sinéad's lifestream

Blogs offer individuals a novel vehicle in which to express their identity and has significant psychological consequences by way of involvement, identity and control. Technorati.com conducted an international survey in 2008 where two-thirds of respondents indicated that they openly exposed their identities on their blogs. This research found similar results with Irish bloggers, with 60% indicating that they used their real name on their blogs. Bloggers whom used a pseudonym did not differ in their levels of concern for privacy or permanence online in comparison to those that blogged using their real name.

Interestingly of the approx. 40% that blog using a pseudonym, 23% of this group also blogged using their real name. This suggests that some bloggers are taking advantage of both the benefits of blogging as themselves i.e benefits to reputation, and also anonymously somewhere else online. Anonymity online can help individuals to explore their identity, reduce shyness and encourage interactions with others online.

Though the Internet does help to support strong tie relationships, it is particularity effective for weak tie groups, allowing for the efficient flow of information and facilitating the development of ideas, blogospheres are a particularly good example of how the internet facilitates this.

The blogosphere is a classic social network but its characteristics differentiate it from most social networks, where communication is predominantly verbal and unrecorded. Networks of bloggers will often aggregate all of their individual blogs to a centralised location online, and these are referred to as planet aggregators an example of which is Irishblogs.ie.

However, some blogs are more connected to a blogosphere than others, with some bloggers not being connected to any blogosphere at all. Over 65% of bloggers indicated that they were listed on an Irish planet aggregator, and almost 64% consider themselves a member of the Irish blogosphere. The remaining bloggers indicated that they were not listed and did not consider themselves part of the Irish blogosphere. This highlights the 35% of bloggers unconnected from the Irish blogosphere, and this could suggest that there are far more Irish people blogging than is known.

‘Facebook Generation’ Faces Identity Crisis: A psychiatrist has suggested that young people are growing up with a different and potentially dangerous view of the world and their own identity. However, in the same article it is also pointed out that the vast majority of psychiatrists worldwide are unaware of the full magnitude or impact of the online world on the younger generation. This story is an example of how an unfounded comment (backed up by no research study) can be picked up by the mainstream media and twisted into stories such as Facebook and Myspace generation ‘cannot form relationships’, ‘Mental risk’ of Facebook teens and thus highlights the importance of continued Cyberpsychology research.

Markers of Status: Different, and Yet the Same: Interesting observations from Danah Boyd into the social activities of teens online, particularly the notion that the social hierarchies that exist in everyday life are replicated and reinforced online. These insights contradict numerous media reports that have highlighted how social networking can support negative behaviour in teens and pre-teens.

Will video games solve sex-discrimination in science?: This article discusses research regarding the gender differences in visuospatial skills necessary for complex mathematics. Findings suggest that the simple act of playing video games could improve these skills. Related Article: Unpacking the Science of Sex Difference

How User Interfaces can make or break a new service: Discussion by industrial designer Alexander van Elsas on the subject of usability and user interface design that suggests that UI is the most important fail factor for any new product or service. Related link: Social Design

Intel Anthropologists Find Keys to Tech Adoption: This article highlights a study from Intel that investigates the so called “technology gap” between richer and poorer countries. Their most recent results indicate that it’s much more than levels of disposable income that influence the adoption of new technologies.

If anyone has anything they’d like to contribute to the next digest, or related articles for this volume, feel free to drop me a comment or an e-mail – Sinéad.

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3
Volume 4