THE DIGITAL SELF

•sense of online self

•presentation as well as impression
management of the online self
•boundaries of your online self
•public versus private
•personal/individual versus social digital
identity
•gender and sexuality online.
 GSELF - Digital self

ONLINE IDENTITY AND THE SELF

IN CYBERSPACE
In this day and age, different information that was once
inaccessible are now within reach or can be accessed with a single
‘click’. Apart from accessible information, people continued to
develop systems intended to bring people closer together through
the different social media platforms where people could interact
with each other as made possible by the internet and the world
wide web. With the rise of these platforms, people could now easily
express themselves through online interactions, may it be as simple
as sharing your basic information, to expressing your likes or
 Constitutes the sum of your
characteristics and interactions online.
The different websites you access obtain
a subset of information you share, thus,
having different pictures of who you are.
In the same manner, you may express
yourself differently in the different
websites or social media platforms you
access. The different representations of
your identity seen and expressed online
are also known as your partial identities.
These identities are not full and true
pictures of who you really are and do not

ONLINE IDENTITY
include how you react in particular
situations.
 GSELF - Digital self

IMPRESSION MANAGEMENT
AND SELECTIVE
SELF-PRESENTATION
Have you ever changed the way you are behaving in a particular
situation because you know you are being watched? The same can
be said in terms of how you present yourself online. Our behaviors
change if we notice that we are being watched and observed, and
the way we present ourselves changes depending on who we are
interacting with.

In a digital world where one’s self-concept may be greatly

influenced by the “likes”, “reacts” and “comments” that one gets,
people try to express themselves in a manner by which one can
Impression management may involve limiting
the personal information we provide to
present ourselves in a way that is acceptable
to others. Some may even carefully choose
which parts of their real world will be shown
or represented in the online world to create
an identity defined by the few chosen and
curated events in one’s life. For example, one
may post only travel photos or videos and
may already give the impression that he or
she is already living a good life, but who
knows what happens behind shooting those
videos and editing some photos? How is this
IMPRESSION
person like in some other aspects of his/her
life?
MANAGEMENT
 IMPACT OF ONLINE INTERACTIONS TO THE SELF gself - digital self

Our online interactions or

According to Kraut, within the
internet use in general has both
first two years people first
positive and negative impacts. Its
accessed the internet, their
value in ease of communication
level of happiness decreased.
has been emphasized in the
The use of digital technology
earlier parts of this unit. Apart
and online interactions seem to
from making communication
replace or limit physical or face-
more accessible, online
to-face interactions, thus
interactions may likewise
drawing people away from more
empower individuals to change
genuine encounters and
themselves and their
meaningful connections with
communities. Through
others. As people create their
responsible use of and
different online personas, this
participation in social media,
may result in feelings of
essential information may be
jealousy and envy towards the
 IMPACT OF ONLINE INTERACTIONS TO THE SELF gself - digital self

That is why fact checking is

It may facilitate the expression of emphasized today more than ever.
opinions and lobbying of concerns The risk of developing poor social
or needs, such as in the case of skills, internet addictive behaviors
online petitions aiming to promote and low self-esteem come with
different advocacies or to lobby prolonged and irresponsible
grievances to concerned internet use. Last but not the least,
authorities. However, online it is common knowledge that here
interactions also have a fair share in the Philippines, we have the R.A.
of negative consequences on the 10175 (Cybercrime Prevention Act
self. As everyone could create and of 2012) primarily aimed to protect
distribute content all over the internet users from several legal
internet, anyone could be a target offenses committed online or
of identity theft, like you. Anyone through a computer system like
could be a victim of false cyberbullying, cybersex, child
 GSelF - DIGITAL SeLF

DEMATERIALIZATION

REEMBODIMENT EXTENDED
SELF in a
SHARING
Digital World
Co-construction of the (Belk)
Self
 GSELF – digital self

dematerialization

Now that we are in the

digital age, things that
were formerly tangible
have become invisible and
immaterial. To research,
we browse the internet
more, and fewer and
fewer people visit libraries
to get a hold of books.
Photos, videos and music
 GSELF – digital self

sharing
Through the internet, people can
now easily and freely access and
share information, movies, photos,
music, and the like. A simple tap on
your digital device allows you to
share to the world wide web a
photo of yourself, the food you eat,
the places you go to, etc. You can
create your own blog and share
your innermost thoughts, or create
your own Youtube channel to share
whichever content you choose,
may it be your cooking skills,
 GSELF – digital self

reembodiment
As people interact behind
their own screens, people are
now more free to create new
constructions and definitions
of the self. On the internet,
people have the liberty to
“reembody” themselves
through the creation of
avatars, characters or “hero”
in online games,
photoshopped photos, dating
site profiles, among others.
 GSELF – digital self

co-construction of
the self
Our online interactions allow
us to give and receive
comments on the posts or
contents shared by other
people thereby facilitating the
construction of our individual
self and our extended self
(the self shared online). This
is also known as the
“collaborative self”. We
continually develop or work
 SHORT TERM 2019-2020
UNDERSTANDING THE SELF
DIGITAL SELF

SETTING BOUNDARIES
to your Online Self
HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF FROM DIGITAL
OFFENSES AND HARM
 Stick to safer Guard your
sites passwords
Avoid using your basic
If a website is not secure information as your passwords.
or appears to be Strong passwords often include
suspicious, leave both UPPERCASE and lowercase
letters, numbers, symbols, and
immediately.
special characters.
 Be choosy about Remember that anything you
put online or post on a site is
your online
there FOREVER even if you try
friends to delete it
Avoid adding or accepting as If you do not want it to be available
friends/contacts those individuals on the internet forever, do not post or
whom you do not know personally. upload it. You might want to ask
Remember that these people will yourself first, “Is this really worth
see the things you share. If you do sharing or is this something I might
not trust them with your shared regret in the future?”
content, decline.
 GSELF - DIGITAL SELF

“Privacy is not an option, and it

shouldn’t be the price we accept
for just getting on the internet.”

GARY KOVACS
 Do not be mean or
embarrass other people
Limit what you share
online Again, everything you share on
the internet stays there forever.
Remember that you may be
Avoid oversharing, especially
criminally liable when you do online
acts that directly or indirectly harm those which you think are things
other people. When you see that can be used against you, or
something wrong, there are better worse, used to blackmail you. Is it
ways to approach your concern than helpful? Does it really concern
being mean or embarrassing others. others? Think before you click.
Be a responsible internet consumer.
 GSELF - DIGITAL SELF

Above everything, always

remember to use the internet
responsibly, and know that digital
devices and the internet were only
created by humans, not the other
way around
 REVIEW YOUR
PREVIOUS ONLINE
POSTS ACROSS THE
DIFFERENT SOCIAL
THINGS TO MEDIA PL ATFORMS
AFTER WHICH,
YOU USE.
PONDER ANSWER THIS
QUESTION

UPON RHETORICALLY: “WHAT

DO MY POSTS ONLINE
S AY ABOUT
REFLECT MYSELF?”
ABOUT THE
SIMIL ARITIES AND
DIFFERENCES
BETWEEN YOUR
DIGITAL SELF AND
REAL SELF.
 LAST SLIDe

Cheers
TO ANOTHER FINISHED
TOPIC!