Q: Accepted Identity Experiments

Q: Do you think that identity experimentation is acceptable in digital communication? And how do false identities affect online dating and others sites like Myspace/Facebook etc? Robbie Collins, April 19.

Thank you for the question Robbie. The widespread belief that online dating participants lie about personal characteristics in order to present an improved self is only half true. In 2003, CBC News found that 29 million Americans participated in online dating and during each month in 2004, 40 million people visited dating sites (Ellison, Heino, & Gibbs, 2006). The most common characteristics online dating participants falsified in 2001 was age (14% of people), marital status (10% of people), and their appearance (10% of people) (Brym & Lenton, 2001 as cited in Ellison et al., 2006). These low numbers indicate there is something preventing people from using false identities frequently. The characteristics and beliefs of online dating both discourage and encourage deception from its participants. Fiore and Donath (2004) found that individuals who believe others use altered characteristics online tend to use parallel actions of what they perceive as acceptable behavior (as cited in Ellison et al.). Self-presentation is important in online dating. When individuals meet online then meet face-to-face, an accurate initial online self-presentation is important. Ellison et al. (2006) found that online dating participants claim to accurately present themselves. The results suggests that “online representations of one’s ideal self—when combined with the increased accountability engendered by an anticipated face-to-face interaction—may serve as a tool to enable individuals to minimize the discrepancy between their actual and their ideal selves” (Ellison et al., p. 432). In this situation, self-presentation experiments are needed and appropriate if the ideal self resembles the actual self.


Reference:

Ellison, N., Heino, R., & Gibbs, J. (2006). Managing impressions online: Self-presentation processes in the online dating environment. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 11, 415-441.