or questions does this artwork/website/game raise?


No comments:

Post a Comment