Faceted Identity, Faceted Lives: Social and Technical Issues in Being Yourself Online
From Anita Borg Institute Wiki
Contents |
Abstract:
This paper explores key issues people experience managing personal boundaries within and across social technologies. We look in particular at email and online social networks. We offer a theoretical framework for understanding the errors in assumptions about identity that are currently inscribed into the sharing models of social technology systems. Through a questionnaire study we examine how people facet their identities and their lives, and how these facets are expressed through use of technology. We found for more mature users family was an extremely important context for sharing online, that men with families were particularly likely to have incompatible identity facets, and that email was still a preferred form of communication for sharing across facets of life. We found people with higher levels of incompatibility across facets are particularly worried about sharing in the context of social networks.
Presenters:
- Shelly Farnham (Yahoo!)
- Elizabeth Churchill (Yahoo! Research)
Notes:
- Social Scientist studies ways technology can engineer social outcomes (i.e. trust) across various levels (individual, pair, community, network)
- Theories - Social Identity Theory and Boundary Theory
- Social Identity Theory - "many true selves"
- Boundary Theory - space/time affects role, some are integrated and others segmented
- In online social network, there is a flattened identity problem.
Findings
- Email provides boundaries but social network sites don't
- "Users choose communication channels depending on boundary management"
- Older users and younger users have different behaviors for keeping in touch.
Implication
- When designing technology for social use, you need to think 'within person' - i.e. faceted identities such as family, work, social, hobbies/interest
