Social Media and Self: Influences on the Formation of …

 

 

University Honors Theses

University Honors College

Social Media and Self: Influences on the Formation
Social Media and Self: Influences on the Formation

of Identity and Understanding of Self through Social
of Identity and Understanding of Self through Social

Portland State University
Portland State University
PDXScholar
PDXScholar

2014

Networking Sites
Networking Sites

Madison Ganda
Portland State University

Follow this and additional works at: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/honorstheses
Let us know how access to this document benefits you.

Recommended Citation
Recommended Citation
Ganda, Madison, “Social Media and Self: Influences on the Formation of Identity and Understanding of
Self through Social Networking Sites” (2014). University Honors Theses. Paper 55.
https://doi.org/10.15760/honors.64

This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access. It has been accepted for inclusion in University Honors
Theses by an authorized administrator of PDXScholar. Please contact us if we can make this document more
accessible: pdxscholar@pdx.edu.

Social _x000D_  Media _x000D_  and _x000D_  Self: _x000D_  Influences _x000D_  on _x000D_  the _x000D_  Formation _x000D_  of _x000D_  Identity _x000D_  and _x000D_  Understanding _x000D_  of _x000D_  

Self _x000D_  through _x000D_  Social _x000D_  Networking _x000D_  Sites _x000D_  

_x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
by _x000D_  
_x000D_  
Madison _x000D_  Ganda _x000D_  
_x000D_  
An _x000D_  undergraduate _x000D_  honors _x000D_  thesis _x000D_  submitted _x000D_  in _x000D_  partial _x000D_  fulfillment _x000D_  of _x000D_  the _x000D_  
_x000D_  
requirements _x000D_  for _x000D_  the _x000D_  degree _x000D_  of _x000D_  
_x000D_  
Bachelor _x000D_  of _x000D_  Arts _x000D_  
_x000D_  
in _x000D_  
_x000D_  
University _x000D_  Honors _x000D_  
_x000D_  
and _x000D_  
_x000D_  
Sociology _x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
Thesis _x000D_  Adviser _x000D_  
_x000D_  
Peter _x000D_  Collier, _x000D_  Ph.D. _x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
_x000D_  
Portland _x000D_  State _x000D_  University _x000D_  
_x000D_  
2014 _x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

1 _x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

Social _x000D_  Media _x000D_  and _x000D_  Self: _x000D_  Influences _x000D_  on _x000D_  the _x000D_  Formation _x000D_  of _x000D_  Identity _x000D_  and _x000D_  

Understanding _x000D_  of _x000D_  Self _x000D_  through _x000D_  Social _x000D_  Networking _x000D_  Sites _x000D_  

_x000D_  Madison _x000D_  Ganda _x000D_  

Portland _x000D_  State _x000D_  University, _x000D_  2014 _x000D_  

_x000D_  

2 _x000D_  

Abstract _x000D_  

Over _x000D_  the _x000D_  years, _x000D_  social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  sites _x000D_  have _x000D_  grown _x000D_  into _x000D_  a _x000D_  more _x000D_  modern _x000D_  way _x000D_  of _x000D_  

socializing. _x000D_  The _x000D_  widespread _x000D_  use _x000D_  and _x000D_  increasing _x000D_  time _x000D_  spent _x000D_  on _x000D_  these _x000D_  sites _x000D_  cause _x000D_  users _x000D_  

to _x000D_  create _x000D_  online _x000D_  self-­‐presentations _x000D_  in _x000D_  order _x000D_  to _x000D_  participate. _x000D_  Using _x000D_  Goffman’s _x000D_  

dramaturgical _x000D_  theory, _x000D_  this _x000D_  study _x000D_  looked _x000D_  to _x000D_  explain _x000D_  the _x000D_  effects _x000D_  of _x000D_  feedback _x000D_  associated _x000D_  

with _x000D_  online _x000D_  identities _x000D_  on _x000D_  social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  sites _x000D_  with _x000D_  offline _x000D_  identity _x000D_  development _x000D_  

and _x000D_  presentation. _x000D_  An _x000D_  online _x000D_  Likert-­‐scale _x000D_  survey _x000D_  was _x000D_  used _x000D_  gauge _x000D_  participant’s _x000D_  

feelings _x000D_  about _x000D_  the _x000D_  social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  sites _x000D_  they _x000D_  used. _x000D_  Analysis _x000D_  of _x000D_  the _x000D_  collected _x000D_  data _x000D_  

used _x000D_  a _x000D_  regression _x000D_  model _x000D_  to _x000D_  explore _x000D_  possible _x000D_  links _x000D_  between _x000D_  feedback _x000D_  on _x000D_  posts _x000D_  online _x000D_  

and _x000D_  individuals’ _x000D_  internalization _x000D_  of _x000D_  that _x000D_  feedback _x000D_  into _x000D_  offline _x000D_  identities. _x000D_  Although _x000D_  no _x000D_  

significant _x000D_  relationships _x000D_  were _x000D_  identified, _x000D_  the _x000D_  findings _x000D_  suggest _x000D_  directions _x000D_  for _x000D_  future _x000D_  

research. _x000D_   _x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

3 _x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

Table _x000D_  of _x000D_  Contents _x000D_  

Abstract _x000D_  ……………………………………………………………………………………………..3 _x000D_  
Table _x000D_  of _x000D_  Contents………………………………………………………………………………..4 _x000D_  
I.
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………….5 _x000D_  
II.
Literature _x000D_  Review…………………………………………………………………….6 _x000D_  
III. Methodology/Research _x000D_  Questions _x000D_  and _x000D_  Hypothesis…………………19 _x000D_  
IV.
Results…………………………………………………………………………………….23 _x000D_  
V.
Discussion……………………………………………………………………………….32 _x000D_  
VI.
Conclusion, _x000D_  Limitation _x000D_  and _x000D_  Suggestions _x000D_  for _x000D_  future _x000D_  research……34 _x000D_  
References………………………………………………………………………………………….38 _x000D_  
Appendix _x000D_  I. _x000D_  Informed _x000D_  Consent…………………………………………………………….41 _x000D_  
Appendix _x000D_  2. _x000D_  Survey……………………………………………………………………………..42 _x000D_  
_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  
_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

4 _x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

I. _x000D_  Introduction _x000D_  

_x000D_  

In _x000D_  recent _x000D_  years _x000D_  social _x000D_  media _x000D_  has _x000D_  experienced _x000D_  widespread _x000D_  popularity _x000D_  within _x000D_  

our _x000D_  society _x000D_  (Digital _x000D_  Market _x000D_  Ramblings _x000D_  2014), _x000D_  starting _x000D_  from _x000D_  small _x000D_  personal _x000D_  web _x000D_  

pages _x000D_  to _x000D_  full-­‐blown _x000D_  mass _x000D_  communication _x000D_  networks _x000D_  where _x000D_  the _x000D_  user _x000D_  can _x000D_  give _x000D_  or _x000D_  find _x000D_  

almost _x000D_  any _x000D_  information _x000D_  about _x000D_  themselves _x000D_  or _x000D_  others _x000D_  within _x000D_  minutes. _x000D_  These _x000D_  sites _x000D_  have _x000D_  

gone _x000D_  from _x000D_  only _x000D_  being _x000D_  used _x000D_  by _x000D_  the _x000D_  computer-­‐savvy, _x000D_  to _x000D_  being _x000D_  incredibly _x000D_  user _x000D_  friendly _x000D_  

and _x000D_  spreading _x000D_  worldwide. _x000D_  While _x000D_  the _x000D_  popularity _x000D_  of _x000D_  social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  sites _x000D_  continues _x000D_  

to _x000D_  grow, _x000D_  so _x000D_  does _x000D_  the _x000D_  user’s _x000D_  time _x000D_  on _x000D_  the _x000D_  page, _x000D_  even _x000D_  to _x000D_  the _x000D_  point _x000D_  of _x000D_  having _x000D_  the _x000D_  sites _x000D_  

available _x000D_  on _x000D_  their _x000D_  mobile _x000D_  phone _x000D_  to _x000D_  check _x000D_  while _x000D_  away _x000D_  from _x000D_  the _x000D_  computer _x000D_  (Pew _x000D_  

Research _x000D_  Internet _x000D_  Project _x000D_  2013). _x000D_  As _x000D_  the _x000D_  amount _x000D_  of _x000D_  time _x000D_  users _x000D_  spend _x000D_  on _x000D_  social _x000D_  

networking _x000D_  sites _x000D_  continues _x000D_  to _x000D_  grow, _x000D_  their _x000D_  interactions _x000D_  with _x000D_  others _x000D_  offline _x000D_  tends _x000D_  to _x000D_  

decrease _x000D_  meaning _x000D_  that _x000D_  most _x000D_  of _x000D_  their _x000D_  socializing _x000D_  and _x000D_  socialization _x000D_  occurs _x000D_  within _x000D_  the _x000D_  

glow _x000D_  of _x000D_  a _x000D_  computer _x000D_  or _x000D_  phone _x000D_  screen _x000D_  (Pew _x000D_  Research _x000D_  Internet _x000D_  Project _x000D_  2013). _x000D_  In _x000D_  this _x000D_  

research, _x000D_  I _x000D_  will _x000D_  examine _x000D_  the _x000D_  influence _x000D_  of _x000D_  social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  sites _x000D_  on _x000D_  the _x000D_  formation _x000D_  of _x000D_  

identity _x000D_  and _x000D_  understanding _x000D_  of _x000D_  self _x000D_  through _x000D_  the _x000D_  interactions _x000D_  and _x000D_  usage _x000D_  of _x000D_  various _x000D_  

social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  sites; _x000D_  namely _x000D_  Facebook, _x000D_  Tumblr _x000D_  and _x000D_  Instagram. _x000D_   _x000D_  

One _x000D_  potential _x000D_  consequence _x000D_  of _x000D_  the _x000D_  individual’s _x000D_  increased _x000D_  online _x000D_  interaction _x000D_  

time _x000D_  is _x000D_  that _x000D_  the _x000D_  formation _x000D_  of _x000D_  identity _x000D_  and _x000D_  understanding _x000D_  of _x000D_  self _x000D_  is _x000D_  now _x000D_  affected, _x000D_  to _x000D_  a _x000D_  

greater _x000D_  degree, _x000D_  through _x000D_  the _x000D_  popularity _x000D_  or _x000D_  feedback _x000D_  on _x000D_  certain _x000D_  aspects _x000D_  of _x000D_  the _x000D_  user’s _x000D_  

life _x000D_  that _x000D_  they _x000D_  are _x000D_  willing _x000D_  to _x000D_  share. _x000D_  The _x000D_  purpose _x000D_  of _x000D_  this _x000D_  research _x000D_  is _x000D_  to _x000D_  show _x000D_  how _x000D_  

extensive _x000D_  use _x000D_  and _x000D_  time _x000D_  spent _x000D_  on _x000D_  these _x000D_  sites _x000D_  cause _x000D_  the _x000D_  user _x000D_  to _x000D_  form _x000D_  their _x000D_  identity _x000D_  and _x000D_  

5 _x000D_  

understanding _x000D_  of _x000D_  self _x000D_  based _x000D_  on _x000D_  the _x000D_  feedback _x000D_  on _x000D_  their _x000D_  posts. _x000D_  This _x000D_  research _x000D_  will _x000D_  draw _x000D_  

upon _x000D_  survey _x000D_  data _x000D_  from _x000D_  300 _x000D_  people _x000D_  who _x000D_  use _x000D_  more _x000D_  than _x000D_  one _x000D_  social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  site. _x000D_  

Specific _x000D_  data _x000D_  will _x000D_  include _x000D_  providing _x000D_  information _x000D_  about _x000D_  their _x000D_  uses, _x000D_  experiences _x000D_  and _x000D_  

influences _x000D_  of _x000D_  their _x000D_  formation _x000D_  of _x000D_  identity _x000D_  and _x000D_  understanding _x000D_  of _x000D_  identity _x000D_  through _x000D_  the _x000D_  

sites _x000D_  they _x000D_  use. _x000D_   _x000D_  

II. _x000D_  Literature _x000D_  Review _x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  

This _x000D_  literature _x000D_  review _x000D_  will _x000D_  first _x000D_  provide _x000D_  backgrounds _x000D_  on _x000D_  the _x000D_  aforemention _x000D_  

social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  sites _x000D_  followed _x000D_  by _x000D_  an _x000D_  introduction _x000D_  to _x000D_  Goffman’s _x000D_  dramaturgical _x000D_  

analysis _x000D_  of _x000D_  self _x000D_  and _x000D_  finally, _x000D_  examine _x000D_  how _x000D_  Goffman’s _x000D_  work _x000D_  informs _x000D_  current _x000D_  research _x000D_  in _x000D_  

regards _x000D_  to _x000D_  the _x000D_  construction _x000D_  of _x000D_  self _x000D_  through _x000D_  the _x000D_  use _x000D_  of _x000D_  the _x000D_  Internet. _x000D_  The _x000D_  research _x000D_  that _x000D_  

I _x000D_  will _x000D_  be _x000D_  conducting _x000D_  will _x000D_  focus _x000D_  primarily _x000D_  on _x000D_  Facebook, _x000D_  Tumblr _x000D_  and _x000D_  Instagram _x000D_  and _x000D_  the _x000D_  

gratifications _x000D_  and _x000D_  identity _x000D_  validation _x000D_  users _x000D_  receive.While _x000D_  Facebook _x000D_  has _x000D_  been _x000D_  

researched, _x000D_  Tumblr _x000D_  and _x000D_  Instagram _x000D_  are _x000D_  relatively _x000D_  new _x000D_  and _x000D_  have _x000D_  yet _x000D_  to _x000D_  be _x000D_  discussed _x000D_  

within _x000D_  the _x000D_  creation _x000D_  of _x000D_  identity _x000D_  and _x000D_  understanding _x000D_  of _x000D_  self. _x000D_   _x000D_  

_x000D_  

Tumblr _x000D_  is _x000D_  a _x000D_  blogging _x000D_  site _x000D_  (Tumblr _x000D_  2014), _x000D_  which _x000D_  allows _x000D_  its _x000D_  users _x000D_  to _x000D_  express _x000D_  

their _x000D_  personality _x000D_  and _x000D_  bare _x000D_  their _x000D_  true _x000D_  self _x000D_  while _x000D_  finding _x000D_  like-­‐minded _x000D_  people _x000D_  to _x000D_  create _x000D_  

communities _x000D_  online. _x000D_  The _x000D_  site _x000D_  allows _x000D_  for _x000D_  text _x000D_  posts _x000D_  (where _x000D_  users _x000D_  can _x000D_  discuss _x000D_  their _x000D_  

feelings, _x000D_  thoughts, _x000D_  political _x000D_  and _x000D_  social _x000D_  issues _x000D_  or _x000D_  random _x000D_  bits _x000D_  of _x000D_  information _x000D_  they _x000D_  feel _x000D_  

like _x000D_  sharing), _x000D_  photos _x000D_  (ranging _x000D_  from _x000D_  pictures _x000D_  of _x000D_  themselves _x000D_  or _x000D_  any _x000D_  other _x000D_  content _x000D_  they _x000D_  

deem _x000D_  important _x000D_  to _x000D_  share), _x000D_  quotes, _x000D_  chats _x000D_  (pieces _x000D_  of _x000D_  conversation _x000D_  from _x000D_  their _x000D_  lives), _x000D_  

links _x000D_  (for _x000D_  sharing _x000D_  important _x000D_  or _x000D_  interesting _x000D_  articles _x000D_  or _x000D_  information), _x000D_  audio _x000D_  (songs, _x000D_  

sound _x000D_  clips _x000D_  or _x000D_  speeches _x000D_  that _x000D_  resonate _x000D_  with _x000D_  the _x000D_  user) _x000D_  and _x000D_  video _x000D_  (either _x000D_  from _x000D_  the _x000D_  

6 _x000D_  

internet _x000D_  or _x000D_  created _x000D_  by _x000D_  the _x000D_  user). _x000D_  These _x000D_  different _x000D_  aspects _x000D_  of _x000D_  the _x000D_  site _x000D_  allow _x000D_  for _x000D_  the _x000D_  user _x000D_  

to _x000D_  honestly _x000D_  share _x000D_  what _x000D_  they _x000D_  deem _x000D_  important _x000D_  to _x000D_  them _x000D_  while _x000D_  creating _x000D_  a _x000D_  community _x000D_  of _x000D_  

“followers” _x000D_  and _x000D_  likewise _x000D_  “following” _x000D_  others _x000D_  to _x000D_  further _x000D_  understand _x000D_  what _x000D_  is _x000D_  important _x000D_  

to _x000D_  them. _x000D_  Tumblr _x000D_  allows _x000D_  for _x000D_  the _x000D_  perspective _x000D_  of _x000D_  others _x000D_  to _x000D_  be _x000D_  integrated _x000D_  amongst _x000D_  other _x000D_  

users _x000D_  through _x000D_  shared _x000D_  understanding _x000D_  and _x000D_  various _x000D_  points _x000D_  of _x000D_  view. _x000D_   _x000D_  

_x000D_  

_x000D_  Instagram _x000D_  is _x000D_  a _x000D_  photo-­‐sharing _x000D_  application _x000D_  (Instagram _x000D_  2014) _x000D_  in _x000D_  which _x000D_  the _x000D_  user _x000D_  

can _x000D_  share _x000D_  the _x000D_  world _x000D_  through _x000D_  their _x000D_  eyes _x000D_  to _x000D_  showcase _x000D_  what _x000D_  they _x000D_  find _x000D_  interesting _x000D_  or _x000D_  

important. _x000D_  The _x000D_  majority _x000D_  of _x000D_  pictures _x000D_  range _x000D_  from _x000D_  mundane _x000D_  events, _x000D_  such _x000D_  as _x000D_  what _x000D_  the _x000D_  

user _x000D_  is _x000D_  eating, _x000D_  reading _x000D_  or _x000D_  listening _x000D_  to, _x000D_  to _x000D_  the _x000D_  events _x000D_  attended _x000D_  by _x000D_  the _x000D_  user; _x000D_  parties, _x000D_  

concerts, _x000D_  get _x000D_  togethers, _x000D_  etc. _x000D_  The _x000D_  main _x000D_  takeaway _x000D_  from _x000D_  Instagram _x000D_  is _x000D_  that _x000D_  it _x000D_  is _x000D_  an _x000D_  

extension _x000D_  of _x000D_  the _x000D_  user, _x000D_  which _x000D_  can _x000D_  be _x000D_  seen _x000D_  as _x000D_  a _x000D_  window _x000D_  into _x000D_  their _x000D_  daily _x000D_  activities. _x000D_  It _x000D_  

gives _x000D_  users _x000D_  a _x000D_  chance _x000D_  to _x000D_  see _x000D_  what _x000D_  others _x000D_  are _x000D_  doing _x000D_  and _x000D_  gives _x000D_  the _x000D_  options _x000D_  to _x000D_  “like” _x000D_  a _x000D_  

photo _x000D_  or _x000D_  “comment” _x000D_  on _x000D_  the _x000D_  photo. _x000D_  I _x000D_  propose _x000D_  that _x000D_  these _x000D_  sites _x000D_  are _x000D_  virtual _x000D_  areas _x000D_  for _x000D_  

interpersonal _x000D_  interaction _x000D_  and _x000D_  therefore _x000D_  serve _x000D_  as _x000D_  locations _x000D_  for _x000D_  the _x000D_  development _x000D_  of _x000D_  

the _x000D_  self. _x000D_  This _x000D_  research _x000D_  will _x000D_  hopefully _x000D_  help _x000D_  to _x000D_  understand _x000D_  how _x000D_  users _x000D_  on _x000D_  these _x000D_  specific _x000D_  

sites _x000D_  create _x000D_  an _x000D_  identity _x000D_  and _x000D_  understanding _x000D_  of _x000D_  self _x000D_  offline _x000D_  based _x000D_  on _x000D_  external _x000D_  validation _x000D_  

and _x000D_  internalization _x000D_  of _x000D_  ideas _x000D_  measured _x000D_  by _x000D_  popularity _x000D_  of _x000D_  their _x000D_  posts. _x000D_   _x000D_  

_x000D_  

This _x000D_  study _x000D_  focuses _x000D_  on _x000D_  an _x000D_  identified _x000D_  research _x000D_  gap _x000D_  in _x000D_  the _x000D_  literature _x000D_  concerning _x000D_  

the _x000D_  relationship _x000D_  between _x000D_  social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  sites _x000D_  and _x000D_  user _x000D_  created _x000D_  identities. _x000D_  The _x000D_  

importance _x000D_  of _x000D_  this _x000D_  research _x000D_  is _x000D_  due _x000D_  to _x000D_  the _x000D_  on-­‐going _x000D_  usage _x000D_  of _x000D_  social _x000D_  networking _x000D_  sites _x000D_  

and _x000D_  dramatic _x000D_  increase _x000D_  of _x000D_  users. _x000D_  Facebook _x000D_  has _x000D_  1.19 _x000D_  billion _x000D_  monthly _x000D_  users, _x000D_  874 _x000D_  million _x000D_  

mobile _x000D_  users, _x000D_  and _x000D_  728 _x000D_  million _x000D_  daily _x000D_  users _x000D_  as _x000D_  of _x000D_  October _x000D_  2013 _x000D_  (Digital _x000D_  Marketing _x000D_  

Ramblings _x000D_  2014). _x000D_  Tumblr, _x000D_  a _x000D_  popular _x000D_  blogging _x000D_  site, _x000D_  has _x000D_  216.3 _x000D_  million _x000D_  monthly _x000D_  

_x000D_  

7 _x000D_