Stephen Harris
Introduction
Virtual communities and networks have become a popular form of interaction for people all around the world (Ridings and Gefen, 2004). Virtual communities and networks make it possible for people to create new and multiple self identities that can be controlled and manipulated by the user (Ridings and Gefen, 2004). Turkle (1997b) refers to this as ‘multiplicity’, where users transition between different ‘self states’ (Turkle 1997b, p.79). This paper examines how the concept of multiplicity can be utilised to assist people with working through issues of personal identity (Turkle 1997b, p.79).
