DIGITAL SELF

― Who I am in the
Cyberword?
 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At the end of the lesson, the student should be able to:

Discuss about online identity and

01 your ―self in cyberspace and user id;

Expound selective self- presentation

02 and impression management;

Evaluate the impact of online

03 interactions on the self and;

Establish boundaries of the online self;

04 private vs. public, personal vs. social
identity online.
 Is there a big
difference
between the self
online and the
real self?
 DIGITAL SELF

PERSONA MASKMercury
• It is the persona you 01 • A mask that we put to
use when you are 02 engage the
online technological world.

DIGITAL AGE
• We are living in a
digital age and other
04 than face to face
ONLINE IDENTITY interaction, we have
03
interactions involving
• Implies that there is a technology- cellular
distinction between phones, computers
how people present and other gadgets.
themselves online and Thus we build our
how they do offline. Digital Self.
 According to Recent Studies

 In 2021, 82. 3
million people
2021 used their mobile
phone in the
Philippines
 By 2025 it is
estimated that
mobile phone
2025 users in the
country would
reach almost 90
million
 How many
hours do
you use the
internet per
day?
 According to Recent Studies
10.6
4.15 hours
The average daily time spent using the
internet among the surveyed In addition, the surveyed
respondents in the Philippine was respondents spent
approximately 10.6 according to approximately 4.15 hours on
Datareportal social media
 Online Identity & Self in
Cyberspace
 Your online identity is not the same as
your real- world identity because the
characteristics you represent online differ
from the characteristics you represent in
the physical world.

 Every website you interact with has its

own idea of your identity because each
one you visits sees you and your
characteristics differently.
 “Social media, like social nettworks sites, blogs, and online
personals require users to self- consciously create virtual
depictions of themselves. One way of understanding such self –
representation is the information and materials people choose
to show others. On a facebook profile or twitter. But identity is
also expressed through interacting with others, whether instant
messenger or email.‖ Since fewer identity cues are available
online than face- to- face every piece of digital information a
person provides, from typing speed to nickname and email
address, can, and is used to make inferences about them‖-
Marwick 2013
 How do you build your Online
Identity?

Every website that you interact with will collect its own
version of who you are, based on the information that
you have shared. Thus, it is up to you how will you
represent yourself as closely as who you are and what
you do in real life or selectivity, to create a representation
far from your real life.
Are you living in Insta lie Social
Media Vs. Reality
ONLINE DISINHIBITION
EFFECT
describes the loosening of social
restrictions and inhibitions that are
normally present in face-to-face
interactions that takes place in
interactions on the Internet.
 BENIGN DISINHIBITION

 benign disinhibition describes

behavior in which people
might self-disclose more on
the internet than they would
in real life, or go out of their
way to help someone or
show kindness.
 TOXIC
DISINHIBITION

 toxic disinhibition describes

behavior that includes rude
language, threats, and
visiting places of
pornography, crime, and
violence on the internet–
places the person might not
go to in real life.
 FACTORS THAT CAUSE ONLINE DISINHIBITION

1. Dissociative anonymity (“You don’t know me”)

 This is one of the principal factors behind the online disinhibition effect. On
the internet, you are able to interact with others, comment on forums, and
surf the web completely anonymously.

 When you feel anonymous, you feel protected.

 By remaining anonymous, you do not have to ―own‖ your behavior, and

you can instead compartmentalize it in an online identity that is not
integrated with your offline identity.

 Anonymity helps you feel less vulnerable about self-disclosing and

engaging in antisocial or harmful behavior.
 FACTORS THAT CAUSE ONLINE DISINHIBITION

2. Invisibility (“You can’t see me”)

 Many types of communication over the internet happen through text.

 The internet offers a kind of shield and keeps you from being physically
visible.

 Your inhibitions are lowered because you don’t have to worry about tone
and body language when you and another person are communicating.

 Invisibility also lets you misrepresent yourself, as in the case of a man

representing himself as a woman, or vice versa. This presents possibilities
that are not as easily attainable in face-to-face interaction.
 FACTORS THAT CAUSE ONLINE DISINHIBITION

3. Asynchronicity (“See you later”)

 The asynchronous nature of many forms of communication over the

internet leads to disinhibition. Email and message board conversations do
not happen in real time.

 For example, you might put up an emotionally-charged post and log out
without seeing any responses from others. This would allow you to gain
catharsis and escape any potential negative reactions.

 Asynchronicity also allows you to think more carefully about what you
would like to say before posting, which can help if you have trouble with
face-to-face interactions. This lessens the pressure that can accompany
real-life conversations, and can lead you to present differently online than
you do offline.
 FACTORS THAT CAUSE ONLINE DISINHIBITION

4. Solipsistic Introjection (“It’s all in my head”)

 Without face-to-face cues, you experience online messages as voices in

your head. You might assign imagined characteristics to another person
based off of their messages and online persona.

 Your online companions become characters in your own psychic world,

shaped by your personal expectations and needs.

 Additionally, when reading another’s message, you might ―hear‖ their

voice using your own voice. People sometimes subvocalize as they read,
which can lead to a perception that they are talking to themselves. This
leads to feeling more comfortable talking to the other person and leads to
disinhibition.
 FACTORS THAT CAUSE ONLINE DISINHIBITION

5. Dissociative Imagination (“It’s just a game”)

 Emily Finch, a lawyer who studies identity theft in cyberspace, observes

that people might see cyberspace as a game in which normal rules of
everyday interaction do not apply.

 This leads to a feeling of escapism and can lead to a person thinking that
they can adopt and shed a certain persona simply by logging on and off.

 Because the Internet can seem like a make-believe space, you might feel
more disinhibited to act in ways that you normally wouldn’t offline.
 FACTORS THAT CAUSE ONLINE DISINHIBITION

6. Minimization of Status and Authority (“Your rules don’t apply

here”)
 Authority figures express their authority through dress, body language,
name titles, and their environments. Without these cues, their authority is
reduced in online environments. Although you might know about
someone’s offline status and power, you are less likely to feel intimidated
by that authority on the internet.

 The internet offers a more-or-less equal playing field for everyone, allowing
you to feel more disinhibited and engage others more as peers instead of
as authorities.
 DIGITAL FOOTPRINTS

A digital footprint is the trail of data you

create when you go online. Included in it
are emails you send, websites you visit,
and other information you may submit
online.

Whenever you share content, post

something online, or allow cookies to
collect your information, you are adding
to your digital footprint. All online activity
leaves a digital trail. This can include your
login details, IP address, and other
personal information.
 ACTIVE DIGITAL FOOTPRINTS
 Active digital footprints are made up of
data that is left when internet users make
deliberate choices. For example, posts
made on social media are a type of active
footprint.

 Active Digital Footprint Examples

 Filling out online forms (signing up to

receive emails or texts.

 Posting all forms of social media

(Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and
Twitter)

 Accepting cookies on a device when

asked to by the browser.
 PASSIVE DIGITAL
FOOTPRINTS
 Passive digital footprints are ones
that are left behind without the
internet user intending to—and
sometimes without knowing that
they have.
 For example, when a website
collects information on how
many times you have accessed
the site recently, it’s adding to
your passive digital footprint. The
reason for this is that you did not
opt-in to provide them with this
data. Passive digital footprints
are a hidden process that
internet users may not be aware
is happening at all.
10 things to know about Digital Footprints
10 things to know about Digital Footprints
10 things to know about Digital Footprints
 Selective Social Media and
Self Impression Management
 These are characteristics showing
behaviors designed to convey an
image about ourselves to other
people and to influence the
perception of other people of this
image.
 We can select only what we want to
present and impress to others, what
we view beneficial to our personality,
especially when we create a digital
self. We carefully choose
representation of one’s real world to
the online world.
 Impact of online
interaction with the Self
 When interacting with other people,
we automatically make inferences
about them without even being
consciously aware of it. We cannot
help but ponder what they are
thinking about, what their facial
expressions mean, what their
intentions are, and so on.
 This suggest that interaction with
human partners, requires more
emotional involvement, and thus
more cognitive effort, than
interacting through a computer.
 Online interactions do not require
cognitive or emotional involvement,
making our interactions with it much
easier.
 Impact of online
interactions on the Self
is it true that facebook provides
opportunities for increased identity self
development?
YES
Research suggest that young users
increased self- esteem and general
well being following instances of
positive feedback on social
networking sites. Relatedly results from
a 2009 survey of a college students
indicated the heaviest Facebook users
were also mist satisfied with their lives
and exhibited greater social and
political engagement.
 However online interactions cannot reveal our
true feelings and can decrease people’s
happiness levels.

The extra effort involved in face- to- face

interactions can be spared in online
interactions that are founded on minimal

Impact of constrained social cues; most of these signals

can be summed up in emoticons or

online punctuation.
Studies were conducted to show that

interaction with within the first two years after people

first accessed the internet, their

the Self
happiness level decreased and that
social media has a small, yet
significant detriment on over-all well-
being.
 Impact of online interactions
on the Self
We can control our self- presentation of online interaction's and this may
be both beneficial and harmful to the individual.

Compared with face- to- face presentations, online interactions enables

us to self- censor to greater extent and manage our online identities
more strategically which provides greater opportunity to misrepresent
ourselves.
 WHAT IS SOCIAL
MEDIA?
 Social media is a term for numerous
technologies that allow
instantaneous, communication,
status, updates and social
networking among individuals.

 Social media platforms today

include text messaging, via cellular
phones and social networking sites
such as Facebook, Instagram,
Twitter, and many more.
Impact of Social Media and online Interactions
of the Self

Social media sites inform and empower

individual to change themselves and their
communities.

Increased self esteem when receiving many

likes, reactions, and shares.
POSITIVE

Boost one’s moral and feelings of self worth.

Impact of Social Media and online Interactions
of the Self
Extensive online engagement is correlated
with personality and brain disorders like poor
social skills and other emotional distress like
depression, anxiety and loneliness.

Low self- esteem due to the risk of being exposed

NEGATIVE to cyberbullying and cyberponography.

More occupied in giving attention to social

media than in keeping their customs and
practices.
 5 Strategies for Setting Social Media Boundaries

Give yourself a permission to unplug

Checking social media can start to feel like a
requirement. However the reality is you have the right
and ability to choose when and how often you use it
(or whether you use it at all).

Set time limits

What’s a reasonable amount of time to spend on
social media each day?. Two hours? Thirty minutes?
You have to decide. But once you choose a time
limit, commit to sticking to it. Not only does that
help you today, it also gives you a good baseline if
you choose to cut back on social medai at some
point in the future.
 5 Strategies for Setting Social Media Boundaries

Only contribute in a
positive way

Cut out with negative Lashing out at others

promoting negative
people
thoughts or ideas do not
If interacting with or just harm the target of
reading post from a your post, it hurt you as
person or group well. The age old advice
doesn’t make you that ― if you can’t say
something nice don’t say
happy, but instead
anything at all‖. Is very
make your blood boil, relevant with social
cut ties with them. media. Even if you are
speaking out against
something, you can do so
in a positive way by
offering alternatives
rather than criticism.
5 Strategies for Setting Social Media Boundaries

Provide and seek clarity in your communications.

Social media doesn’t offer physical cures that we
typically use to understand people. Consequently, a
message where no offense was intended can easily be
misinterpreted, and if you feel a comment directed at
you was negative in some way, politely ask for a
clarification
 Setting boundaries to your online self

Stick to safer sites

TIPS

Guard your
passwords

Be choosy about
your online friends

Don’t be mean or
embarrass other
people online

Limit what you share

HOW TO BE A RESPONSIBLE DIGITAL CITIZEN
ACTIVITY
Group Activity:

1. Create a slogan or a poster

about becoming a
responsible internet user. Use
coloring materials to improve
your output.
 THANK
YOU FOR
LISTENING!