Showing posts with label self identity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label self identity. Show all posts

Self identity through music

I came across a website today that is called last.fm which is sort of a social networking site where you can share music interests with your friends. The website measures how often you listen to specific songs and how many songs you have listened to throughout your membership of the site. With this information the website can also recommend music to you and compare your music taste with your friends. It can be seen as a place where you develop an identity through your music, as people can see exactly what you are listening to at the exact time you are listening to it. I think this is a very interesting concept because this can connect people through music, which can be a very important thing in many people's lives. Many would probably think this is the same as just another facebook group, but it is actually not because the focus is not on socializing specifically, but rather on sharing music and to learn more about your own “musical identity”, which is why I found it quite unique compared to anything I have seen before.

Does a fictional setting mean a fictional identity?

In regards to online identity performance, a relevant point is the view that identities that differ online are not necessarily false ones, rather ones that a user aspires to be.

In SNS, one can use the flexibility of profile creation and control over what the viewer sees to make themselves the person they aspire to be. Performing this online can increase one's confidence to reflect this offline. If an aspect of a user's personality is slightly lacking, this too can be built up online through the 'anonymous' space online.

This is the same in online gaming. The freedom of character customization says something about the person behind that avatar. Because of the disembodiment of the avatar in the virtual world, one can spend time on expressing themself, without the worry of how others will see them. Many people use their online identity to express who they really are in an environment they feel comfortable in. Social skills can also be learnt in online games. For example, in Amy Bruckman's study of gamers, one user named Tao claimed that he learnt a lot about himself through his experiences as an online character, and his social skills and leadership were improved.

These points surrounding online identity therefore support Bartle's statement 'virtual worlds enable you to find out who you are by letting you be who you want to be.'

The conformity of suicidegirls.com

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