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2. Eline Bochem 596558
Sociology of Culture Essay
T.P. Franssen
December 2009
A Culture of Narcissists?
The Social Value of Social Networks: Social Interaction and Identity Construction in Social
Networking Sites
“Looking at the proliferation of personal web pages on the net, it looks like very soon everyone on earth will have 15
Megabytes of fame.” (M.G. Siriam)
In the past 10 years massive changes featured The Internet. Web1.0 – the online world of passively
information-pushing websites transformed to Web2.01 – an Internet of applications facilitating
interaction, information-sharing and collaboration made possible by the rising of weblogs, social
networking sites (SNS), wiki’s and mash-ups paving the way for the development of online
communities existing by means of the exchange of social interactions among actors. This essay will
try to research the social value of social networking sites, associated social interactions and identity
construction on the Internet.
THEORIES ON SOCIAL
Before analyzing the social value of social networks, the concept of ‘social’ has to be covered: for
how does a grand concept as social needs to be defined? Max Weber, one of the founders of modern
sociology formulates action as social: ‘insofar as, by virtue of the subjective meaning attached to it by the acting
individual (or individuals), it takes account of the behaviour of others and is thereby oriented in its course’
(Weber/Heydebrand, 2004). However naming an action meaningful or merely reactive behaviour - to
which no subjective meaning is attached – is something which could be hard to recognize. For this
reason almost all behaviour sociologically relevant, can be situated somewhere in between. With
reference to the Weberian concept: ‘Social’ seems to exist only in the intersubjective relations among
individual, is opposed to the concept of private and could therefore be understood as interactive. And
interaction is a necessary process in the attainment of rewards because so much of what humans want
1 Web2.0 is closely associated with Tim O’Reilly and the O’ Reilly Media Web 2.0 conference in 2004.
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3. can only be obtained from other humans. Taking for granted actors will socially interact simply
because the environment makes it possible - neglecting the social (psychological) dimension of the
desired social interaction – is therefore a statement which cannot be made.(Kreijns, Kirschnerb and
Jochemsb, 2003:336)
ROLE-PLAYING
Two theories explain the social (psychological) dimension of interaction to a larger extent: the
exchange perspective assumes humans are motivated to maximize gains and minimize losses. Identity
theory holds that human actions are aimed at conscious goals and purposes, which are the cause for
interaction among humans. (Brown, 2006:9) Although these two theories reason from different
viewpoints, both connote a certain amount of conscious acting present in processes of obtaining
whatever an actor likes to pursue.
This conscious acting becomes more clear when we introduce role-playing, a concept defined by
Goffman. As a species, human beings need "face-to-face" interactions and according to Goffman,
those interactions are displayed in such a way they are dependent upon situational expectations that
effect conduct of the individual actors participating in communication exchange, which assumes the
expression of roles (Sannicola in Perry, 1995). The emergence of technology and computer-mediated
communication paved the way for online role-playing with the birth of chatrooms, social networks
and social media platforms such as Hyves, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. They are the stages of
role-playing on the Internet attracting different audiences and performers.
IDENTITY, EDENTITY AND SUBJECT CREATION
Roles provide a sense of identity because actors use roles as basic conceptual tools in thinking about
self: ‘We become the roles we are playing, because roles provide purpose, meaning, direction, and guidance to our lives’.
Thoits (1983) theorized that the greater the number of roles, the stronger one’s sense of meaningful
and guided existence. Her research shows that people who possess numerous identities report
significantly less psychological distress (Brown 2006:4). Even stronger sources of meaning than roles
are identities, because of the process of self-construction and individuation that they involve.
Identities organize meaning, while roles organize functions. It is therefore identity could be defined as
the process of construction of meaning on basis of a cultural attribute or related set of cultural
attributes that is/are given priority over other sources of meaning (Castells, 2004:5&6).
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4. Three types of identity are distinguished by Castells
1. Legitimizing: introduced by dominant institutions of society to extend and rationalize
domination over social actors.
2. Resistance: formation of communes/communities as a way of copying with conditions of
oppression (anti/pro movements, religious extremistic movements)
3. Project: Proactive movements which aim at transforming society, parts of society or acts in
society not formed out of oppression, but merely motivated by ideology and opportunity
(online networks)
It is this third type of Identity, which could be related to online identity construction. Perceiving this
construction as an aggregate whole, existing of different parts, identity construction could be said to
exist of the creation of different subjects or characters as defined by Goffman, characters performing
different roles. All various subjects together could then be considered the collective social actor
through which individual actors reach holistic meaning in their experience of Self.2 Understanding
holistic as a derival from Durkheimian collective effervescence, here merely conceived as Self-
effervescence: the high energy generated when subjects of the Self congregate and forge altogether a
collective identity. One collective social actor invigorated, strengthened and cemented by the
continuous expression and shaping of the online subjects of the Project identity. Project as such that
in this case the building of identity is a project of different life: online life. Perhaps on the basis of an
oppressed identity in offline life, but expanding towards the transformation of a society, community
or network as the prolongation of this project of identity, the different subjects are being created and
constructed. New technologies enable new kinds of group-forming and the Internet together with its
online innovations are providing opportunities for new network forming and new project-identities
(Shirky, 2008:17)
SOCIAL NETWORK SITES
On behalf of reduced auditory and visual cues, Internet communication provides a large potential for
online identity experiments (Valkenburg and Peter, 2008:208). Bodylanguage, facial expressions,
gestures and other nonverbal language cues present in offline social interactions are backed out and
replaced by technical body language: identity expression by transmedia usage, which allows a user to
experiment with his or her identity across multiple forms of media with each element making
2 The Self as the agent, the knower, the ultimate locus of personal idenity (Perry, 1995:1).
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5. distinctive contributions to an user’s understanding of his or her identity.3 By using different media
formats, it attempts to create so-called entrypoints through which familiars, friends, fans and
followers can become immersed in the project identity world of the actor. Entrypoints in offline
interactions are provided by bodylanguage c.s. as named before.
Users are experimenting with their identity online, while communication takes mostly place in
communities separate from those existing in offline life. Repercussions are hereby reduced offering
an interesting opportunity to emphasize, strengthen and change certain features of the Self. Online
identity experiences may even carry over to the actor’s offline life in so that their social competence
will improve (e.g., Huffaker, 2006; Suler, 2005 in Valkenburg and Peter, 2008:210). On the other side
pessimistic voices say online identities are less inhibited than their offline variants because actors
would mainly communicate with anonymous strangers online. (Harman et al., 2005). This goes for
online communication in general, which includes the complete Web World in all its varied contact
modes. Focussing on social network sites (SNS) specifically, it becomes clear Harman’s statement has
to be criticized. What characterizes SNS is not their allowance to meet strangers, but rather their
ability to enable users to articulate and make visible their social networks (Boyd and Ellison, 2007).
Of course this can still result in connections among individuals that would otherwise not be made,
but that is often not the case: rather connections among familiars or people who share some history
or have previously met offline are being created. Or to put it short: in SNS it is all about ‘latent ties’
(Haythornwaite, 2005).
While all SNS inhibit structural parts as profiles, friend lists, comments and private messaging, they
show great differences in features, private/public balance and user base. Some support mobile
interactions and offer special applications – e.g. Twitter offers Twitterberry and Ubertwitter for
Blackberry, Echofon, Tweetie and Twitterific for iPhone and Twibble for Nokia and other cell
phones. Secondly many SNS target their audiences from specific geographical locations, interests,
educational background or age groups. For example: Hyves is most popular among Dutch youth,
where Netlog is valued higher among Belgium youth. Facebook started as the online network for
university students and has transformed to an international platform for high educated people,
LinkedIn is merely a corporate network to get connected to (ex)-colleagues, business aqcuintances
and stay up-to-date with career opportunities, MySpace is mostly used by artists, musicians and DJs
to show, share and spread their portfolio, Ning will provide results for those, who are wishing to be
part of an independent SNS, a SNS founded by their own and there are even SNS founded for dogs
(Dogster) and cats (Catster) ( Valkenburg and Peter, 2008:226).
3Transmedia is here linked to Identity Experimenting in the same way as Henri Jenkins III relates Transmedia to
practices of Storytelling in his book Convergence Culture (2006).
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6. ‘When I took office, only high energy physicists had ever heard of what is called the World Wide Web... Now even my
cat has its own page’. (Bill Clinton)
However some SNS do target a specific audience, in the end this does not determine the real main
audience. Example of this phenomenon is Orkut, launched in the United States with an English-only
interface that attracted Portuguese-speaking Brazilians as the dominant user group: it shows the often
unpredictable development of online communication platforms (Boyd and Ellison: 2007) Although
most SNS are free to use – exceptions are gold memberships (Hyves) or other distinctive ‘high’
profile accounts – and accessible for everybody with online access, many ‘outsiders’ value some SNS
as beyond their reach, too complicated to adapt or simply as something they don’t/want (to)
understand. Some of them mostly unaware of the chances and opportunities SNS could offer, judge
SNS as narcisstic ego-tripping platforms overcrowded by people pretending to be somebody in this
age characterized by the everybody-can-become-famous philosophy. Explanation for these
statements could be found referring to Metcalfe's Law, which says that the value of a network is
proportional to the square of the number of its users. In other words: the more people have phones,
the more useful they become. This ‘network effect’ leads to rapid adoption and puts up barriers for
new entrants, people, who are not (yet) participating (Saffo, 2007).
On the other hand ‘the value of a social network is defined not only by who's on it, but by who's excluded’, says
Paul Saffo, a Silicon Valley forecaster. Despite their name, therefore, they do not benefit from the
network effect. Thus unlike other networks, social networks lose value once they go beyond a certain
size. Because of this argumentation SNS of more exclusive character like ‘ASmallWorld’ are being
set-up: an exclusive site for the rich and famous. Such networks recognise that people want to
hobnob with a chosen few, not to be spammed by random friend-requests (Baym, Bing and Lin,
2004:309). Thoughts of inclusion and exclusion could be recognized here. In genereal SNS
participants are labeled as ‘they’ by non-SNS participants – a group other than actors not (yet)
participating count themselves to. We-They relations could play a part in deciding not to join a SNS.
Whether decisions are based on frustration (unfamiliarity with the digital world and/or the incapacity
to use devices needed for online connections), envy (awareness of friends’ (high) levels of SNS
connections causing a certain degree of jealousy ), passive behaviour (unwanting to put effort in one’s
digital identity) or ignorance (SNS integration fear – feeling oneself an outsider), all could be reasons
not to sign-up.
'The Internet is a giant network of intelligent, informed computer geeks, by which I mean: people without lives. We
don't care. We have each other'. (Dave Berry)
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7. SOCIAL VALUE OF SOCIAL NETWORK SITES
Nevertheless, actors likely to participate in SNS, are often members of several networking sites and
proclaim to develop their social skills to a larger extent and experience an increase of self-disclosure
caused by the development of online friendship connections. (Bargh, McKenna and Fitzsimons,
2002:33&35). Of course it could be argued this level of self-disclosure will increase as well by forming
offline friendship connections, it are the online connections Bargh c.s. and this essay are dealing with.
Self-disclosure and the development of social skills are being perceived as a must-have, while identity
is becoming the main and sometimes the only source of meaning in a historical time characterized by
widespread destructuring processes as deinstitutionalization, the delegitimation of grand causes – ‘the
era of great explanations is over’ as Zizek states in his ‘In defense of last causes’ (2008) – and the related
fading away of major social movements (Warschauer, 2001:152). Definitions of identity markers as
race, nationality and ethnicity are altered as well by on the one hand globalization and its intersecting
effect on identity markers, while on the other hand identity markers are mattering most as a source of
oppression and distinction in reaction to these globalization tendencies. And it is by social
interactions, role-playing and connecting one’s identity can be formulated. Due to the outlined
situational factors in the beginning of this paragraph, it is not strange:
At this time people are looking for ways to connect more with one another no matter what geographical location they’re
at’. (The Next Web 2009)
And advancing technologies are providing new spaces and playgrounds to give meaning to one’s Self
by offering e.g. opportunities to identity experimenting in the online world cross bordering location
of which SNS are one example. It is herefore SNS (creating Castells ‘Project’ identity) could be
considered a replacement of traditional platforms of identity construction, such as institutional
(creating Castells ‘Legitimizing’ identity), religious and social movement domains (creating Castells
‘Resistance’ identity). Connection is part of human’s life the Internet is merely a tool to enhance one’s
connecting capacities. And perhaps actors participating on SNS could be defined as: ’Over-caffeinated
narcissistic Tourette's patients with ADHD who are all trying to be the most entertaining (Katherine Berry about
people active on Twitter) and is the ‘social’ value of SNS often to be forthcoming: ‘Networking is always
important when it’s real and always a useless distraction when it’s fake. Internet allows huge amounts of fake
networking with scoreboard & lists of popularity. Is this the way ‘social’ had to be interepreted?, in the end SNS
participants are just trying to find out who they are, trying to grab some social meaning in their
experience of Self.
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8. LITERATURE
• Bargh J.A., McKenna, K.Y.A. and Fitzsimons, G.M. (2002), ‘Can You See the Real Me?
Activation and Expression of the True Self on the Internet’, The Society for Psychological Study of
Social Issues, Pages 33-49
• Baym, N.K., Zhang, Y.B. and Lin, M.C. (2004), ‘Social Interactions Across Media:
Interpersonal Communicationon the Internet, Telephone and Face-to-Face’, New Media
Society, Vol. 6, Pages 299-319
• Boyd, D.M. and Ellison N.B. (2007), ‘Social Network Sites: Definition, History and
Scholarschip’, Michigan State University
• Brown, L. (2006) ‘Introducing Social InteractionTheory’, Paper presented at the annual
meeting of The American Sociological Association, Montreal Convention Center, Montreal,
Quebec, Canada, Aug 10, 2006
• Castells, M. (2004), ‘The Power of Identity: The Information Age: Economy, Society and
Culture’, Vol. 2, Blackwell Publishing, Oxford
• Kreijns, K., Kirschnerb P.A, and Jochemsb B. (May 2003), ‘Identifying the pitfalls for social
interaction in computer-supported collaborative learning environments: a review of the
research’, Computers in Human Behavior, Vol. 19, Issue 3, Pages 335-353
• Perry, J. (1995), ‘Self and The Self, (In Supplement to the Macmillan Encyclopedia of
Philosophy (1998)
• Saffo, P. ( 2007), ‘Social Graph-iti: There's less to Facebook and other Social Networks than
Meets the Eye’, The Economist Print Edition, Octobre 18th
• Sannicolas, N. (1997), ‘Erving Goffman, Dramaturgy, and On-Line Relationships’, California
Essay for Social and Behavioral Sciences Major, State University, Monterey Bay, 23 Sept.
• Shirky, C. (2008), ‘Here Comes Everybody: How Change Happens when People Come
Together’, The Penguin Press, New York
• Valkenburg, P.M. and Peter, J (2008), ‘Adolescents’ Identity Experiments on the Internet:
Consequences for Social Competence and Self-Concept Unity’, Communication Research,
Vol. 35, Issue 2, Pages 208-231
• Warschauer, M. (2001), ‘Language, Identity and the Internet’, In B. Kolko, L. Nakamura & G.
Rodman (Eds.) Race in Cyberspace., New York: Routledge, Pages 151-170
• Weber, M. ‘Sociological Writings’ (2004) Edited by Wolf Heydebrand, published in 1994 by
Continuum
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