Identity and Online Advocacy

Is social media an effective tool for young adults to expose their authentic self to present themselves?

ABSTRACT

This paper will argue on whether a person can be authentic and anonymous at the same time. Social media is a platform where each individual connected needs to provide all their ethnic self on their profile. In this paper, it will be shown how important it is for a person to get access to the details that is provided on social media. In the same vein, it will demonstrate how one gets confident to provide details and it will therefore benefit their future career and life at the same time. It will also show how presenting the authentic self has allow younger adults to get job opportunities by being at ease with the information that they have shared because of their confidence level. Online dating is another platform which has also allowed an individual to put all the real identity on the web sites which could help them achieve what they want to. Moreover, on social media platforms, for instance, Facebook has all the options where one needs to add their authentic self for example, the gender, age and most importantly their full name. However, on the other side, this paper will discuss how anonymity has  helped in younger adults life by hiding their true self and using social media sites without the exposure of their identity. 

Social media has become increasingly integrated in people’s life as it is much more important for young adults to present their real self to the world. It is a tool which allows people to connect to media sharing sites. Younger adults are exposing their authentic self for the sake of employment for better careers to create a good reputation to themselves. Being able to come up with authenticity is crucial so that younger adults settle their own identity to the online dating application which demands honest details. Facebook is indeed a very interactive platform for younger adults and others to communicate with each other. It is with the authentic self that one will be able to have a honest representation. Furthermore, this paper will thus argue whether you can be authentic and anonymous at the same time. 

Keywords: #authenticself #networkindividual #identity #youngadults 

#AUTHENTIC SELF RIGHTS TO EMPLOYMENT

To start with, online identity refers to the social identity which an internet user begins by on online communities and websites where they have the right to connect to other people on social media platforms. It is a way how young adults can easily be identified. Authentic self relates to who you truly are as an honest representation of yourself and your personality. Also, the anonymous self is when the person’s identity is unknown to any person and no details can be found on social media. In addition, an individual needs to present their true identity in their workplace which is known as professionalism. Much more, it creates a better reputation in the competitive world. It is how one needs to have positive effect in their job where they need to provide their authentic self to others in the any industry. In other words, this can also show how young adults are worthy of their job where they can create their own working identity by themselves. This is why it is paramount to always provide the real identification for any individual on social media platforms because there are departments in a work place who check on the profiles of the person they are recruiting in their company. It is very important to add all the required details to relate to their true self. 

In the same vein, social media platforms has another advantage which gives young adults new ways to present their authentic self in a specific and stronger way. It somehow increases their chances for job opportunities. Another way in which it shapes what they say and do on social media platforms is the aspect of showing a strong way of commitment to their work and to their true self. At times, by presenting their true identity, it boost their confidence level and shows that they are capable of doing work which is appreciated by the owner of the company (Grieve & Watkinson, 2016). People are more connected to network affordance which always plays a role to the self-evaluation and constant reflection of what they can provide for sure. This is why it is crucial to always provide a person’s true self to their social media page so that they create a good name for themselves because of their career. Those younger adults have better prestige as they have good communication skills when it is clearly seen on their social media platforms where they interact with their friends on pictures they post. Concurrently, in the web 2.0, social media has become a modern tool which is used by all young adults to have the knowledge of participating and understanding the concepts related to their world.

#ONLINE DATING IDENTITY

Equally important, another point to note is that in an online dating application it is very important to present all the honest and truthful details that represent the person. If wrong details are given, it can deceive the other party with whom the latter is talking. There are a plethora of younger adults who go online to register themselves on dating applications in order to get a partner to talk with that is why it is predominant to make avail of the real information for instance, their age, a true picture of themselves and their full name. Hence, the self-presentation, in other words, needs to create a great impression online because it might furthermore take a new step as there will be a time when they will finally meet each other face to face (Walther, 1994). It presumably makes it into a traditional communication such that spoken communication sense (Ellison et al., 2017). With the use of online application it allows individuals to typically impress the other partner to commit in their new relationship and therefore to lead to dates accordingly (Rowatt et al., 1998). Correspondingly, it focuses on the behaviors when both partner start to share everything which creates a true and strong bond for each other to commit. Additionally, the main purpose of an online dating application is to have someone of your choice who is caring, understanding and want to have an intimate honest relationship. Both of them stay connected within the online environment to remain close.

According to Lee (2004), the site True.com have indeed conducted background checks on online dating users and has introduced legislation which is necessary to verify whether the information added on the account is authentic or not. It is important to do all these background checks so as not to hurt anyone’s feelings (Ellison et al., 2017). In 2003, 29 millions of Americans were using online dating application (Gershberg, 2004). In addition, there were uniquely 40 millions of visitors to the online dating sites each month in U.S (CBC News, 2004) whereby they were making new friends online. Thus, it is the liberal mode of identity that younger adults decide where they shall connect themselves vividly to provide all their personal information to find another individual of their choice and live in a long term relationship (St. John, 2002). It focuses mainly on the content on managing their online self. This is so because of the Post Marxist perspective, which is a philosophy of how people’s identity have been formed only through interactions that have reformed their identity more specifically. Social media can really create a bond between two people to perform themselves in terms of how to present, create and maintain a favorable image projected to other people. It creates a very important aspect in every individual’s life who are connected to online dating platform because it renews to the focus of authenticity which is always viewed online by providing details such that location and contact details or whether they have mutual friends in common or not. At last, they finally meet offline too to know their dating partner who they are currently talking to online to, to see if they are online authenticity reflects on their real life also.

#FACEBOOK SELF

By the same token, on Facebook, true self and real personality is the most important to them. It is known as the Facebook self which is necessary to acknowledge their true self to allow others to know. It is a way to increase the self-esteem of those younger adults who are more at ease to share their details without any fear on social media platforms (Grieve & Watkinson, 2016). Furthermore, Facebook gives individuals the opportunity to present their self to communicate more fully and to actually post pictures of the activities they did during the day. Therefore it allows them to provide their true self without hesitation to their Facebook friends. The social media platform is an environment which gives evidence on how one truly behaves and has the authenticity in an organized manner. Notably, it gives one the power to be confident about oneself when they present their authentic self on social media platforms which somehow has the tendency to eradicate their stress level, anxiety and depression from what other will think according to their identity. On Facebook, people have the option where one has to add their gender and age accordingly. They manage to make an impression on themselves by interacting with others to their own self. 

#ANONYMITY PRIVACY PROTECTION

On the flipside of the coin, young adults have the right to keep their private information anonymous where the online privacy protection is paramount for each individual who have access to Facebook particularly because of how people interact with the internet. The worldwide internet growth has indeed changed the way people live their life. Nowadays, even on the internet, it has become a crucial fact for people to protect their identity so that they do not face dangerous issues in the future (Liljander, Gummerus, & Söderlund, 2015). Information of the owner should not be shared without permission. According to researchers, this can therefore lead to an identity fraud where all the personal details of the owner has been stolen. Young adults eschew the willingness to share their information, for instance, their name, age and image so that they could avoid dangers for themselves because of strangers. According to Christofides (2009), young adults have the option to control who have the authority to view their shared information as vivid as all the post that is on their timeline which is a reflecting of no violation of privacy because their identity remains anonymous. While being anonymous, people are having fun when posting online and they are exploring aspects which are not exposing themselves. In the same vein, tensions have been raised for those younger adults because they think that with the privacy that Facebook has offered, they have the benefit to self-disclose themselves to strangers which is not at all obligatory. Young adults have the right to decide whether they will put their true self on privacy or not. Walther (2011) states that, “The behavior of teenagers have changed because there are teenagers who make illegal statement, insulting and make foolish act in their profiles” (para. 3) where they act without consequence because their self is hidden. 

CONCLUSION

In a nutshell, this paper has mainly discussed the three main points of authentic self and has argued that it is crucial to provide details of one’s identity to the social media platforms for specific reasons. Much more, in creating a good reputation in the world of working places, where the evidence is mainly in the profile of the employees who are looking for the job. It is also an advantage to the online dating app because people consider all the details authentic on the platform and even on Facebook young adults are at ease with the information section that is provided online. One future prediction is that it is better to provide all the ethnic details on platforms and have privacy at the same time on the profiles of those individuals.   

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Christofides, E., Muise, A., & Desmarais. S. (2012). Risky Disclosures on Facebook: The Effect of Having a Bad Experience on Online Behavior. Journal of Adolescent Research27(6), Article e0158474. https://journals-sagepub-com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/doi/10.1177/0743558411432635

Dreher, S. (2014), “Social media and the world of work: A strategic approach to employees’ participation in social media”, Corporate Communications: An International Journal, Vol. 19 No. 4, pp. 344-356. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCIJ-10-2013-0087

Ellison, N., Heino, R., & Gibbs, J. (2017). Managing Impressions Online: Self- Presentation Processes in the Online Dating Environment. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 11(2), 415-441. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1083-6101.2006.00020.x

Ferraro, R., Kirmani, A., & Matherly, T. (2013). Look at Me! Look at Me! Conspicuous Brand Usage, Self-Brand Connection, and Dilution. Journal of Marketing Research, 50(4), Article e0158474. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmr.11.0342

Grieve, R., & Watkinson, J. (2016). Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking. Mary Ann Liebert Inc. Advance online publication. https://doi-org.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/10.1089/cyber.2016.0010

Saeri, A. K., Ogilvie, C., La Macchia, S. T., Smith, J. R., & Louis, W. R. (2013). Predicting Facebook Users’ Online Privacy Protection: Risk, Trust, Norm Focus Theory, and the Theory of Planned Behavior. The Journal of Social Psychology, 154(4), 352-369. https://www-tandfonline-com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/doi/full/10.1080/00224545.2014.914881

Vilma Luoma-aho, Tuisku Pirttimäki, Devdeep Maity, Juha Munnukka & Hanna Reinikainen (2019) Primed Authenticity: How Priming Impacts Authenticity Perception of Social Media Influencers, International Journal of Strategic Communication, 13:4, 352-365, DOI: 10.1080/1553118X.2019.1617716

Walther, J. B. (2011). Privacy Online: Perspectives on Privacy and Self-Disclosure in the Social Web (1st ed.). Sabine & Leonard. https://books.google.mu/books?hl=en&lr=&id=ru2aU0r7sM0C&oi=fnd&pg=PR3&dq=authentic+self+and+privacy+online+for+teenagers+scholarly+articles&ots=BMoQjbQZMC&sig=Kt-mlRynZbG12ihXjsJQUqAYkkg&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false

Wong, C. A., & Laschinger, H. K. S. (2012). Authentic leadership, performance, and job satisfaction: the mediating role of empowerment. JAN Leading Global Nursing Research69(4), 947-959. https://doi-org.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/10.1111/j.1365-2648.2012.06089.x

Whitmer, J. M. (2019). You are your brand: Self-branding and the marketization of self. Sociology Compass13(3), e12662. https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/doi/full/10.1111/soc4.12662

66 thoughts on “Is social media an effective tool for young adults to expose their authentic self to present themselves?

  1. Hi Tiloshna,

    I agree with you that young adults should present their authentic self in social media as this has benefited them in job opportunities and finding real partners.

    I think all social media platforms should require their users to be authentic so that they will not create any abuse because this will tarnish their own reputation. Being anonymous is just like a “hypocrite” and hiding yourself. What is your thought?

    Best regards,
    Elaine

  2. Hi Tiloshna, your paper is well-written and actually have a good argument regarding the use of social media to present one’s authenticity.
    I agree that the use of social media platforms allow individuals to post their authentic-self for a better positive employment, dating, and self-esteem. However, it is only to a limited extent that I agree with this position as the active use of social media to actively expose/’post’ their authentic self can gradually be damaging to their mental wellbeing . The active use of social media that is self-oriented that produces compliments from people online and a wider community actually enables one to have a more desire in seeking for validation from others as the feeling of being validated have a positive effect. However, the “good feeling” from being validated by others does not last, but instead it will make individuals be drawn more into seeking for more online validation (Steinsbekk, 2016). The decrease in validation by others can result in individuals further thinking “am i pretty enough?”, “is this good enough?”, “what do I need to do more so this company/person wants me?” (Hawi & Samaha, 2016). From this, it has shown that the positive effect of self-oriented social media has diminished as people will constantly compare themselves with others online whether it is on work, lifestyle, image, or status, that will have a longitudinal impact in deteriorating their mental health. So therefore, do you believe that the impact mentally from one’s exposure to social media will be a stepping-stone to be more confident in the future life, or will it continue to negatively impact their wellbeing? Thanks let me know!

    Hawi, N. S., & Samaha, M. (2017). The relations among social media addiction, self-esteem, and life satisfaction in university students. Social Science Computer Review, 35(5), 576-586.
    Steinbsbekk, S., WIchstorm, L., Stenseng, F., Nesi, J., Hygen, B. W., & Skalicka, V. (2021). The impact of social media use on appearance self-esteem from childhood to adolescence-A 3-wave community study. Computers in Human Behaviour, 1114, 106528.

  3. Hi Tiloshna,

    I really enjoyed your paper, it really resonated with me looking back on my teen years. People online should in fact show their authentic identity as it creates a sense of trust and ease of connection. Although this is not always the case as people’s online identity is sometime a persona to wanting to conform to societies expectations (especially young teenagers) or a fake profile to lure people in which is often the case in online dating platforms. There definitely needs to be consistency maintain on all social media platforms so people feel they can present their true selves without fear of societies expectations or not getting a job because they posted content that would hinder their current or future job opportunities.

    How do you think societies expectations can be changed so individuals feel they can present as their authentic selves online?

  4. Hi Tiloshna!
    Really great paper on how young people are using social media to express their authentic self. I enjoyed reading about the use of anonymity by young people to have fun online and to explore aspects of their identities without disclosing too much information that could threaten their privacy. It made me think about ‘Finsta’ accounts and how young people are expressing a less-edited version of themselves through these private accounts. The features of a ‘Finsta’ offer young people the opportunity to be anonymous while still being authentic. Finstas act as a safe space for teenagers to be the real version of themselves online without the pressures of being the ‘ideal being’ on their social media accounts. However, despite the array of privacy settings available to protect the anonymity of young people, to what extent can someone really be anonymous online?
    Keep up the good work!

    1. Hello Norine,
      Thank you very much for reading my paper. Firstly I would say young adults are using social media to have fun, but what they don’t really understand is that this will surely cause a consequence in the future. Okay let us think for once that this is fun, but actually for how long and what will happen if where they got a job and over there people got to know about it? They might lose their job. I am happy of the example you have provided to me, thank you. Much appreciated Norine.
      Furthermore, a person can be anonymous online by presenting their authentic details and keeping all their personal details only to those that are selected. See you, and hope that this has enlighten your question on my paper.

  5. Ok so now for my debate on your paper Tiloshna,

    1. What do you think about the pressures of meeting up to ideals in online dating such as when a minor characteristic, like a man’s height, deters the other party from even considering meeting up. I believe a questionnaire can not completely capture someone’s personality or social skills. Would it not be better to omit certain details like height which doesn’t determine a person’s ability to care or be loving?

    2. I like your point that presenting accurate experiences of your life reduces stress levels by eradicating the pressure to present your life as something it is not. Do you think that priv-accounts where people post random, weird and entertaining parts of their life can play a role in this? https://theconversation.com/how-teens-use-fake-instagram-accounts-to-relieve-the-pressure-of-perfection-92105

    1. Hello once again Eva, thanks for you comment.
      So first of all I would like to respond to the first question, yes it is important to put all the details for instance height. But what I would say is that the person should at least get to know the partner for one or two days and then suggest for meeting up to see whether they are compatible in terms of adapting in each other’s behaviour as well as the personality which is so important. And also, looking at a person’s face is not called love but nowadays what people are looking for is love and a caring honest person.
      Moving on to your second question, a person will fake their own personality on their social media platform but till when? Of course this will affect themselves mentally and physically where they will be depressed. Teenagers being on a social media platform, but their parents should know about all their doings because this can indeed play a role for the future, as they are still a kid they don’t understand what is good and what is bad.
      I genuinely hope that this has clear your doubts about my paper.
      Thank you very much, see you and take care.

  6. Hello Tiloshna,
    I would like to comment on online identity. One should know about what he/she is posting online. They should post what they want people to know not to post their day to day life. One thing also social platform such as linkedin is a very effective way of communicating professionally. Lastly by exposing yourself on social media may be against you in the future and one should know what he/she is posting.

    1. Dear Rahul, I trust that you are fine and of course safe.
      Thank you for your precious time to read my paper. Likewise my friend Eva mentioned one should always be careful about what they post on social media especially any image which can ruin their future job opportunities. It is not mandatory to post all your everyday life on social media, but what is important is to present only your authentic details to your social media platforms. Indeed, a platform is a way to communicate like you mentioned Rahul about Linkedin you always have to be professional as a company will recruit only professional people and people who do not fake their identity.

  7. Hi Tiloshna
    I really enjoyed reading your paper. You’ve provided factual and strong arguments in regards to social media and exposing their authentic self. It is important to express one’s authentic self, especially in the dating world online as you’ve mentioned as this could be classified as ‘catfishing’ which is one of the negative impacts of social media. Today, with anonymity, it is easy for individuals to portray themselves as people they are not, and as a result, there are a lot of fake accounts online on a variety of social media platforms and this can potentially be a threat to the people around them.

    1. Hello Saranya,
      Thank you very much for reading my paper. With the authentic self one should always put their real name so that they do not cheat on the other person on dating platforms. It is not fair because the person trust you which plays an important role in their life. And for those who are creating fake accounts in the future it will definitely cause huge problem in their life.

      1. Hi Tiloshna,
        I think that one could argue that not disclosing your real name can be a protective barrier against creeps. If you do not like someone back and they have your real name, there is a potential for harassment and that they will stalk you on all of your social media accounts. Perhaps using a pseudonym could be beneficial until you meet in person and decide mutually that you would like to continue the relationship.

        1. Hello Eva, yes but at times it is necessary to put all the authentic details and the latter can also put a picture which cannot be stolen for sure. That is why it is highly important to have a privacy account.

          1. I’m not sure that I understand your response. Could you perhaps elaborate on what you mean?

  8. Hi Tilo I really appreciate your writing. Notably, everything you’ve noted about young adults is the utmost truth. Nowadays I do agree there are some people who are not aware of their own danger. Also I am personally a great user of social media and I do provide all my details on my profile which is limited to only a few people for instance I have my privacy yet, I accept only people who I want to be friends with. As you said authentic self is important, yes I do agree with the fact because once I had a fake profile on my name but no authentic details were added which later has cost very expensive to me. I went on an interview and over there they apparently have checked all my details on my social media page but in vain nothing was found. At last they told me about this alarming issue where they are not supposed to recruit people with no authentic self on their social media page. I strongly agree what you wrote is true and people should take it into consideration before its too late!

    1. Hello Ayoshma, thank you very much for taking time to read my paper. Yes thats true and it is good that you put all your authentic details on privacy only to limited people you wish. I am happy to know that you have realised about it better late than never. It is advisable for a person to always present their authentic self on their platforms. Thank you very much for your comment, I wish you the best and good luck.

  9. Hi Tiloshna,

    Great paper! I enjoyed reading it and the theme is very engaging to today’s virtual society. People online should indeed be authentic about their identity. Nowadays, there are so many fake profiles or fake information about one self on the internet that it is hard to distinguish who the person really is. The consistency needs to be maintained on all the online platforms as well and not be different on each. In short, one need to guard their virtual identity as they would do their physical identity.

    What more do you think can be done to promote authentic self online?

    1. Hello Vejetaa, thank you for reading my paper. I would say people should talk more about it do some sort of campaign, I believe everyone is on social media and the information about how fake identity on social media will definitely ruin their future and career. I am very much sure that this will reach them.

  10. Hey really nice writing. There are some really enriching information in your paper. I totally agree base on the importance of social media nowadays. Somehow it is the main key of youngsters to use social media daily in this era. keep it up!

    1. Hello Yorna, thank you very much for reading my paper. Yes indeed social media is a place to provide their self.

  11. Hello Tiloshna, Great work!
    I can only speak in eulogical terms concerning your article. It can be seen that you did not dither to display the fact that the use of social media among millennials is an ubiquitous phenomenon. There seem to be a fluidity in your transition of explaining the cerebral aspects of the pivotal role social media entails in the life of youngsters. Your article urges us to put our thinking caps on and explore this issue that appears nugatory on the surface.

    1. Hello Siddhi,
      Thanks for reading my paper, yes because of authenticity in today’s world is mandatory to provide all details which one should not deny to present on their platforms.

  12. Hello Tiloshna,
    I really the points that you made concerning the reasons why one should provide details on his/her identity. For a platform such as LinkedIn details about identity plays an important role for the employability. If the individual hide too much of his/her identity it can be detrimental to employment. What would you recommend to someone who has left bad digital footprint and wants to be employed as a manager in a company? What kind of steps would he/she take to decrease the risk of being rejected?

    1. Hello Ignesh,
      Thank you for reading my paper. So first of all I would say that even if they had a bad footprint in the past of the old social media platform it would be better if they could delete the oder account for it not to have an effect on the new account so that it has no effect on their job. The person should also add only authentic details where there is no fake information.

    2. Hi Ignesh,

      Your comment reminded me of a small story I heard last year at the beginning of my unit in Web Coms about a lady called Lindsey Stone. https://www.businessinsider.com/lindsey-stone–so-youve-been-publicly-shamed?r=AU&IR=T

      Pretty much this health charity worker went for a trip with her friends and posted several pictures of her doing the opposite of what a sign said which was a long running joke about opposing authority. One image in particular of her shouting and flipping the bird next to a sign that said “silence and respect” at a war memorial went viral and taken out of context. People online attacked her and started a petition for her to get fired from her job, which she was. It ruined her life for two years.

      It’s impossible to delete everything once it’s “out” on the internet, but you can hide it by posting more so the digital shadow is minimised. At the beginning when someone googled Lindsey Stone, that image and all the negative articles about her showed up, but after increasing her digital footprint and being active online in multiple platforms, Lindsey managed to push those articles down the google feed.

      When we analyse this anecdote in the context of your paper Tiloshna, we can see why anonymity and privacy can be very important. The only reason it went viral was because this occurred back when people didn’t really understand the privacy settings on Facebook and they were constantly changing without notice. When you are authentic about yourself, but your images or words are misinterpreted without context, then it can be ill-received.

      1. Hello Eva, I trust that you are good and safe at the moment. Thank you very much for finding time to comment on my paper.
        Yes definitely that is why it is very crucial to always have privacy on any social media platforms and indeed one thing to note is that one should always be avail of what they are posting so that this does not affect their future, once it is posted nothing can be done. A person connected to Facebook should always present their authentic self and as vivid as put privacy in everything they post. Likewise you mentioned about the lady which is not respecting the law though, she is at fault. It is thus advisable for people to take this as an example to stop posting things which are not appropriate.

        1. I don’t think she was disobeying the law, rather the sign that represented authority… and yes this example demonstrates why privacy settings are important and why you should be careful about what you post. But your entire argument for your paper is that people should be authentic online. If they censor what they post to make sure things they do or say do not offend anyone, is this not being authentic?

          1. Hi what I wanted to explain is that you need to be careful what you put because this will not only be viewed by a certain people but can be shared to others who are not in your friend list. Posting authentic details rather means real name and all, but this does not mean you should post a picture which seems to offend the public. This is not authentic at all.
            Thanks & see you.

  13. Hello Tiloshna.

    This has been a very informative paper and you have addressed an engaging topic. Nonetheless, the aspect of being authentic on social media can help an individual to be professional in their working environment while boosting their confidence. While reading your paper, I certainly agree with the points you’ve provided to enlighten more understanding on the subject, regarding the young adults.

    To a given standpoint, do you believe that authenticity on the online platforms will help the younger audience to achieve a certain level of trust with an online partner on a long term basis when it comes to online dating?

    1. Hello Divesh,
      Thank you for reading my paper, yes but with time they need to know the person more fully without giving details about personal stuffs such that bank account, addresses and so on.. they need to meet and get to know each other where they will therefore get to know automatically whether the person is a trustworthy one.

  14. The article provided demonstrate clearly about the authencity of social media and how adults should make use of social media effectively

    however, I have a question. What is your own opinion in regards. to this article?

    1. Hello,
      Thanks for reading my paper. What I would say is that you have all the rights to present your own identity but having your privacy on your social media account of who should see your details of course.

  15. Hello Tiloshna,

    Read your article, very much impressed. The quality of English as well as the arguments provided was well elaborated and direct. With what you have provided, these arguments shall helps many of us teenagers to be aware of the concept of social media and its impact on our life

    1. Hello Anne,
      Thank you very much for reading my paper and sharing your thoughts on my paper.

  16. Very good attempt and well written. the arguments was very well elaborated and explained. The points was very clear where it enlightened about the concept of social media and its effects on teenagers.

  17. Hello Tiloshna, great work! I’ve enjoyed reading your essay, well-written and balanced approach.
    However, I do not agree at some grounds, I think Facebook does not portray authenticity at 100% and for that reason I really tried to keep my facebook circle really low and give out a lowkey profile, which in reality I’m not. In line with your arguments, there is one of my relative who got scammed on Facebook due to the authenticity and trust issues online. She got scammed, to an extent she has lost a huge sum of money from her bank account. It all started when she became friend with someone who looked trusted at first, the friend started to send her gifts and told her, he received them at low price. So she decided to make business with him, the guy asked her to open an account at bank and thereafter send that friend your card and pin. From that incident, do you think authenticity is lured on FB? Please it a thought…

    1. Hello,
      Thank you for sharing your point of view. Yes but at some point the person needs to know who to trust and when it comes to allowing a stranger to get accessed to your profile you need to click the accept request on Facebook for the latter to message you and to keep in touch. And at some point, I agree but however, Facebook has all the rights to offer you privacy be it on your name and so on.. I would like to advise you to ask your friend to put privacy on her Facebook profile which would be a better idea for her, trusting a person at one go is not convienient because you personally needs to talk and get to know each other without it getting into the matter of sharing details likewise bank details.

      1. Hello Mageswari and Tilsohna,

        Thank you for your paper and your thoughts on this, I just wanted to add on further from your point about Facebook. I tend to agree, although users may be on Facebook and believe they are presenting an authentic version of themselves, do you not believe everything is still construction. Users choose to put out into the world what they believe will want to be seen and heard therefore making it an inaccurate depiction of themselves.

        I personally believe the online dating world is very constructed and therefore lacks that authenticity you mentioned, users I believe are going to put the best version of themselves out, making it an inauthentic version of themselves. I understand that this may mean they are not being scammed because a user is still presenting themselves online. I just do not believe it is the most authentic version of themselves. I would encourage you to read the article below!

        https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2050157916664559

        Thank you for your thoughts on this topic!

        Grace

        1. Hi Grace, thanks for reading my paper and for sharing your point of view about the topic.
          At some point, it is mandatory for those men to know that they should not play with the feelings of those women because they are trusting them while in the article you have sent it says hooking up just for sex definitely they should realise this can affect the individual’s mind and self.
          In other words I would like to enlighten your mind more about authenticity where people nowadays is using online platforms more frequently and they are more willing to put their details but they have the option to put it either only me or to certain people.
          I hope that this has clarified your question on this topic.
          Thanks, see you and stay safe. Best of luck.

          1. Hello Tiloshna and Grace, I hope you are all doing well.

            Thank you for responding to my question, whether authenticity can be lured online or not (to Tiloshna). Your essay, shows the cohesion between anonymity and authenticity online, benefiting online users to get job opportunities. To support my opposition on your argument, I found out about being too authentic leads to scamming issues. You have mentioned about putting an account into privacy mode, nevertheless does this only justify the solution for less scamming? Nowadays, I believe that we are all tech-savvy to the extent that we are taught to be cautious about its negative consequences. If we take out local area, it has been reported for the past 7 years that there have been cases of fraud attempt. ” Fake or compromised social media profiles are used to approach members to inform them that they may be eligible for a loan” (BOM, 2021). This statement can somehow be link to the luring of authenticity online since, fake users are trained how to apply fake authenticity for their motive. The scenario goes on: The person gets a friend request from facebook and lure him/her through fake promises, sending gifts, showing ‘affection’, trust, transparency, equity and all the means that a being can possibly do to impress a person (identity performance). This can be linked to as the characteristics of authenticity (by being intimate, trustworthy, vulnerable, real, transparent). Leaving personal data online, age, gender (just like you have mentioned), counteracts your presented benefits, since online world exploit these factors for their gain of money (Button et al., 2014).

            In the case for Grace, I have had a look at your article. Yes, even though one puts their best version of themselves online, do not reveal real authenticity. If identity is an ongoing construction, how can authenticity be genuine? Is authenticity is also a form of performance? According to Ranzini & Lutz, (2016),”Women tend to be more strategic about their visual appearance (Hancock & Toma, 2009) and lie about their weight (Hall, Park, Song, & Cody, 2010; Hancock et al., 2007). Men, on the other hand, are more deceptive and their relationship status (Whitty, 2008) and relationship goals (Hall et al., 2010)”. This shows how women and men behave differently in Tinder. Is authenticity complex or is it just being ‘not fake’?

            Link for my paper 🙂 :
            https://networkconference.netstudies.org/2021/2021/04/26/instagram-a-virtual-platform-in-crafting-the-well-being-of-young-women/?fbclid=IwAR0pxa_jUNTp_LYtzfox9IB0-lfLjmCqN02X6UQ45dyoDX_5CT3P5O-fSY8#comment-1877

            Reference list:

            Button, M., Nicholls, C., Kerr, J., & Owen, R. (2014). Online frauds: Learning from victims why they fall for these scams. Australian & New Zealand Journal Of Criminology, 47(3), 391-408. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004865814521224

            Scam Alerts. Bank of Mauritius. (2021). Retrieved 15 May 2021, from https://www.bom.mu/media/scam-alerts.

            Ranzini, G., & Lutz, C. (2016). Love at first swipe? Explaining Tinder self-presentation and motives. Mobile Media & Communication, 5(1), 80-101. https://doi.org/10.1177/2050157916664559

    2. Hi Mageswari, thanks for your question. Yes I get your point.
      Sorry I am unable to reply to your recent comment below so I am replying to you over here.
      I know my essay is about a person presenting their authentic self online and against anonymity. But, let me clarify the doubt that you have concerning my paper. So first of all, what I really wanted to explain to you about authenticity is that you should never share your personal information to people online even though you’ve known the person by chatting. So I suppose if someone is sending you a message, you have to approve the message on “message request” to be able to communicate even though they are not in your friend list. It all depends on the person who owns the account how to react and what to respond. Likewise you said what happened in the past years, is has thus become a must to protect your social media’s personal details, your privacy and yourself of course. There are ways which can definitely help an individual, for instance they have to know which whom their information are being shared and displayed, understand the privacy settings by social media platforms and keep them up to date, always use the two factor authentication, be aware of fake account (which is inevitably to remove or report of all them at one go) and lastly to watch out the social media scams and fraud (Stolba, 2020). One thing I would like to add which you have mentioned about “luring fake promises” it is not obligatory to always respond to a message if you do not know the person personally. I am sure I have responded to your question. Thank you very much. Stay safe.

      https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/how-protect-your-privacy-on-social-media/

      https://www.onpointcu.com/blog/how-to-identify-and-avoid-common-social-media-scams/

  18. Hi. I found the content of the story very interesting and engaging as it brought light to such a crucial aspect of the internet which is authenticity and how it intertwines with anonimity.

    1. Hello Mithi, thank you very much for reading and finding my paper interesting I am really grateful.

  19. Hello Darshini,

    With the three ideas that you mentioned, your essay clearly demonstrated how young adults are embracing the social media platforms to get the best out of themselves in the society. However, there may be some issues involving around. When an individual (mostly Young adults) are trying to impress the crowd around them, they will most likely fake their identities. We’ve learnt some cases where young individuals are faking everything on their Instagram account. To an extent where they are clicking photos in fake private Jets just to make others believe that they are actually in a real one, but they are not. And these issues can be deadly to someone. Faking their identity would actually create a “hole” in the society, where they will be confident in things they never achieved.

    Here’s an article you could read:
    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-6435173/People-taking-Instagram-photos-inside-fake-private-jet-interior-inside-store.html

    What do you think??

    1. Hi. I found the contents of the article very interesting and engaging as it brought light to such a crucial aspect of the internet which is authenticity and how it intertwines with anonimity.

    2. Hello Kaushal,
      Thank you for sharing your point of view to my topic. Yes, but young adults needs to have the knowledge to know that they need to present their real identity for instance their name, age and others so that they do not deceive the world with their fake identity. As this can cause a huge impact in their future career. But however, those young adults need to think for their future and not only present something to the world which does not even exist.

      1. In the same vein, those young adults could be thinking on having a better future when faking their identity. What do you think can be done to help an individual to discern what is good and wrong for them?

        Awaiting your response.
        Avneesh

        1. Yes you are right but in this case, I would suggest to look for solutions to make those young adults aware what is good or wrong. Thus, a campaign on those social media sites on which they are connected would be better way to communicate to them as they have the option on each and every platform to change their details accordingly and put their true identity to escape from the fake world.

  20. Well-versed content, indeed it’s true that it helps youngsters to portray their real image throughout the social media.
    Youngsters must be well prepared to be able to adapt with the evolution of technology and globalisation, e.g,[ During the Covid pandemic, social media was the only way to convey message, communicate and even work.
    Having video conferences, dealing with foreigners throughout the social media and many more tools became vital, youngsters have to built confidence and show their real image to overcome their fears, to attain their goal.!]

    1. Hello Yash,
      Well, of course in social media platform one needs to portray their real identity so that a person can have the insight of what you intend to present. Yes I do agree, it is with social media itself that the population was communicating. Thank you very much for reading my paper.

  21. Hello Tiloshna, Thank you for giving us such content to read. Just like someone above mentioned, ”fruitful content’, I totally agree. All the papers I have read are giving me so much information. Social media is really omnipresent these days. What you have written is engaging and educative.

    1. Hello Chitrakshi, thank you very much for such comment. I really appreciate you’ve liked my paper.

  22. Hi Tiloshna,
    It was a great pleasure to read your conference paper and I found it quite fascinating. You have not only managed to link concepts such as authenticity and anonymity but you have also explained and provided examples. I agree with your point of view that when creating a profile, a user must be 100% authentic by providing truthful information not only for him but for his surroundings. Having written a paper on identities on dating application myself, I completely get your point. Nice job!

    1. Hello Temul,
      Thank you very much for taking time to read my paper. Exactly, that is why it is important to have authentic identity in today’s world.

  23. Fruitful content!
    The way social media specially facebook contributed in helping identity construction of youth by expressing themselves on those platforms.Adding to this , this is a step for youngsters to embark in the world ready for challenges since they already started voicing out by interacting and portraying themselves to other people on Facebook for example.

    1. Hello Tejasvee,
      Thank you very much for reading my paper. Yes it is very important to have all the details about yourself on your social media platforms especially as we are living in a new modern era.

  24. Great work!
    I want to ask a question concerning your article. According to you, being anonymous is better or being known on social media?

    1. Hello Bhavna,
      Well according to me I would say it would be better to put all the authentic details on social media as this could help for future use such that good opportunities for working purposes as it create a good reputation for yourself. Thank you very much.

  25. Interesting as for youngsters to know whether to present themselves on the online world or not and if they are doing so,how they should do it.i do think social media is an effective app as more people are connected to them and without them,it will be difficult to identify people.

    1. Hello Prithvi, yes indeed it is mandatory for each individual connected to social media to provide their authentic details so that they are identified by other people easily.

      1. Fruitful content!
        The way social media specially facebook contributed in helping identity construction of youth by expressing themselves on those platforms.Adding to this , this is a step for youngsters to embark in the world ready for challenges since they already started voicing out by interacting and portraying themselves to other people on Facebook for example.

  26. The content of the story is very interesting and engaging as it involves the concept of social media being an effective tool for youngsters to expose their authentic self.

    1. Hey Navishta, thank you very much for your comment. And yes it is very important to put your authentic self like I discussed on my paper.

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