Month: May 2018

Are Online Communities/Networks In Particular Instagram Creating An Unattainable Perception Of An Ideal Identity? By Jake Brown

Are Online Communities/Networks In Particular Instagram Creating An Unattainable Perception Of An Ideal Identity?

 

Scott Jake Brown.

Curtin University.

 

 

Abstract

 

Throughout this paper I will argue that the authenticity of youths online and offline identities are being strongly influenced by social media/social networking Instagram and Facebook will be used as examples. This paper will look at the influence social media/social networking has had and continues to have on an increasingly web-dependent society. There are a number of factors influencing this shift such as the accessibility to new methods engagement with others and interaction that might not have occurred prior to the development of online communities and social networking (Brown, 2011). This paper will use academically researched papers as well as social websites to establish some, pros and cons of social media/social networking to help develop a better understanding of identity in an online community.

 

 

 

 

Are Online Communities/Networks In Particular Instagram Creating An Unattainable Perception Of An Ideal Identity?

 

 

 

Introduction.

The studies that were researched for this paper discuss a vast amount of information regarding identity in youths and how they are portrayed in an online community. This paper will look into why social communities such as Instagram and Facebook remain so influential over online users and how/why they are able to contribute to the shaping of users identities. Are these social communities having such a strong impact because of the lack of direction in youths today or is it due to the strategic marketing of these sites and the influential impact they have on such a moldable society.

Some of the key topics that will be discussed throughout this paper will consist of information regarding what an online community is, how and why they are so popular and lastly why they hold so much power and influence over the shaping of online and sometimes offline identities.

 

“Online, users can claim to be whoever they wish. Like actors playing a role, they can deliberately choose to put forth identity cues or claims of self that can closely resemble or wildly differ from reality. With the rise of Web 2.0 and the growth of social networking sites, the virtual spaces for these portrayals of alternate identities seems near endless. But with these new sites and channels rise questions and disagreements over what constitutes public and private conversation and interaction, and the links between these manufactured and mediated identities” (Pearson, E. 2009)

 

Even though the quote above is long it gives good insight into why some people behave they way they do on social media, the comparison to actors playing roles and putting forward public and private roles relates so heavily to the paper and allows another perspective into why some individuals chose to behave the way they do.

 

 

Varying Interpretations of Identity

 

Online identities are created as to join and be part of an online community/network and are more often then not regulated, this plays a part in the authenticity of an individuals online identity as the pressures or fitting in to these online communities can play on insecurities its also worth nothing that we do have so many identities, both offline and online. What makes and Identity authentic?

 

Identity can be described as being more performance based, it is described in the article as having a front and back of stage referring to online and offline identities (Boyd and Heer, 2006). The reference to the “front stage” meaning having an online identity for others users to view and pass judgement on so often affected the truth and credibility behind the “front stage’ identity and opened the doors for users to elaborate and sometimes blur the lines between fact and fiction as to make themselves more appealing and fit into that particular online community. It is also suggested that the online identities of some users “ front stage” are manipulated because they know they are in the spotlight and they might enjoy creating a persona that they may not or cannot be in their “Back Stage” offline identity. This type of behaviour in online platforms is not uncommon and another article suggests that not only is online behaviour an act it has created such a false sense of self that students are struggling to determine their true identity and that in which they have developed to try and stay relevant in an online platform (Pearson, E. 2009).

 

The reference to “Back Stage” is a little less clear; the article refers to this being the more private side of an individual’s identity where they can be more intimate and relaxed as the “spotlight” is no longer on them (Boyd and Heer, 2006). This part of the article did not have as much supporting evidence, especially considering the rise in online dating communities and the establishment of relationships through those communities.

 

 

In another article targeted more towards teenagers it refers to a bedroom analogy (Hokinson, 2015) which discusses online platforms and compares them against personal spaces, in particular the bedroom. Something that stood out was the discussion of social media and web presences transferring over to mobile devices and referring to teenagers having to be “always on”(Hokinson, 2015). This article was referring to teenagers in particular always being able to connect with others who have access to these platforms and becoming an everyday activity. Throughout this article they suggested that not only was this creating some form of addiction at an early age it was also giving teenagers large doses of anxiety from always having to be switched on and keeping up with current posts.

 

This article gives good insight to several analogies regarding excessive use of social networks/platforms and the varying affects that may occur from over use.

“This article reflects on use of the teenage bedroom analogy as means to explore broader questions about the role of social network sites in young people’s lives and, in particular, the extent to which they provide environments sufficiently personal, secure and under control to enable productive forms of socialisation, performance and identity work”.(Hokinson, 2015).

Some of the contrasting arguments in this article described teenagers as having a lot more control over their social communication levels online and that it is actually quite similar to the interactive strategies a lot of teenagers use in an offline environments.(Mascheroni, Vincent and Jiminez, 2015).

The supporting evidence still does not clarify or justify a teenager knowingly creating a false or fabricated identity online in hopes of protecting their privacy, this may even contribute to the issue posed by teenagers becoming so engrossed in their online communities forgetting what is actually fact of fiction.

 

INSTAGRAM

 

The importance of understanding how social platforms operate is crucial to the appreciation and understanding of this paper the arguments and topics discussed throughout. To offer a more in depth understanding listed below will be some of the main contributing factors used to operate the social platform Instagram will be listed.

 

Instagram is essentially a photo-sharing site, infamous for youths to use for sharing photos of themselves and for foodies to share photographs of their dinners. These are just a few example of what the site is used for, not only is it an open slather for people to voice judgement but it is almost like a guilty pleasure for people to throw abuse and have abuse thrown at them.  While trends are nothing new and regardless of time and place they have been happening for centuries but nothing quite as public and self deprecating as publicising your private life to the world to only have them pass judgement. While it is hard to understand why youths are putting themselves through this torture its hard to understand any trends, past and present and why people succumb to them.

 

 

 

 

Discussion.

 

Due to the vast amount of information gathered and because of the diverse writers I chose to use there were some limitations and inconsistencies to the research gathered. Whilst yes their were some limiting factors I think the direction of the paper would not have gone the way it did if majority of the articles had not concentrated on similar topics.

 

 

Demographic Limitations.

 

The second article reviewed which was written by Mascheroni, Vincent and Jiminez, 2015) was based around teenagers that were based in 3 European countries Italy, United Kingdom and Spain. Whilst this is still very much scholarly and well researched material leaving the United States out of the picture as well as a lot of other extremely technologically advanced cultures/countries the information seemed to be lacking in a couple of areas. With the United States of American and China being 2 of the largest populations in the world the social networking patterns of these 2 countries play a massive part in the influence of other countries and even the development of a lot of these networks are created by these countries.

 

 

 

 

Conclusion and Future Studies.

 

The research conducted throughout this paper has covered both pros and cons of online identities and some of the precautions that should be taken when engaging in online activities on a daily basis. This paper has taken research from a broad spectrum and attempted to make sense of what identity boils down to and how the authenticity of online identities varies quite substantially not only depending on age but also consequence.

 

Future studies that could further benefit and educate on the topic of online identity and how transparent it should be in relation to each individual would be more studies conducted to all age demographics.

Having all articles written about young teens and adults in their early 20s narrows down a huge amount of the population that also struggle with online identity and trying to find that balance that reflect ones true self without giving too much away. It is important to remember that not only teenagers struggle with the pressures of online identity, with the world becoming more dependant on web for everything this is something that is affecting everyone and is most definitely something that should be looked at for all age brackets.

 

In conclusion the research gathered still leaves a lot of un answered questions but has most definitely narrowed down some tell tail signs of why young teenagers find escape in online identities as well as the fact that a lot of the time it is not necessarily false identities but sides of these young individuals that they do not feel comfortable expressing in a day to day life.

 

Whilst these online communities are creating a platform for this almost unattainable image of perfection they are also creating platforms for these individuals to escape and maybe discover different sides to their identity that they may not have had the opportunity to do so otherwise. There is no denying the importance of online communities/networks in current society however further research is needed to confidently say that they are the sole reason for the ideology of this unattainable identity.

 

 

 

 

References.

 

Boyd, D. (2007). Why Youth (Heart) Social Network Sites: The Role of Networked Publics in Teenage Social Life. In D. Buckingham (Ed.), MacArthur Foundation Series on Digital Learning Youth, Identity, and Digital Media Volume. Cambridge, MA.: MIT Press.
http://www.danah.org/papers/WhyYouthHeart.pdf

Donath, J. (1999). Identity and Deception in the Virtual Community. In P. Kollock, & M. A. Smith (Eds.), Communities in Cyberspace (pp. 29-59). New York: Routledge.
http://smg.media.mit.edu/people/Judith/Identity/IdentityDeception.html

Hodkinson, P. (2015). Bedrooms and beyond: Youth, identity and privacy on social network sites. New Media and Society. DOI: 10.1177/1461444815454

Mascheroni, G. Vincent, J. and Jiminez, E. (2015). “Girls are addicted to likes so they post semi-nakend selfies”: Peer mediation, normativity and the construction of identity online. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 9(1), DOI: 10.5817/CP2015-1-5

Pearson, E. (2009). All the World Wide Web’s a stage: The performance of identity in online social networks. First Monday. 14(3). http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/viewArticle/2162/2127

Turkle, S. (1997). Constructions and Reconstructions of Self in Virtual Reality. In S. Kiesler (Ed.), Culture of the Internet. Hilldale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
http://www.mit.edu/~sturkle/pdfsforstwebpage/ST_Construc%20and%20reconstruc%20of%20self.pdf

 

Turkle, S. (1997). Multiple Subjectivity and Virtual Community at the End of the Freudian Century. Sociological Inquiry, 67(1).
http://www.mit.edu/~sturkle/pdfsforstwebpage/ST_Multiple%20Subjectivity.pdf

Van Der Nagel, E. and Frith, J. (2015). Anonymity, pseudonymity, and the agency of online identity: Examining the social practices of r/Gonewild. First Monday, 20(3), Retrieved from http://www.ojphi.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/5615/4346

 

Social media – The Root of Pedophilia in the 21st century? by Nikhil D. Dookun

Social media – The Root of Pedophilia in the 21st century?

Abstract:

This paper talks mainly about how the main root of pedophilia cases is social media. The first part of the paper explains what social media is, its use, how it has brought change to the world, what makes social media a boon in the eyes of the world and how it is useful in the modern era. The second part of the paper explains what identity is, the definition of online identity, the main aspects that make online identity and authenticity of identities on social media. Online identities are important in this paper as much as social media is, due to the fact that its different aspects will appear in several parts the main content discussed. Later comes a paragraph about what pedophilia is. And then the main content is discussed, that is, how social media is the main platform that leads to pedophilia cases. The discussion shows how pedophiles make the use of social media as a bait and how young adolescents are irresponsible.

Social media, its use, changes brought to the world and aspects that make social media make social media a boon in the eyes of the world:

The most common definition of social media is that social media are platforms that simplify the sharing of data, thoughts, career interests and communication in the form of text or video conference through the official website or apps (Lomborg, 2015). The content shared are user-generated content and they can be in the form of written posts, photos, videos or a mixture of all three (Lomborg, 2015). Currently, the most common social media platforms known and used are Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and WhatsApp (Lomborg, 2015). In today’s life, social media is one of the most useful tool present in the world. In fact, except for babies and war-affected countries, the majority of the world’s population are at least on one social media platform.

The main use of social media that is most commonly known is to communicate with closed ones through written text, through visuals and video conferencing (Lomborg, 2015). For youngsters in particular, the main use of social media is to make new friends that can be their potential dates (Lomborg, 2015). Through years, however, the use of social media has been extended for marketing and journalism purposes. Existing and new businesses get to make themselves known, get to promote easily their content or announcements or events through sponsored posts (Lomborg, 2015).. They even get the chance to attract new potential stakeholders due to the huge number of reach that social media provide to them. (Lomborg, 2015).  Existing and new news outlets use social media to get maximum reach as when they share their content, hashtags and the massively huge number of users increase their reach (Lomborg, 2015). These are what make social media a boon, in the eyes of the society (Baym, 2015).

Online Identity

Online identity is a very important aspect in this paper. Before explaining what online identity is, the meaning of identity will be first discussed. When it comes to human beings, identity is about their names, ethnicity, abilities, looks, traits, beliefs and expressions, that is, all the factors what demarcate themselves from others (“What is Identity?”, 1991). For organizations or groups, identity is all about their worth and unique features or reputations that build up their image in society, be it a good one or a bad one (“What is Identity?”, 1991). Online identity is what makes an online user on social media or online gamer unique from the other users or gamers. That is, online identity is about the information and reputation of a user online such as the users’ names on social media or games, type of avatars created in games, the strategy he or she uses and their number of victories or their streaks, etc (Stewart, 2011). The aspect of online identity will appear in the coming paragraphs.

Pedophilia

Pedophilia is a mental disorder where an adult feel himself or herself sexually attracted to children and adolescents (Rowan, 1989). A person having this illness is called a pedophile. The meaning of a pedophilia case is where a pedophile manages to acquire his or her prey, where a pedophile gets the chance to call and meet up for physical relationship (Rowan, 1989). A pedophilia case is also where the pedophile make physical abuse of his or her young prey (Rowan, 1989).

Case study: Pedophilia Cases

These cases currently involve these three aspects from the social media environment; social media features, youngsters and their online identity (Rowan, 1989). These three aspects lead to pedophilia cases in several ways.

  • Social media features: Social media’s main involvement in these cases come from its features itself. On social media, multiple identities can be created due to the abilities to totally personify an account other than the own selves of the users (Lomborg, 2015). Not only this, the users can name themselves whatever names they want and save anyone’s pictures (Lomborg, 2015). Through these opportunities, identity is like a wax statue that can be moulded into whoever person that the artist desires (Stewart, 2011).
  • Youngsters: The problem of youngsters in these cases is the way they dress and their body languages. Young girls like to look older; girls who are of 13 years of age would probably want to look like Rihanna or Nicki Minaj, just to be attractive enough so that they can get themselves a potential date. Having a boyfriend is a must for young girls simply to be accepted by peer groups, so, not only they copy the flashy clothing of those celebrities but they also copy their ways of walking and also do exercises to develop their bodies into the body of a matured woman, at a quicker rate. If they fail to develop their bodies into the desired body shape, they make use of things such as fake breasts to make their breasts look bigger and to become more of what they believe boys and men like. At the end of the day, they end up attracting male adults where the attraction can be categorized as lust. Hence, this can be seen as a factor which forced a male adult to become a pedophile.
  • Online identities of youngsters: Other ways in which youngsters contribute in pedophilia cases are immature attention seeking acts on social media. Youngsters tend to build a much more notorious identity of themselves than projecting their own original identity as a notorious character will only attract more people and will also make them look “cool” in front of their peers. To build this notorious identity on social media, youngsters will mainly share semi-nude pics, posts about sex and media containing adult contents. By doing so, they attract pedophiles as well. Seeing these Medias, semi-nude photos and sexual contents, adults tend to develop some sort of thinking and feeling for the minor which will later most probably turn into lust.

The bullet points above show briefly that social media, youngsters and their online activities contribute into pedophile cases. Now, this case study will support the thesis statement, which is; social media is the root of pedophile cases from the 21st century.

As explained in the first point of the case study, social media allows users to build a totally different and improved self of themselves on the platforms. These features help pedophiles to build a younger identity while creating their account which they will create as bait (Harkins, 2013). The question is how they create a younger identity. The answer is clear and simple. They will create fake accounts and then they will steal young boys’ photos so that they can put them as profile picture, they would then fabricate their age by setting it to 15-18 years of age (Harkins, 2013). Then, they will like all the pages or other contents that young boys like, so as to make the account look a real one (Harkins, 2013). They will also add in their personal information that they are currently attending a specific college (Harkins, 2013). After setting up the account, they will start to add people that are attending the college that they are supposedly attending (Harkins, 2013). They will then start searching for young girls and send them friend requests (Harkins, 2013). A huge majority of young girls will accept the friend requests, as young girls from this generation need to absolutely have a boyfriend so that they are accepted by peer groups (Stewart, 2011). This is where the real danger starts.

As soon as the friend requests get accepted, the wrongdoers will then start with a very friendly approach (Harkins, 2013). They will talk about their school life, lie about a couple things such as they have a huge financial stability so that the victims are more attracted to them (Harkins, 2013). Then, they will share their interests among themselves (Harkins, 2013). Talking to each other regularly will bring them close and the predator will then propose to the girl (Harkins, 2013). If the girl does not have a boyfriend, there will be a huge possibility that the girl will say yes to the proposal (Stewart, 2011). Being her boyfriend, he will probably ask to send nude photos of her and the girl will obviously send him as she will not dare to say no as she will be afraid to offend her virtual boyfriend (Harkins, 2013). And there will be a day that the crook will ask her victim to meet him or her (Harkins, 2013). This will be the day that the girl will come to know the real identity of her so called ‘boyfriend’ and will be too late for her as she will most probably end up being raped (Harkins, 2013). If the girl refused to date the predator, she will still be at risk. The predator, as a friend, will someday or another raise the topic about sex (Harkins, 2013). Young and curious, the girl will also be tempted to talk about it and being close to each other, the offender will ask the girl if she has ever tried ‘this or that’ and will then explain the girl what should she do or try (Harkins, 2013). He might even send her porn videos as samples (Harkins, 2013). And when the naïve girl will say that she tried it, the boy will ask her to send him a picture or video of her doing all these so that he can guide her (Harkins, 2013). Then, after receiving all these explicit contents about the girl, the predator might use them as a weapon (Harkins, 2013). They will blackmail the girl with these media, with the threat that they will spread them all over the internet. They will blackmail the victim to either receive more of these photos and videos or they will use it for money-extortion, also known as sextortion. In fact, once having the power to blackmail the prey, the predator can control the prey and force them to meet up for sex.

Social media platforms should find a way to strengthen the security of the society and the communities built on their platforms. The best way they can ensure security is to add more account confirmations such as ID Number or National transport ID Number instead of integrating only mobile phone number confirmation (Lomborg, 2015). If these security measures are put into practice, pedophilia cases will be decreased as pedophiles will not be able to create fake accounts or steal identities of others.
As a conclusion, it can be deduced that despite the fact that social media is seen as a boon, social media is also a cause of dangers such as pedophilia to the society. Social media is well and truly the root of pedophilia cases in the 21st century.

Are Muslim Women challenging stereotypes on online communities?

Are Muslim women challenging stereotypes on online communities?

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how Muslim women are challenging stereotypes and prejudices. Muslim women have been confronting negatives stereotypes on online platforms since a very long time. The paper talks about the stereotypical portrayal of Muslim women in the media. More specifically, emphasizing on how are they challenging these issues. The paper supports scholarly articles from the Curtin library. One of the article is ‘the veil and Muslim women’s identity: Cultural pressures and resistance to stereotyping’ by Sen and Wagner (2012), they believe that despite wearing the veils Muslim women can achieve their dreams and ambitions. Another article talking about the emancipation of women wearing the ‘hijab’ is ‘Rethinking Muslim and the veil’ by Bullock. Moreover, it is important to highlight the study of Yvonne as she states ‘Emancipated Muslim women contributions’. Furthermore, ‘Confronting Prejudice against Muslim Women in the West’ will be discussed by Sotlani, 2016. The articles is about how the Muslim women are resisting and being able to challenge these stereotypes.

Introduction

Truly the Muslim women are struggling to present themselves as other women of the world. Is it necessary for Muslim women to portray themselves as emancipated females? Yes. In this new era many changes are being occurred. Therefore these women are considered to be on the right path. Despite being victim of prejudices, the Muslim women are struggling to portray themselves as modern women living in the Western world.

Firstly the introduction will integrate the discussion of the stereotypical portrayal of Muslim women that is how the media and political discourse tag them as weak and oppressed and how the veil is seen as a controversy issue. Secondly supporting arguments which will showcase how Muslim women are resisting and defending themselves that is the stereotypes are being challenged with time. Focusing on , online communities being a platform where online forums are being organized to encourage these females to be emancipated, secondly women wearing the veil are seen to be modern and stylish and thirdly how Muslim women being role models such as singer, you tube vlogger and fashion model uses platforms to challenge stereotypes.

Identity is a vital concept in the society. Identity refers to the sense that someone has of who they are and what is the most important about them. In this new era gendered performance on social media is becoming a controversial issue, especially for the minority group which are the Muslim women. ‘There is no gender identity behind the expressions of gender… identity is per formatively constituted by the very ‘expressions’ that are said to be its results’, (Judith Butler, 2014).

To begin with, the stereotypical portrayal of Muslim women and prejudice theory is seen as a polemic. Media has thrown a very stereotypical light over Muslim women since a long ago. They are seen as weak, inferior and oppressed in the society. Rochelle Terman (2017), states that Muslim females are associated with political violence and terrorism in different media outlets. Therefore these media portrayals influence public opinion about them. Public opinion data reveal growing anxiety about Islam’s compatibility with “Western” values of tolerance, acceptance and civility (Panagopoulos 2006), and people who believe that Muslims remain culturally distinct are more likely to have negative attitudes about them.

According to some research, the American coverage represents the Muslim women as being inaccurately as ‘anti feminists’, which reinforce stereotypes of female Muslim as a treat to Western culture. The Americans have already been victims of several attacks and explosions therefore they reluctant when a woman with the veil appear before them.

This picture was taken by an American photographer from the Washington Political University, stated that Muslim women were opressed and were beaten on the streets.

Retrieved from political university, 2014 .In the last three decades, a big theory has developed commenting Western portrayals of Muslim in the society. Since the attack of 9/11 the Muslim culture are purposely being stereotyped as ‘terrorists’. American media discourse is purportedly obsessed with Muslim women’s oppression, for which the veil is the ultimate symbol and case in point (Ahmad 2009). Popular media outlets portray Middle Eastern and Muslim societies as uniquely or particularly misogynistic, especially compared to Western countries (Kumar 2012).

Supporting Ideas

Awareness online campaigns

In this new era stereotypes are being challenged. Firstly, these Muslim women are breaking the ‘oppressed Muslim woman’ stereotype by improving their own behavior, that is they are interacting more and more with members of the non- Muslim ethnic majority. In addition to, they are representing themselves in a more modern and emancipated citizens. The Muslim females are changing the dominant image in the society. Despite of existing stereotypes Muslim women are facing these challenges with courage and pride. The females from the minority group are participating in Islamic organization where they recognize their religion to be as important as their identity. Moreover, they are challenging the perceptions of Muslim women in the Western society. Different research were conducted to examine how they are changing the image of Islam. They engaged themselves in a way to convince the society that they have the same rights as everyone in the society. All human beings should be well treated with the same rights and equality.

They are emphasizing that all Muslim women should seek education and have the opportunity to develop their skills and talents on the labor market. Furthermore, campaigns and forums are being organized on online communities to promote women empowerment and to positively sensitize people about Islamic women. They are interpreting themselves as being the Islamic feminists, as a result the females are engaging themselves on social media platforms to challenge these stereotypes. For example, ‘Al Nisa’an online group association formed and gathered Muslim women on social media platforms where they could participate and engage themselves on online debates. Additionally these women gave interviews and made awareness videos on online platforms. As a result the public could engaged themselves through the likes, comments and shared posts. For example the words of Zainab, a young Afghanistan who is active on this online association stated that, ‘women have to get a much more active participation in society. […] Be more active, simply like, ‘I am Muslim’. Be proud of it, and make it known to the world: ‘Yes, I wear my hijab, but it doesn’t stop me from anything. I participate actively in society and I haven’t left my religion to be able to do so’ (Mashri, 2014).Focusing on the online group association where Muslim youth is being promoted. They encourage youngsters to not to get involved in criminal and illegal activities otherwise they will damage the reputation of Islam. According to the ‘Young Muslims Agency’, young adults are being online ambassador to make sure to behave contrary to negative expectations. As online forums are being frequently organized on web 2.0 the citizens are reminded how to behave in the society according norms and regulations.

Resistance of the ‘hijab’

They are able to defend themselves as they acquire religious knowledge which leads to live a pious life which therefore form the key to Muslim’s women emancipation and hence breaking the stereotypes. Butler states that many females who showcase themselves on an ambassadorial role should portray an effort of ethical self-fashioning. It is noteworthy to notice that all women are willing to present themselves as positive citizens in the society. Furthermore, Muslim women would dress themselves in a stylish way. For example when posting a picture on social platforms they would deliberately choose a more fashionable ‘hijab’ style. In a way they will be more emancipated as well as restoring their culture. As demonstrated in this picture, where they posted it on social media.

Retrieved from Pinterest, Muslim women wearing the veil and jeans in Western countries.

The present minority illustrate cultural diversity, permeability and shifting boundaries (Khan, 2000). A new image is being showcased on media platforms they are being viewed as courageous and independent women. For example, the Yemeni Nobel Peace Prize winner Tawakkol Karman and Egyptian activist Asmaa Mahfouz, who are both wear the veil. They are sometimes categorized in certain Western feminist organization. These women have written books such as ‘Muslim women speak about dreams’, ‘Under Western eyes: politics of Feminism’, (Chandra, 2009). The media portrayals of Muslim women is evolving with time. Focusing on women wearing the veil has more involvement on television, in films and on social media. To challenge this irony, Anna Piela an author from ‘They call me Muslim’, states that “I am just doing my bit to promote modesty: ‘hijab’ self-portraits on photo-sharing websites,” This picture has been posted on websites to show case the modernity and diversity of Muslim women.

Retrieved from, ‘They call me Muslim’

Nowadays women are being motivated to follow their aims and ambitions. The ‘hijab’ is still considered as a threat in the society, despite all these prejudices these women are resisting social constraints and reconstructing new identities for themselves. For example, there are several Iranian women who are working in the broadcasting media. Studies have been proven that they are efficient workers. There have been many controversies that female Muslim cannot drive they are seen weak and stupid drivers unfortunately this is not the case, these prejudices are being challenged and these women are proving them wrong. This Muslim woman works in a Western country where she drives a car and is called a ‘Uber driver’ and is earning a living.

Retrieved from Account Facebook, 2018

Citizens are accepting her efforts and see her as a normal person earning money in this lucrative business.

Another good example to showcase how Muslim women are resisting stereotypes is how Hijabers are challenging these prejudices.

Retrieved from Journalistic reviews, 2017

Muslim women are challenging the stereotypes of Muslim female as being submissive and disempowered through fashion conscious on global communities. Nowadays they are creating an image of the ideal modern Muslim women. These hijabers observed their cultures as well as visible on social platforms. These women are presented everywhere on television, in advertisements, soap operas, in adds endorsement as well as they are brand ambassadors of products and services. As demonstrate in the picture below.

Retrieved from beauty brands, 2017

Moreover, the states are encouraging athletes from the minority group to have the chance to participate on International level in sports. This is pushing the women to achieve their dreams and ambitions. Furthermore they are restoring their culture as well as being stylish in a practical way. This picture when taken when this girl participate in the Olympics.

Retrieved from Olympics, Nike 2017)

Nike have promote this product on social media where glamourous models wore this ‘Nike Pro Hijab’ on the ramp. They also promote this product through face to face gathering and hijab wearing tutorials. Moreover, Alila a researcher states that Muslim women who travel and work are very inspirational about the Quran. Therefore while posting their images on Instagram they mix together images and moral messages in the description. For an example, Syifa Fauziah appears to be healthy and leading a positive lifestyle where sunlight is gently falling across her face and she has perfectly posed. The accompanying message reads: “If we don’t fear Allah, who then will we fear?” (shilaf,2016)

Muslim women as models on different platforms

Muslim women are emancipated and wish to climb the social ladder. Long ago they were reluctant to share their opinions and point of view in front of the camera but in this diversifies and modernized world they prefer to voice out in order to acquire their rights. Marjon Carlos (2017), talks about a young Muslim poet who uses social media and fashion to challenge stereotypes. This Muslim girl from Brooklyn named Riya Hamid is combating a massive mission around her Muslim faith. When she was a child she was dressed by her mother who comes from Bangladesh, with time Hamid decided to challenge her cultural double standards. She started to gain confidence and started to view life in a more diversified way.  She explained about her investments in her visual presentation helps articulate a Muslim woman’s passions when the society are against. She has the control about her content sharing that is she decides the image she disseminates of herself to the world. Moreover she learned how to mix her heritage and music to create her personal style. She was very traditional and believed in modesty. Her parents never introduced her to music and arts. When she was a child she wasn’t allowed to show her skin and was bullied at school. She was portrayed as a typical Muslim passive woman in the society. But now with time shifting and the introduction of web 2.0 Riya is bold and confident in how she looks. She is the type of woman that isn’t afraid of wearing a form-fitting dress despite having wide hips and large breasts. Moreover, she dressed herself in a particular way where better solidify her identity and become more conformable with her appearances. Moreover she is able she is perceived as a role model on Instagram. She is the girl of tomorrow where modern values are dictating. She is a famous Instagram poster. She has stated that she is the one distributing and consuming media. She also can control the content that appears on your feed instead of the media dictating what you should see, and my feed was just filled with brown bodies. I realized, ‘Wait, I spent most of my life feeling unattractive because of Eurocentric beauty standards and my struggle with body dysmorphia is still constant and aggressive. I can take all the selfies I fucking want.’ (Riya Hamid, 2017)

Retrieved from Riya Hamid,2017

Another example of a Muslim woman who is setting an example is a young lady from the feminists associations, Mennel Ibtissem, she won over the jury on the French TV show the ‘voice’. Furthermore, The French daily Le Figaro considered her turban a more modern way of wearing the veil “It is inseparable from my look. You will never see me without it,” she said, drawing a parallel with French rapper Maitre Gims who never removes his dark glasses. (Middle East eye, 2018). Several hijab wearing female singer has tried their luck on this platform. One of them is Amina Skhiri a psychologist who participated in 2016. She is still fighting for her rights. The talented girl did create history as she wanted to spread peace and positivity world widely.

Retrieved from BBC 2018

Conclusion

The prejudices and stereotypes are still present but Muslim women are doing a great effort to overcome the challenges. They are being successful in their mission. More and more women are climbing the social ladder. To sum up they are able to challenge and resist the stereotypes. On the other sides those being victims of negative tags are still fighting for the best.

 

References:

Judith S. Donath, 2014. “Identity and deception in the virtual community,” In: Marc A. Smith and Peter Kollock Communities in cyberspace, pp. 29–59.

 

Mernissi, F. 2016. Beyond the Veil:Female Dynamics in Modern Muslim Society. London: Al Saqi 48-52

Wagner, W., Holtz, P., & Kashima, Y. (2012). The veil and the Muslim Identity Construction and deconstruction of essence in representing social groups: Identity projects, stereotyping, and racism.Social Behaviour, 39, 363–383.

Yvonne(2014) ‘Emancipated Muslim women contributions’  Acting like role models in the society pp 28-56

 

Activism on social media as a public sphere.

Social Network

Social media as a public space in the 21st century.

Abstract.

Social media have progressively became extensive and enormous. Nonetheless, the written works on political issues and the internet has not completely clutched just how much the global computer network have crucially and radically changed the aspect of organisational interaction, ranging from an independent party having the power and mean to directly assemble materials to making grassroots transnational governmental issues more organisationally plausible and practical. A huge aperture in the writings is the absence of apprehension of how the internet have structured social movement organisations and the organisation of social movements. This problem brings jointly a distinctive collection of articles that plan and remarked on the domain of social media and social movements. In this sphere, the work grants to literature by inspecting how the internet is not only structuring constitutional coalition, advocacy and activism from the viewpoint of organisational communication but as well as developing the means in which activists communicate with one another. Hence, this work is mainly focused on how social media is being galvanised to manipulate public opinion and organised political active service. In short, the focal point of this conference paper will principally explore the aspect of how social media is being a public sphere when it comes to activism such as the campaign of Obama and Ségolène Royal, the Black Lives Matter, the Women March, the Occupy Wall Street movement and the Arab Spring- which has to do with politics. This collection produces an analytical starting point to apprehend the internet and social movement effectively, a field which is crucially vital to a variety of disciplines but is intensely under searched and under rated.

To begin with, the exposure of the Internet in the early nineties, shortly became obvious that this brand new manifestation of technology had the prospective of developing a cyberspace for governmental debate. The emergence of the global computer network has permitted for an unparalleled proficiency of data sharing. The flexibility of the Internet sites means one can connect with an extensive audience, no matter if it is via the low commitment of the 140-character count on Twitter, the visual-audio feature of Instagram, or the accessibility of Facebook. The causes of community can be made completely apparent through 30-second videos which can be easily shared by millions of computer operators. The efficient circulation of statistics by social media has granted to the case of social media activism, where administrative dynamism are quickly spread among users via social networking. Nowadays, Internet websites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, Wikipedia, Flickr and YouTube are the top activities on the World Wide Web. For instance, since April 2011, Facebook has roughly 600 million recorded users and according to marketers, people spend more time on Facebook than on Google (R. Effing et al, 2011). Today, the utilisation of mobile internet gave an extra uplift and push to the use of social media. Communities such as bureaucratic parties are attempting to keep up with this changing environment. By carrying activism on media platforms, politicians are able to share ideas and exchange views to million within minutes (Social media and political participation, 2018).

In 1992, Garnham, a television director asked ‘what new political institutions and new public sphere might be necessary for the democratic control of a global economy and polity?’’. The answer credibly showed itself with the entry of the Web in the beginning of the nineties. A sphere which empowered human to communicate across any distance, regardless of age and status, caste and gender. Furthermore, face to face communication of the public realm was over, ‘democracy must henceforth take into account new forms of electronically mediated discourse’ (Poster, 1997). Social media was shown as more active and dynamic and anyone who had computer and Internet facilities could be rewarded from its communication and online civic engagement. Finally, today social media is pushing forward a present-time public space through online discussion and networked communication without any unfairness or partiality. This part of the scholarly work, lay importance on the fact that earlier everybody did not get the chance of bringing forward their perspective but with the progression of social media they easily shared their views openly and have the ability to take part in online activism carried out by political bodies.

How social media as a public space led to a success in activism are shown in the case of Obama and Ségolène Royal political campaign. The case of Obama’s election crusade was substantially and consistently bottomed on online media platforms. Next to his own website, the former president of the United States of America, used fifteen social media web pages to promote his works. He very well perceived and interpreted the power of flattering the offline work with an online campaign. The latter coherently connected the online community with the offline social actions such as fundraising. His social work was seen by million across the planet through the site of the Internet like Twitter, which gave him the image of an ideal and noble president. Thus, his use of the global computer network was a significant feature of his general campaign master plan (J. Hillegersberg et all, 2011). Additionally, another victorious case was the campaign of Ségolène Royal during the French elections in 2007. The latter was able to conduct a connection with a massively huge crowd in the online world. Her activism done on social media, led to a rise in her party membership from 120, 000 to 200, 000 members. Surprisingly, earlier 90% of a sudden rise had not been a member of an administrative party. Therefore, with examples of mass mobilisation like inhabitant oppositions in Iran and other Middle-Eastern nations, it is secure and relevant to claim that social media are changing the game of party politics (Social media and political participation, 2018).

Ultimately, because of the essence of the Internet, activism is allowed to enlarge its definition to those who are constantly sharing links, appeal and other Internet resources to stimulate their political interests. Individuals are effortlessly able to team with the protests via hashtags or changing their online avatar. Anybody out there with Internet accessibility have the ability to be a social activist and make their voice heard across borders. Conceivably, the most important part of social networking activism is the capability of translating words into action. The huge oppositions of the yesteryears have all been planned via different social media sites. Remarkably, the Women’s March in Washington was arranged on a Facebook event by women with no early acquaintance. Three acclaimed women activists had distinctly posted about a feasible women’s march opposing President Trump’s establishment. They team up, enrolled other activists to plan the big event. Eventually, thousands and thousands of people stipulated their objective to attend via a ‘’Répondez s’il vous plaît’’ to the Facebook event and it finally acquired hundreds of supporting parade all over the universe. The occurrence victoriously provoked the interest of the nation, assembling upward about two million individual in a mass protest. Precisely, the creation of the march were able to be broadly perceived and accessible to anyone. The obtainability of social media permitted a large-scale support base which will subsequently stop such a movement from being seen as something useless (R. Lau, 2017).

Consequently, the Internet regularly issues a way of recognition.  Once again, with the intervention of hashtags, social media users have the facility of distinguishing themselves with the movement of activism. The most well-known example is the inventive use of the ‘’Black Lives Matter’’ hashtag in its conflict in opposition of police cruelty and consistent racism. Here, the Internet has demonstrated itself as a monstrous tool in providing a voice to individual all over the planet mainly to the marginalised sectors. The Black Lives Matter movement started with a hashtag on websites and the support of the so-called ‘’slacktivitist’’ on social media made it ‘’a member-led global network of more than 40 chapters’’, according to the Black Lives Matter webpage. Moreover, the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ice bucket challenge, which filled all platforms of social media with videos of people submerge the head with ice water, raised $115 million and an additional $13 million was given into charity to the institution’s regional branches (N. Langfield, 2017). Furthermore, corresponding hashtags were utilised to boycott against the Hudson Bay Company, for the eviction of Ivanka Trump’s stock and Uber, for its CEO’S participation in Donald Trump’s advisory board. These tags permits posts to be classified, facilitate it for viewers to be in line with the happenings. Finally, the Hudson Bay Company flown out a declaration concerning the avoidance and Uber’s CEO left from the advisory board. Hence, while putting a hashtag to a tweet may seem like a tiny action but it certainly results to triggering answers from authority (Social media as tool for meaningful political activism, 2017).

Once again, the noticeable Black Lives Matter movement as well shows the power of a social movement widely footed on Internet sites as a substitute voice for the repressed. While traditional media may not be willing to involve certain occurrences in its printing because of political pressures, tensions and corporate restrictions, a coalition free from these imprisonment may proclaim itself without any fear or hesitation. For instant, the death of Travyon Martin, the crime which flickered the organisation, was limitedly wrapped by the old media till a journalist persuade big channels to take up the story. After the death of Martin, upcoming unfairness undertaken by the Black Lives Matter movement were published on web pages under the hashtag. The old media’s defeat to label white greatness, and in the duration its criminalisation of Black victims, led voices on social networking sites to become a relevant source of data (R. Lau, 2017). Thus, once again the Internet has been shown as a public sphere for activism.

Likewise, a fresh blog post by an ex female Uber worker revealing its coherent prejudices against women initiated an investigation by Uber’s chief executive. The website post which had the detailed incidents of sexual molestation by the top management and the brush off of concern by the human resources, resonated with many women workers from the technical stream and unmasked a bigger issue of sexism inside the fraternity. Uber is one among the big companies with a notable impact and it is understandable to see why media channel would refuse to take up any such story. The very same story when posted on media platforms like Twitter were shared a thousand times and it obtained traction once it was supported and fought by other female workers who left Uber. Popular bloggers who have huge amount of followers were able to provoke change via their prospective capability to associate with their people, unlike news outlets, where the publishers were restricted by the editors and tackled by the people who contradict (Social media as tool for meaningful political activism, 2017).

Coming back to the real politics side of things, social media has become a mean for political institutions all over the political spectrum. In order to understand how this change occurred, it is important to look a bit in the past. Six years ago, a sequence of well-known movements all over the planet spelled hope for Facebook and Twitter as a mean of social change. The first one starting in 2011 was the Occupy Wall Street movement. It was all began as a small protest but quickly turned into a transnational movement, pulling consciousness to the concentration of cash in a few wealthy ‘’one-percenters’’. The occupiers of Wall Street pulled it off by the use of Twitter to unfurl their message. While Occupy was in many ways a non-resistant and acceptably failed organisation, its victory in mobilisation sowed seeds which bore fruits in upcoming activists campaigns (D. Murthy, 2018).

Another big argument how social media acts as a public space for activism is the Arab Spring. The second version of the Arab Social Media Report disclosed that almost nine out of ten Egyptians and Tunisians utilised Facebook to plan and publicised protests and almost all protests took place. Additionally, the document found that the use of Facebook risen and doubled between January and April 2011. The overall amount of operators had augmented by thirty percent in comparison to the eighteen percent rise in 2010. Its utilisation in Bahrain soared by fifteen percent in three month time. It is argued that during the time of protests in Egypt and Tunisia, eighty eight percent Egyptian and ninety four percent Tunisians revealed that they were receiving their information through social media websites. On twitter the tweets summited at particular incidents just like the January 14 protest in Tunisia and they augment days after the Bahraini affirmation started on February 14. Ultimately, the Egyptians hashtag ‘’Egypt’’ gained 1.4 million tags in three month (Arab Social Media Report, 2011). This kind of digits show the unexpected level of participation in social media.

In conclusion, previously parliamentary posts on the Internet were denigrated for their incapacity to impact genuine change. However, acclaimed organisations unfolded a different reality. When people get the feeling of a reasonable pain to rectify, they will go to extreme extent to make it known. This has been proved by the turnout of Occupy in 2011, the Black Lives Matter and the transnational participation in the Women’s March. Activism on the Internet has obviously grown into a pivotal part of impactful political theory. Government bodies prolong mobile Twitter accounts and online appeal are frequently shared on the Web. Consequently, the Internet has permitted people from small sector to make a change in their own way possible. It has make data become inequity towards the commanding group. Internet activists acknowledge the capability of online community and while there are enquiry about the originality of unfiltered voices, the rate and result of such a system are licencing and empowering.

Reference list:

Badoura, S. The role of social media in the Arab Spring. Retrieved from file:///C:/Users/JUGUN%20DIKSHA/Downloads/Badoura.pdf

Effing, R., & Hillegersberg, J., & Huibers, T. (2011). Social Media and Political Participation: Are Facebook, Twitter and YouTube Democratising Our Political Systems? Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/221353460_Social_Media_and_Political_Participation_Are_Facebook_Twitter_and_YouTube_Democratizing_Our_Political_Systems

Kim, S (2017).  Can we use social media as a form of activism? Retrieved from http://www.jhunewsletter.com/article/2017/12/can-we-use-social-media-as-a-form-of-activism

Langfield, N. (2017). Social media activism is no joke. Retrieved from http://www.queensjournal.ca/story/2017-10-27/lifestyle/social-media-activism-is-no-joke/

Lau, R. (2017). Social Media as Tool for Meaningful Political Activism. Retrieved from http://mcgillleftreview.com/article/social-media-tool-meaningful-political-activism

Moyer, J. (2017).  POLITICAL ACTIVISM ON SOCIAL MEDIA HAS GROWN SOME TEETH. Retrieved from https://psmag.com/social-justice/social-media-activism

Murthy, D. (2018). Introduction to Social Media, Activism and Organisation. Retrieved from http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2056305117750716#

Xu, C. (2017). Going Viral: Using Social Media for Activism. Retrieved from https://medium.com/social-media-stories/going-viral-using-social-media-for-activism-78cade6e2371

Dungeons & Dragons: From tabletop to desktop

Abstract

Tabletop role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons have made the shift in recent years from a purely offline gaming system to functioning online, albeit with minor adjustments to format. As a game system that relies upon the players investing themselves in a fictional world that they will flesh out with their own created identities aka player characters, this paper will aim to explore the relationship between the identity of the player and the player character. The performance and shifting of these identities will be a central focus as well as the unique problems that will need to be addressed when playing a game of Dungeons & Dragons.

 

Keywords:

Gaming, Tabletop, Role-Playing, Dungeons & Dragons, Identity, Performance

 

Identity within Dungeons & Dragons

 

This paper will discuss the importance and function of identity, specifically the creation and performance aspects, with regards to tabletop role-playing games in an online space. Dungeons & Dragons, as perhaps the most well-known of all role-playing games, will be used as a case study for discussion in this paper. Firstly, a brief introduction of Dungeons & Dragons will be given as well as an explanation of how it functions as a game and what the shift to a digital format has changed for the system. Secondly will be an exploration of the creation of identities within the game system followed by the performance of these identities, as well as how players differentiate between the player and the character. This paper will also briefly explore the relationship between the identities of the player and character. This will be followed by an exploration of why performative identities within this system differ from other online spaces and unique problems involving meta-gaming that relate to identity. Lastly a brief exploration of online role-playing games as communities will be discussed. This paper will aim to argue that identity creation is a core aspect of online role-playing games which enables the performance of a separate fictional identity in a socially accepted format.

 

History and taking the offline online

 

Dungeons & Dragons, much like other tabletop role-playing games, is essentially a group storytelling experience with structure and rules to guide it. This is done through a dungeon master guiding the group through the narrative of the adventure and reacting to the actions the players wish their characters to take. Gary Gygax, one of the creators of Dungeons & Dragons, described it as a “Group cooperative experience…There is no winning or losing, but rather the value is of imagining yourself as a character in whatever genre you’re involved in” (Schiesel, 2008). As Dungeons & Dragons has existed since the 1970s it was not initially created to be played online (WoTC, 2018). While Dungeons & Dragons is still primarily played offline its transition to online has allowed many new people to take up the hobby who were previously unable to play. When players begin a game, they create a character that they wish to play within the world, this is known as a player character. This differs from other online spaces, where creating an avatar is a common aspect, in that the player will be asked to flesh out this identity beyond the simple choice of a representative image and name. This greater depth to the identity allows the player more flexibility in the identity that they wish to create and can make them feel more involved in the game as aspects of their characters backstory can be injected in the adventure. Pearson (2009) states that “online, users can claim to be whoever they wish”. This statement applies directly to online role-playing games as they are a system that allows for extensive creative freedom. This player character can be given a backstory, personality or wants and needs separate to those of the player. The player would then perform this identity within the context of the game world, making choices from the perspective of the character that they have created.

An important characteristic of offline play is the ability to see the other players, which provides players the ability to visually identify the other players. Identifying other players with whom you are going to undertake a group storytelling experience is important to understanding and evaluating an interaction (Kollock & Smith, 1996). When playing in an online space players are often limited to text or voice chat as the primary form of communication which can remove a visual factor from play, namely the fact that the players may not be aware what everyone they are playing with look like. This can benefit some players by providing them a level of anonymity within play which could in turn provide an extra level of confidence. Offline players may be more hesitant to try and roleplay a certain type of character or accent for fear of embarrassment due to the other players being in the same room as them while online this fear can be lessened or removed completely.

 

 

 

 

Getting into character

 

As Dungeons & Dragons is a storytelling experience, a core aspect of the game is being able to understand and perform the identity that players have created within their characters. Creating a new identity to be performed is not a concept applied solely to role playing games. Performing as a created character within a role-playing game is essentially a form of acting, albeit with a heavier focus on improvisation. There is no script within a game of Dungeons and Dragons for the players to follow and so a large portion of the game must be created on the spot or as a reaction to whatever is happening, this allows for a form of fluid storytelling unique to tabletop role-playing games. As players grow more comfortable with their characters, whether through further play with that particular character or experience with the game, it becomes easier for them to perform that specific identity. Performative identities are discussed by Goffman, as cited in Pearson (2009), who discusses identity-as-performance from a theatre perspective with regards to a frontstage, which is the observable space when the character is in the spotlight, and the backstage where players are able to ‘step back’ from their performed identities and discuss the game as a meta level commentary. People use different methods to inform the other players whether they are speaking as a player or a player character. This can be done through the ‘frontstage’ implementations such as the use of accents or speech patterns or a ‘backstage approach’ by referring to the character in the third person such as saying, “my character would know this”.

 

As Dungeons and Dragons is a group experience there are potential difficulties that arise from players abusing the backstage approach to performative identity, hiding behind a common excuse of “That is what my character would do” whenever they do something that is considered ‘evil’ within the alignment structure of the game. There are countless threads that exist on the internet regarding players having difficulties with a player within their game who is hiding behind their characters identity as an excuse for their actions. RPG Stack Exchange is a website dedicated to solving problems with game systems and has a forum that allows users to ask questions of the greater role-playing community, within this forum there is a discussion about how to handle a difficult player whose character is killing innocent civilians while traveling in a group with the fantasy equivalent of an ex-police officer (Stack Exchange, 2018). The first player is quoted as saying “It’s how his character is played” while the second player is saying that as his character is good aligned, he now has enough reason to kill the offending character. This type of interaction can have ramifications across two identity levels, the first being the death of players characters which can end the game for one player. The second is the potential issue it could within the group of players as the killing of another players character could upset that player. This kind of cross level emotional identity issue may not be unique to Dungeons and Dragons but does differ from other online spaces where the user may not be occupying different identity-spaces.

 

 

 

Meta-gaming

 

Being able to differentiate between the identity that a player is performing, as a character, and the players’ actual identity can be an important aspect of the game as meta-gaming is often frowned upon by both players and the dungeon master running the game. Meta-gaming can be described as attempting to game the game, using knowledge that the player has but the character would not necessarily have within the context of the game (Huvila, 2013). To manage the problem of meta-gaming it is important for players to be able to separate their real-world identity from that of the character they are playing. There is always going to some element of meta-gaming when playing Dungeons & Dragons as it is impossible to completely separate the identity of the player and player character. This meta-knowledge can lead to a player making a suboptimal choice for their character, knowing it is not the best choice simply because that is what they imagine their character would do. That kind of choice would be classified as good role-playing and applauded by the other players at the virtual table. Making choices as both a player and a character can be described as actor stance, making decisions based solely upon the characters knowledge, and author stance, making a decision based upon the knowledge of the player (Edwards, 2001). Although it is important for players to be able to differentiate between their character and themselves, there is an inherent link between the two. As mentioned earlier when a player makes a suboptimal choice knowing that it is what the character would do it can be difficult for the player to make the choice as they are intrinsically linked to their character and the potential for the choice to put the character in physical danger can be an emotional choice. This sort of relationship can be linked to the fact that because the player has created this character they are “imaginatively connected to the character” (Whitlock, 2012). As discussed above meta-gaming is a problem involving identities that can be applied specifically to Dungeons and Dragons as well as other online role-playing games while not necessarily affecting other online communities even within the gaming community.

 

Big virtual table

 

Due to the social nature of games such as Dungeons and Dragons, communities have long been formed around it. The shift to online has increased the number of players drastically (Hall, 2015). Popular online Dungeons and Dragons series ‘Critical Role’, a game hosted and played by actors and voice actors has contributed to the rise in popularity so much that it crossed into the offline space by having a billboard in Los Angeles. Dungeons and Dragons is a game that has in the past and continues to transition between the online and offline space. There currently exists no one central location for people who wish to play Dungeons and Dragons but there are multiple options depending upon the style of play people wish for with the most popular being Fantasy Grounds and Roll20 (Hall, 2017). Online role-playing games could be said to create multiple smaller communities simply due to the format. A group of players is its own small community, that group would also be a part of the greater community of the game that they choose to play which is itself a part of the even larger community that is online role-playing games. Individuals may exist within each of these communities to the extent that they wish however there must be input in the initial community in order for the game to function. Due to the multiple layers of communities it becomes a necessity for players to portray multiple identities (Koivisto, 2003). Players who wish to participate in the greater community will be unable to use the identities they have created at the table due to the lack of knowledge the community has regarding individual game stories.

 

Conclusion

 

This paper aimed to explore the concept of identity, primarily its creation and performance, within the context of online role-playing games. A history of Dungeons and Dragons was given as well as the impact shifting to an online platform has had on both how the game is played and its player base. The importance of identity and the differing ways in which it can be performed was also discussed. Concepts of identity-as-performance and frontstage/backstage play were also introduced and explored. The problem of meta-gaming and how it affects identity driven systems such as role-playing games was explained and discussed. Lastly the community and social factors were explored with regards to the online space as opposed to the traditional format of offline play. While there have been discussions online regarding the importance of a ‘true’ identity and the value of anonymity, it could be said that certain platforms such as online role-playing games should be viewed outside of this argument as one of the core aspects of the game is to create a fictional identity (Van der Nagel & Frith, 2015). Through exploration and discussion of the various topics introduced this paper argued that identity creation is a core aspect of online role-playing games which enables the performance of a separate fictional identity in a socially accepted format.

 

References

 

Edwards, R. (2001). GNS and Other Matters of Role-Playing Theory. Retrieved from                                http://www.indie-rpgs.com/articles/1/

 

Hall, C. (2015). Dungeons & Dragons is booming online, but not in the way that you think.            Retrieved from https://www.polygon.com/2015/8/20/9172559/dungeons-dragons-dnd      -4th-edition-one-year-later-twitch-youtube

 

Hall, C. (2017). More people are playing D&D online than ever before. Retrieved  from                             https://www.polygon.com/2017/7/20/16005982/dungeons-and-dragons-online-roll20-data

 

Huvila, I. (2013). Meta-Games in Information Work. Information Research: An International                       Electronic Journal, 18 (3). Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1044641.pdf

 

Koivisto, E. (2003). Supporting Communities in Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing                        Games by Game Design. Retrieved from                                                                                        http://www.digra.org/wp-content/uploads/digital-library/05150.48442.pdf

 

Kollock, P & Smith, M. (1996). Identity and Deception in the Virtual Community. Retrieved            from http://smg.media.mit.edu/people/Judith/Identity/IdentityDeception.html

 

Pearson, E. (2009). All the World Wide Web’s a stage: The performance of identity in online                     social networks. First Monday, 14 (3). Retrieved from                                                   http://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/viewArticle/2162/2127

 

RPG Stack Exchange. (2018). Best way to kill a problematic fellow players character. Retrieved                from https://rpg.stackexchange.com/questions/68688/best-way-to-kill-a-problematic-                fellow-player-character

 

Schiesel, S. (2008). Gary Gygax, Game Pioneer, Dies at 69. Retrieved from                                            https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/05/arts/05gygax.html

 

Van der Nagel, E & Frith, J. (2015). Anonymity, pseudonymity, and the agency of online                          identity: Examining the social practices of r/Gonewild. First Monday, 20 (3).                      Retrieved from http://www.ojphi.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/5615/4346

 

Whitlock, K. (2012). Traumatic Origins: Memory, Crisis, and Identity in Digital RPG’s. In                            Whitlock, K & Voorhees, A., G (Eds) Dungeons, Dragons and Digital Denizens: The                  Digital Role-Playing Game (1st ed., pp. 135-152). New York, NY: Continuum                              International Publishing Group.

 

WoTC. (2018). History: Forty Years of Adventure. Retrieved from                        http://dnd.wizards.com/dungeons-and-dragons/what-dd/history/history-forty                 -years-adventure

 

The reason behind why people play games and form communities in the online game MapleStory.

The Mass Multiplayer Online Game MapleStory Uses Rewards to Motivate Players to Collaborate and Form Communities. 

Abstract
The reason behind why people play games and form communities in the online game MapleStory. Positive rewards are used by the game designers to motivate desirable behaviour and negative stimulus are used to reduces undesirable behaviours. MapleStory uses positive reward systems to incentives collaboration and the formation of communities.

Keywords
Behaviour, online gaming, MapleStory, communities, collaboration, reward systems, motivation, rules, game designs, play, development, MMOG

The purpose of this essay is to explore why people play games and how the Mass Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG’s) MapleStory motivates desirable behaviours, such as collaboration and forming communities. In this paper, I argue that rewards are used motivate desirable behaviours  The following essay will begin by introducing why people engage in play. Then explore the essential motivational drivers behind collaboration and communities in MapleStory.

The reason behind why people engage play is due to the significance of free play for the human brain development according to Dr Panksepp and Dr David Van Nuys, who discovered the play circuit in mammals by examining neurobiological behaviours in rats, which strongly suggests the areas intralaminar nuclei and thalamus make up part of the play circuit. Their research begins by explaining how the human brain contains seven primary emotional processing systems, shared by mammals, which helps anticipate and respond to situations. [r/o] These shared areas are responsible for driving play, especially in children. Dr Panksepp and Dr David Van Nuys describe the importance of free play, as it is essential for the development of neural connections which have a critical role in regulating emotions planning and solving problems and helps to navigate complex social interactions. Panksepp findings suggest out of 1200 genes one-third were significantly changed by a half-hour of play (Panksepp, 1998). The significance of this is it proves play is not a social construction and the importance of play for the human development is an essential requirement. Without understanding the importance and its necessity of play to the human development, it is difficult to understand why so many people engage in games.

What constitutes a game is that it is governed by a set of rules. The Oxford dictionary defines games as “A form of competitive activity or sport played according to rules” (Oxford, n.d.). Thus the primary dividing point between play and games are rules. Once rules are applied to play, a game appears. For instance, a ball with actively engaging participants becomes a match of tennis, basketball etc. Hands can form the game of rock, paper and scissors.

Jesper Juul’s (2010) research paper “The game, the player, the world: Looking for a heart of gameness” explains how games provide a new context for action and meaning, and without a set of rules, participants could not win at chess or make checkmate, however within the rules, there are various options to play (Juul, 2010). In Roger Cailloise’s (2001,1961) paper “Man, Play and Games” noted that the process of play has a beginning middle and end. He suggests when one decides to play a game, it means they are prepared to play within the rules and be governed by them. He used the example of a boxing match to illustrate how it is a part of the restrictiveness which makes the game playable and the goal is not only winning but to enjoy the obstacles set up by the rules (Caillois, 2001,1961). Rules are the essential aspect which makes up a game. The rules provide a context which restricts all player similarly and rewards the players who play well within the rules. Due to the similarity each player experience throughout the game, rules provide a sense of common goal and interest this common interest fosters a sense of community. The Oxford dictionary defines Community as “The condition of sharing or having certain attitudes and interests in common”(Oxford, nd). 

Furthermore, Games and play both require voluntary participation, but games also require active acceptance of the rules. Liebe (2016) uses an illustration of a magical circle to explain games and suggests the space within the magic circle is where the game occurs and the formation of a magic circle is dependent on the players’ participation (Liebe, 2016). The ungoverned space outside the circle may be everything else outside of the game but within the game by engaging the player is voluntary making an agreement to play by the rules. For example, playing the mass multiplayer online game Maple Story automatically requires the player to actively accept the rules by the action of participating. This Therefore suggests the game cannot force the individual to participate in the game or play by its rules, but once the individual has engaged in playing, the rules will govern the player’s actions. 

By examining Maple Story’s rules the game indicates its complexity and sophistication. In simple games such as noughts and crosses the rules can be easily described however as Maple Story is an established MMOG, players are submerged in a highly regulated space where most users would not know or need to know all the rules. The players only need to follow the game and it will show the players the rules once it is necessary. It is difficult for players to do otherwise as the game does not allow for the player to do so (action rage is limited to the design of the game). Thus the game can be seen as a guide and the player as tourists learning what they can and cannot do as they progress through the game(Caillois, 2001,1961). The gamer only knows how to play within the rules because within rules are in a sense the only action rage. Whatever is possible within a game has already been predetermined before the game has begun. This restrictive and confined space leads the player where the game wants the player to progress to, allowing the game designer to pre-determine results, set up obstacles and manipulate/motivate behaviour. Behaviour such as building communities and collaboration is desirable to any MMOG as it is thought to keep players gaming for social factors, such as online friends and help the game build relationship ties between its players and strengthen the player’s relationship with the game (Brox, 2011).  

The method Maple Story uses to promote these desirable behaviours is through a reward system. The gammers are rewarded when performing tasks the game deems desirable. In Maple Story these reward systems are can be seen when gamers are rewarded more when gaming together than alone.  MapleStory is also designed to be played by collaborating this is shown in group quests, which are quests that rewards significantly more than personal quests (rewards in the game are in the form of experience, equipment, weapons, and other things with monetary value) Group quest can only be accessed after a group is forms. 

Characters in maple story have different abilities depending on their job occupation, the strength of these abilities depend on the level of the character. This is important because when in the midst of solving a complex problem; such as solving a maze and hunting monsters, different skills are required. It becomes compulsory to find other players with those skills to form a team with to accomplish group quests. Collaboration within MapleStory’ becomes compulsory at certain points of the game because the game is designed so no character has all of the skills required to solve certain problems. By having these communal restrictions, motivations and rewards for working collaboratively and forming communities, the players are more likely to act in a manner which allows them to achieve the most from the game. By gaming in a manner to maximise rewards and minimise the risks the player will move forward within the game faster. The game is carefully calibrated to keep players on the edge of exploration and requires gamers to use problem-solving skills. MapleStory puts enthuses on learning to cooperate with other gamers this is thought to be good for creating communal ties which bond the player to each other and even deeper into the game. The obstacles set up within the game are complex to solve and require multiplayer collaboration to solve.  Its the constant stimulus from different reward systems that encourage certain characteristics of player behaviour such as forming guilds. 

A clear indication of the game developers desire to see communities within the game flourish is the infrastructure of the guild systems. Guild’s are a design within MapleStory which allows for hundreds of people to belong to one single guild. Guild system within MapleStory is seen as small communities within the big maple community.. They are thought to provide a sense of belonging and status within the group. Facilitating communication tools are designed to enhance the efficiency and speed of communication, functions such as one to one chat, one to many are accessible within the guild. This allows gamers to easily post notifications and ask for help. Some of the benefits of belonging/joining a guild is newbies (new players) can receive consultation from more experienced players. They often receive equipment and training from experienced players. Maple Story is designed to allow experienced players to train inexperienced players and give them experience (experience is the essential requirement to level up within the game and can be collected when monsters are defeated). This design which allows the experienced player to train inexperienced player is a clear indication of the game developers desire to see gamers collaborating. 

By using Abraham Maslow’s “A Theory of Human Motivation” (1943) explains some of the motivations for the individual’s active participation in collaboration. The following is a brief outline of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. The first level and most basic is the physiological need for food, water and clothing. This is shown in MapleStory when newbies join communities such as guilds to receive benefits such as equipment, weapons and basic training. Maslow’s Second level safety needs such as a housing, savings. This is shown in the game as the game provides better monetary rewards for players when they accomplish group quests in comparison to individual quests. The third level affection needs such as family and friends are shown in MapleStory though online friendship/relationships, these are players who meet through the game and form a meaningful relationship. The fourth level self-esteem needs such as recognition and social status are shown through MapleStory when players commit a lot of time to achieve status in positions such as a Guild leader, a high-level player or use limited edition clothing/armour to express their status. The Fifth level self-actualisation needs such as goals and exploring interests. This level of need is shown in the game when players move from casual gaming to a competitive gaming state. Maslow theory suggests human behaviours is usually motivated by one or more of the following five levels of needs, by using Maslow’s Hierarchy of need with examples from Maples story, it shows how MapleStory motivates certain behaviours (Maslow, 1943).

Melis and Tomasello (2013) research paper “Chimpanzees’ (Pan troglodytes) strategic helping in a collaborative task” demonstrates how the correct motivation does not only drive humans to collaborate but also mammals. The author’s findings suggest animal cooperation is more motivational than cognitive. The research was conducted by giving Chimpanzee roles and tools which were not interchangeable by measuring the willingness to transfer a tool to see levels of collaboration to reach reward (food). Their findings demonstrated most subjects worked collaboratively and not only coordinated different roles but also understood which actions their partner needs to perform (Melis & Tomasello, 2013). In other words, Reward systems and motivations can incentivise great levels of participation. MapleStory was able to use the method of rewarding desirable behaviour with positivity stimulus and undesired behaviour with negative stimulus to craft an active collaborative environment which benefits the participants. Some of the negative stimulus used within MapleStory is when gamers attempt to tackle certain monsters without collaborating with other they die within the game. Death within the game has signification connotations, it reduces the players hard earned experience. This is a sign of the heavy hand the Maple Story game designer have regarding collaboration. This also shows how much they desire collaboration within the game. The traits Maple Story deems most desirable are thought to be collaboration, participation, communal efforts and daily active play. 

In conclusion, the free Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game MapleStory has created an alternative world with meaning, social connections, community, monetary value and social status.
Why people play is due to the biological necessity of play, games provide a governed space to play within. When individuals actively engage by playing the online game MapleStory they are surrendering to its rules and participating within the parameters of the game’s design. The design of MapleStory encourages collaboration and the formation of communities. This is shown by group quests and guild’s. MapleStory uses reward systems such as experience, monetary items, obstacles and constraints to guide players to behave accordingly. The game makes it difficult to achieve the ultimate goal (reaching a high level) without the use of collaboration and the formation of communities. Maslow’s (1943) Theory of Human Motivation explains some of the motivation for certain behaviours within MapleStory. The use of positive stimulus to reward and negative stimulus to discourage what MapleStory deems desirable or undesirable behaviour, motivates players to willingly embrace the desirable behaviour. MapleStory pays significant attention to the facilitating tools necessary for collaboration which is communication. Various forms of communication tools are accessible to its gamers. This allows Maple Story’s gamers to easily communicate with each other to form communities and find other gamers to collaborate with. MapleStory is designed to have various options of play, but its also designed when players choose to collaborate and form communities it provides them with best results and fastest route to the ultimate goal of the game which is reaching the highest level.

                        References 

Collaboration. (n.d.). Retrieved April 01, 2018, from http://www.dictionary.com/browse/ collaboration?s=t

Caillois, R. (2001/1961). Man, Play and Games, (translated by Meyer Barash). Urbana: University 

of Illinois Press 

Game | Definition of play in English by Oxford Dictionaries. (n.d.). Retrieved March 30, 2018, from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/game

Juul, J. (2010). The Game, the Player, the World: Looking for a Heart of Gameness*. ^^The Game, 

the Player, the World: Looking for a Heart of Gameness*, 248-270. Retrieved March 25, 2018, from http://www.revistas.uneb.br/index.php/plurais/article/viewFile/880/624

Khambatti, M. S., Ryu, K. D., & Dasgupta, P. (2002). Efficient discovery of implicitly formed peer-to-peer communities. International Journal of Parallel and Distributed Systems and Networks, 5(4), 155-164.

Liebe, M. (2016). There is no magic circle: On the difference between computer games and tradi tional games. The Philosophy of Computer Games Conference Proceedings, 1-4. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://books.google.com.au/books?id=168vCw AAQBAJ&pg=PA2&lpg=PA2&dq=Tara Brabazon play up play around&source=bl&ots=EQ7- x8xrN7&sig=7Do5SlDHuwaPy95jXN9p b4N2IO8&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjQpbKO38zKAhVP02MKHXP2CZc Q6AEIKzAF#v=onepage&q&f=false.

Maslow, A. (1943). A Theory of Human Motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), pp.370-396.

McIntyre, J., Palmer, D., & Franks, J. (2009). A Framework for Thinking about Collaboration within the Intelligence Community. Person Associates. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from http: www.pherson.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/09.-A-Framework-for-   Thinking-about-Collaboration-within-the-Intelligence-Community_FINAL.pdf

Melis, A. P., & Tomasello, M. (2013). Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) strategic helping in a collaborative task. Biology Letters, 9(2), 20130009-20130009. doi:10.1098/rsbl. 2013.0009

Nuys, D. V. (2013). The Emotional Foundation of Mind- Dr Jaak Panksepp. The Neuropsychotherapist, 90-104. doi:10.12744/tnpt(2)090-104

Panksepp, J., Knutson, B., & Pruitt, D. L. (1998). Toward a Neuroscience of Emotion. What Develops in Emotional Development?, 53-84. doi:10.1007/978-1-4899-1939-7_3

Play | Definition of play in English by Oxford Dictionaries. (n.d.). Retrieved March 30, 2018, from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/play

Reeves, B. & Read, J.L. (2009). Total engagement: Using games and virtual worlds to change the way people work and businesses compete. Harvard Business Press: Boston.

Salen, K., & Zimmerman, E. (2004). Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. Cambridge,
MA: MIT Press.

Williams, D. (2013). A Brief Social History of Game Play. A Brief Social History of Game Play. Re trieved March 20, 2018, from https://is.muni.cz/el/1421/podzim2013/IM082/um/ WilliamsSocHist.pdf .

The Youth of Today and Online Gaming

The Youth of Today and Online Gaming

Conference Paper.doc

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the power online gaming holds in cross-platform online gaming communities, and argues that online educational games are positively and constructively aiding the development of the youth of today. This paper explores the theory of online gaming communities and their relationship to online educational gaming and the youth playing them. This paper shall argue how the youth of today take advantage of online gaming as a positive and constructive development tool and not only for entertainment purposes. Research has proven that games online assists youngsters to acquire experience and acquire knowledge amongst the online gaming community.

 

 

The Youth of Today and Online Gaming

 

The simplest manner of explaining the word “game” is a set of guidelines that players need to respect when participating in a game (Matt,2010). The guidelines also referred to as rules, differ from one game to another. Various types of games exist, such as board games, games played outdoors and most recent category of games, video games also known as console games which are either played on personal computers or other electronic console devices such as the Nintendo Wii or famously known PlayStation by Sony. This conference paper will argue that gamming online has a lot to give for the positive and constructive development of the youth of today. Parents and guardians are at long last beginning to realise about the positive effect that online gaming has on the life of their posterity.  Research proves that youngsters benefit from online gaming which in turn intensifies their knowledge and involvement amongst the gaming community online.  While many people believe that games online are a waste of time and that many youngsters are most probably drawn to play games online rather than studying, this perception is changing with people now seeing online gaming in a different light. Studying our youth and their involvement with an overall perspective, this conference paper will argue that educational games online, escapism and online games as a worldwide platform are assisting today’s youth to obtaining knowledge and skills in their daily lives.

 

Online educational game “Scrabble”

Educational Games Online

Educational games online are developed to enable a simpler learning process of acquiring knowledge. There is no obligation for the online educational games to be following a certain curriculum of a subject or theme, however it is imperative that the student or youngster is learning something substantial to be considered an online educational game. Journals and case studies shall be utilised to corroborate that educational games online are indeed aiding numerous individuals to obtain experience and for learning purposes. To begin with, an article written by Meilan Zhang supports my argument, her article is focused on “Determining the imbalanced importance in well-liked educational gaming online and its significance” (Zhang,2014). From Zhang’s point of view, notwithstanding the rising academia interest in games that are educational, studies on online gaming is atypical. With regards to online gaming that is educational, very little evidence has been lifted so far at what level extent it is popular with our younger generation (Eseryel, Ge, Ifenthaler & Law, 2011). The author of the article inquiries what sort of user is captivated by online educational gaming and if functioning wise it can be considered as a scholastic perspective in the world of academia. The research done by Meilan Zhang encompassed studies done on the internet, social and demographic factors and a nation-wide educational evaluation to analyse the connection between educational online game sites, social and demographic variables and scholarly results (Zhang,2014). The results of this analysis demonstrated that scholars which were less performing in their studies were keener on educational online gaming, which consequently helped these scholars in increasing their learning capabilities (Wideman et al., 2007). The feature which was found most valuable was one where students using online educational games through a platform could share and converse knowledge to each other, allowing constructive educational information to be shared in a fast and easy manner.

 

Secondly, a scholarly journal composed by Shawn Conrad, Jody Clarke-Midura and Eric Klopfer will be backing my argument. The Journal is basically composed about how multiplayers taking part in online gaming can exploit it as an informative means of learning while confronting new difficulties they might be facing in their studies. This journal plots a plan for the improvement of scholarly multiplayer online gaming considering the activity hypothesis, as a contrasting option to the present patterns in multiplayer gaming online and a method for enhancing joint efforts such as teamwork among scholars (Conrad, Clarke-Midura and Klopfer, 2014). With a specific end goal to analyse whether online educational games truly have a thought of different components with regards to educational play, they have broken up their research in four phases. To begin the first phase was to see the recurrence of playing educational online games every day. Secondly was to relate the empathy with the user and the online games they play. The third phase was to recognize which of the educational online games are the most played and the last stage was discovering psychosocial elements that may impact studying. In the wake of breaking down the diverse phases, they reached to the conclusion that the learning framework using online educational gaming is a way to deal with exceptionally complicated educational concerns, and has a remarkably constructive result towards the education system that our youth take part in today (Conrad, Clarke-Midura & Klopfer, 2014). Being able to access multiplayer educational games online, not only aids a scholar to learning more in depth but also have the opportunity to share knowledge with an online community of scholars.

 

The last scholarly article that will back my argument is by Aydogan Ozcan a professor at the University of California, who based the research for his article on using educational games online alongside online training for the aid in the diagnosis of malaria. “Visual microscopy for malaria identification is hardly an extensive procedure that needs expert medical staff to physically image plasma smear flanks in alternative. Controlled environments, such as an analytical examination is often restricted by the absence of medical professionals and incompetent guidance for the personnel” (Ozcan, 2014). The California Medical College chose to apply a online educational bio game by offering a biological program analysis utilising a collective database.  Secondly included, was the application of a system set up to train the medical staff to detect malaria using the online educational bio game. The medical college of California had difficulty had a concern when it came to training their medical practitioners tangibly.  Therefore, the application of a hands-free, non-physical manner using prep work to differentiate colonic illness is being completed though an online platform and all medical staff working on malaria cases have the capability to do diagnostic work on patients, and communicate with each other live to obtain more accurate results (Ozcan, 2014). Using all three journals we can conclude that research has proven the youth of today is without a doubt obtaining knowledge and experience in our community by utilising online educational games.

 

 

Escapism

 

This section shall argue that escapism through online gaming is aiding the constructive development of today’s youth. To begin with, what is escapism? The routine of eluding a dull or disagreeable life by taking part in activities such as reading or other that makes us think we are in far away place is known as Escapism (Leonard, Burke, Donnelly & Notaro, 2003). Numerous online gaming users these days participate in an online gaming stage just to have the sense of being cut from reality. A feeling which gives online gamers a sentiment that they can be expressively unrestricted. The first argument backed up by scholarly texts, will set points forward proving that the use of escapism can be used to liberate one’s thoughts instead of being categorised or viewed as being antisocial behaviour (Kardefelt-Winther, 2014).

 

A scholarly article titled “Digital Technology, Age, and Gaming” explains through a study done, how people whom have emotional or psychosomatic problem use online gaming at a great extent to handle their issues. Information for the study was gathered from questionnaires that was given to gamers that play League of Legends and it was found that a large number of gamers played the game as a form of escapism, to evade their high levels of anxiety and low self-confidence (Holmes, 2005). Be that as it may, the downside of escapism factors is that while it may optimistically help a person with high levels of anxiety and low self-confidence, the effect is only temporary as after playing a game the person is back to reality having to face the life problems that they were stressing about before escaping into the online gaming world (Holmes, 2005).

 

League of Legends, an online community popular game with today’s youth that indulge in escapism.

 

While there are many different forms of escapism, we shall investigate the impacts of how idealistic online gaming as a form of escapism is. People indulging in such form of game play escapism known as online gamer escapists are people who use online gaming to dodge their real life issues (Kaczmarek & Drążkowski, 2014). A study by university students examined the issues existing with online gaming as a form of escapism. Amid the principle issue there are authenticity convictions, duration of gaming, offline assistance and online collective assistance for offline issues. The enquiry demonstrates that a person with inspiration to indulge in escapism, tend to experience a more substantiated pleasure legitimacy with games and played for longer periods, which thus has a decent outcome in supporting benefits of online gaming however though diminishes the help needed for real life issues (Kaczmarek & Drążkowski, 2014).

 

 

Conclusion

 

Numerous individuals have their own distinctive perspective gaming over the internet. However, scholastic articles support the fact that online gaming is strongly aiding online gamers in completing mentally challenging tasks in their everyday life, whether it is for their studies or in their career. The online gaming community is consistently changing, and there are no firm and steady guidelines one can take after to guarantee that individuals play. Educational games online are helping scholars in their studies and escapism is encouraging the lonelier individuals to increase self-confidence while playing online games with online communities. Analysing the experiences of others with online gaming through scholarly journals, teaches us how to use online gaming at our advantage, weather it is for educational or for well-being purposes. While online gaming is relatively new, the future of online gaming helping individuals is without a doubt a bright one.

 

 

 

 

 

References:

 

Conrad, S., Clarke-Midura, J., & Klopfer, E. (2014). A Framework for Structuring Learning Assessment in a Massively Multiplayer Online Educational Game. International Journal Of Game-Based Learning, 4(1), 37-59. http://dx.doi.org/10.4018/ijgbl.2014010103

 

Eseryel, D., Ge, X., Ifenthaler, D., & Law, V. (2011). Dynamic Modeling as a Cognitive Regulation Scaffold for Developing Complex Problem-Solving Skills in an Educational Massively Multiplayer Online Game Environment. Journal Of Educational Computing Research, 45(3), 265-286. doi: 10.2190/ec.45.3.a

 

 

Holmes, N. (2005). Digital Technology, Age, and Gaming. Computer, 38(11), 108-107. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/mc.2005.376

 

 

Leonard, S., Burke, D., Donnelly, C., & Notaro, A. (2003). Escapism. Books Ireland, (259), 155. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/20624020

 

Ozcan, A. (2014). Educational Games for Malaria Diagnosis. Science Translational Medicine, 6(233), 233ed9-233ed9. http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/scitranslmed.3009172

 

Kaczmarek, L., & Drążkowski, D. (2014). MMORPG Escapism Predicts Decreased Well-Being: Examination of Gaming Time, Game Realism Beliefs, and Online Social Support for Offline Problems. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, And Social Networking, 17(5), 298-302. http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2013.0595

 

Kardefelt-Winther, D. (2014). The moderating role of psychosocial well-being on the relationship between escapism and excessive online gaming. Computers In Human Behavior, 38, 68-74. doi: 10.1016/j.chb.2014.05.020

 

 

Wideman, H., Owston, R., Brown, C., Kushniruk, A., Ho, F., & Pitts, K. (2007). Unpacking the potential of educational gaming: A new tool for gaming research. Simulation & Gaming, 38(1), 10-30. doi: 10.1177/1046878106297650

 

Zhang, M. (2014). Discovering the unequal interest in popular online educational games and its implications: A case study. British Journal Of Educational Technology, 47(2), 358-371. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12236

 

 

 

Behavioral impact of youth on social media.

Abstract

In recent years, social media have become a major part of our lives and it has impacted our ways of socializing both in the real world as well as the online communities that are present. With advancement in Web 2.0 and the growing popularity of social networking sites amongst teens, users are conformed in creating online identities that may resemble or largely differ from reality. How the youth participate and represent themselves on social media platforms reflect valuable information on their identities and peer-to peer sociality (Danah, 2007). Using the works of Goffman’s theories of social performance, this study looks to analyze the behavioral impacts on the youth on the virtual creation of identity through social networking sites. This research fits within the streams of Identity in communities and networks. This essay will point out certain behavioral traits of virtual identity creations supported by the works of Dannah and Pearson.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Behavioral impact of youth on social media.

Over the years, social media have gained popularity amongst users of all age groups. Nowadays, one can find almost any type of information online within a matter of minutes. As a result, sites are becoming more user friendly and generating more traffic. Social networking sites are still growing in popularity. With it, also comes the amount of time the user spends on those sites. Now, the availability of accessing these sites have become much easier. Users can access almost any social media sites via their mobile phones rather than their personal computers (Pew Research Internet Project 2013).  Social media has allowed for information to be carried out far and wide. Communication is by far the most common social media tool. On sites such as Facebook or Twitter, users can share comments, upload photos or videos or even establish relationships with other users. These platforms can also be a way to collaborate with other users. For example, Wikipedia is edited and constantly updated and reviewed by users. Blogs are platforms where users can again collaborate and share opinions or review movies, restaurants, products and so on. Social media also gives its users the ability to upload videos and encourage participatory culture amongst audiences especially on YouTube.  In a way social media touches upon vast areas. It is developing at a fast rate and has got a large portion of the society hooked up on it. With the concept of users staying connected with their online community, a phenomenon has risen wherein users can create their ideal identity online.  Today’s teens spend a lot of time online connecting with friends and sharing photos or expressing their views over matters that they are concerned about. To narrow down this vast spectrum, I have decided to carry out the research on the behavioral impacts of the youth on the virtual creation of identity through social networking sites.

 

The teen demographic has been chosen as an area to research since this group is currently growing alongside social media and they spend an enormous amount of time on those sites. As a result, certain social networking sites such as Instagram and YouTube will be considered to better illustrate the arguments made. Most teens engage with a form of social media without realizing it. They tend to get into a habit of maintaining an online social presence rather than a physical one. The teen demographic can be observed as a group that is moving more towards being concerned of online friends rather than face-to-face interaction. It can be argued that there are some positive effects of spending time on social media, however, there are equally as many dangers with social networking sites. Teenagers, find it constantly hard societal pressure on them. They are constantly told to behave a certain way or function a certain way which is regarded acceptable for the society. However, online, they have the freedom to create an identity for themselves and likewise, connect with other people with similar tastes. Behavioral traits that are created online can be beneficial for some people, but the dangers outweigh the benefits. Teenagers find it necessary to be the best versions of themselves when sharing part of their lives online. Ironically, social media platforms in a way have put more pressure and restrictions on teenagers to fit the ‘’virtual community’’.

 

As stated above, this essay will be supported by using examples of Instagram and YouTube. While the option of researching on Facebook was also available, it was decided to stick to these two mentioned sites as these are networking sites which have allowed teenagers to post pictures or videos on a professional level, thus having the pressure that everything that is posted must be perfect. Instagram is a free photo and video sharing service (Instagram, 2018), that allows users to post, edit photos and videos, write captions, like and comment as well as share posts. This site allows users to upload their best photos and videos which are esthetically pleasing to the Instagram community or their audiences. Instagram can be accessed via personal computers or mobile phones. This means that an Instagram user is always connected with the application. Users as young as thirteen years old use the site (Instagram, 2018), which is the stated age limit for users on this application. However, there are users who are younger than the age limit and have accounts on Instagram. As of 2017, there are 800 million active users worldwide (Statista, 2018).

 

A feature of Instagram is that it functions as a window for the user’s daily activities. Users post photos or video clips of what they are wearing, eating, going to and so on. Moreover, Instagram has a feature that allows users to post stories which disappear after twenty-four hours. These stories can be perceived as the different activities that this user has done throughout the course of the day.  Users can comment and like photos, which for most users like posting on Instagram. Having an online environment where one can comment on photos, allows its users to develop certain behavioral traits. Users follow other ‘’Instagrammers’’ and try to level up their photos or videos to them.

 

YouTube is a web 2.0 platform that allow users to upload videos which can then be streamed by viewers. The audience have the option to like, dislike or comment on videos. The idea of being able to share opinions and comments open a new virtual community where the viewers can communicate with other people from around the world who share the same interests, be it in music, politics and so on. With the concept of creating channels, certain people have made a career out of YouTube. Commonly known as Youtubers, these people create content and post them on the social networking site. They in return generate money by advertisements. When someone clicks on an advert or watches 30 seconds of it, the advertiser pays the Youtuber. Famous YouTube channels of the moment include PieDiePie, Smosh, Niga Higa, Jenna Marbles, Superwoman and so on. These content creators have between 15 to 55 million subscribers (McAlone, 2017).

 

YouTube has over one billion users worldwide (YouTube, 2018). It is also one of the most diverse communication and social platform and is available in 88 countries and 76 languages. On average, teens and young adults spend 34% of their video watching time on YouTube compared to other formats such as TV, Netflix and so on (McAlone, 2017). This research has involved exploring this social networking site as to understand what kind of behavioral identities can be identified to the process of maintaining a brand on YouTube.

 

 

Considering the context of Instagram, some people may say that social media platforms are elaborate forms of popularity contests. Researches have showed that adults and teens use them differently. The youth use Instagram merely as a tool to self-express and solely focus on photos that will generate attention. Their posts on Instagram mainly reflect their emotions or use hashtags to attract more followers. Teenagers want large audiences and more of a way to emphasize on the popularity status amongst their group. Internet celebrities have risen from amassing large followers and posting consistently to maintain their brand. As a result, other teens are also pressured to follow the same. We live in the era of the ‘’perfect selfie’’. Teens spend a generous amount of time in taking the perfect photos at the perfect places and find captions that will surely boost their brand. In doing so, most teenagers opt to alter or create new identities that will allow them to gain more likes and followers.

 

This identifies that teenagers can decide how they want to be represented to the online community. This can be in the form of their avatars which is usually the new identity they have created on their chosen online platform (Pearson, 2009). Pearson (2009), argues that these behavioral changes exist in the imagination of users. This means that, the user merely uses social networking sites as tools to project and constantly improvise or revise their online presence. It is also observed that by doing this, users meticulously plan and stage what their identities should look like when they’re presented to the virtual community.

 

Teenagers can alter or create new identities through their choices of usernames, photos and online behavior while communicating with other users online. Instagram has become an online community where only the best photographers and only accounts which have a massive following can thrive. Teens find it needful to step up their photography skills just to be able to get likes and followers. It has also become a dangerous addiction where teens are willing to spend any amount of time just to get the right photo which may ultimately bring in some new followers. They are obsessive over the idea of portraying how they want to be perceived online and in return they are drifting away from the real society. The time teens spend on Instagram is roughly 25 minutes per day. This translates that teens spend an average of 8 months using Instagram in their lifetime (Asano, 2017).

 

With YouTube, behavioral traits are quite varied. The pressure of maintaining an online brand and personality is even greater than that of Instagram.  Youtubers have a reputation at stake. They are just like celebrities but the only difference is that they get to choose how they want to be perceived. Youtubers spend countless hours in creating videos and understanding their audiences’ tastes. Therefore, it is crucial for a Youtuber to maintain good quality videos on their channels. Youtubers at the beginning would film their videos with a simple video recorder. Today, youtubers have professional teams, use industry standard equipment and shoot at well know studios and production houses. YouTube videos have become extremely professional even if a lot of viewers do not get to witness what goes on behind the scenes of shooting a YouTube video. YouTube is the largest video platform and can shape society.

 

YouTube gave rise to the term ’Vlogging’. It is the process where users video blog their experiences and post it on YouTube rather than writing and posting it on a blog. Studies have showed that vloggers and their viewers can have a sense of connection between the two parties (Wesch, 2008). Certain YouTubers have had to completely change identities or renew themselves to able to appeal to an audience or to generate views. Moreover, makeup tutorials and beauty channels have created a new environment where viewers are expected to follow the same. Teenagers fit the right targeted audience to follow these trends of what is popular now. Teenagers behavioral traits can be attributed to certain negative events that can shape long lasting effects. In 2014, a United Arab Emirates court convicted 8 people over a documentary video. The video was aimed at teenagers living in the UAE and insinuated a gangster culture that is supposedly rising amongst teens. The matter of concert was that the video was perceived as defaming the teenage demographic and fear of disturbing the state security (BBC, 2013).

 

Teenagers have made social networking sites as a place to grow and develop according to how they want. Social class and race play a very little role in determining which sector of the demographic use these sites (Dannah, 2007). Poor teens are also more likely to join the virtual community of Instagram and Youtube as their wealthier counterparts. However, behavioral traits in identity change highly depends on what the teens do online. Those who use social networking sites in schools, use them as a more asynchronous method to connect. Those who use them continuously at home, spend more time modifying their identities, surfing the web and maintaining their online presence.

 

Self-identity is easily changed amongst teens. Spending time on social media such as Instagram, can lead to uses feeling jealous or insecure. Identity is then evaluated through the number of likes, followers or subscribers that have been received. As a result, teenagers spend a lot of time online to modify or create new identities that will be appealing. It is therefore really important to recognize the power of social media pertaining to how it can alter identities amongst teens and that it should not be allowed to define who we are.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blbliography

Asano, E. (2017, January 4). 1. Retrieved from socialmediatoday.com: https://www.socialmediatoday.com/marketing/how-much-time-do-people-spend-social-media-infographic

 

Baron, C. (2017). The Statistics Portal. Retrieved from Statista: https://www.statista.com/statistics/250176/social-network-usage-of-us-teens-and-young-adults-by-age-group/

 

Boyd, D. (2007). Why Youth (Heart) Social Networking Sites: The Role of Networked Publics in Teenage Social Life. MacArthur Foundation Series on Digital Learning- Youth, Identity And Digital Media Volume. Cambridge, MA. MIT Press.

 

Donath, J. S. (n.d.). Identity and Deception in the Virtual Community. Retrieved from MIT Media Lab: http://smg.media.mit.edu/people/Judith/Identity/IdentityDeception.html

 

Gordon, K. (n.d.). Instagram. Retrieved from Statista: https://www.statista.com/topics/1882/instagram/

 

Gordon, K. (n.d.). Youtube. Retrieved from Statista: https://www.statista.com/topics/2019/youtube/

 

Hynes, N. and Wilson, J. 2016. I do it, but don’t tell anyone! Personal values, personal and      social norms: Can social media play a role in changing pro-environmental behaviours. Technological Forecasting and Social Change. 111: pp. 349-359

 

Pearson, E. (2009). The Performance of Identity in Online Social Networks. All The World Wide Web’s A stage.

 

UAE Court convicts Eight over “Spoof Documentary Video”. (2013, December 23). Retrieved from BBC : http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-25495256

 

Walrave, M., Ponnet, K., Vanderhoven, E., & Haers, J. (2016). Youth 2.0: Social Media and Adolescence. Springer International Publishing.

The Influence of Social Media on Travel Motivations

Final Conference Paper

This paper explores the convergence between the communication of travel motivations and the emergence of new media uses among Generation Y (Gen Y) and suggests a convergence of travel profiles from backpacker to flashpacker, characterised by digital nomadism. It questions, is Generation Y growing up in the emerging digital sphere the reason for the changes to tourist motivations? How have traditional notions of travel motivations changed and is the proliferation of social media responsible for this change? The text draws on Bolton et.al (2013), to define the characteristics of Gen Y and highlights the works of Richards (2015) in analysing the differences between backpackers and digital nomads.