Essay Sample on Internet Communities and Identity Formation

Explain significant factors related to the formation of internet communities. What is the role of identity in the formation of online identities? How is the Internet like "a playground for identity formation?"

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Fundamentally, an online community is a virtual group of people with a common perceived interest, common problem or common task. Internet serves as a technological platform that facilitates the community interaction, build trust and promotes a common feeling, and most importantly, it breaks the geographical limitations among the members (Van Varik & van Oostendorp, 2013). Essentially, in the physical world, there are several factors that hinder if not prohibit communication. For instance, Age, language, Interest, economic benefits among other factors, limit social interaction and communication among people. However, in today's digital era, the internet and information technologies have broken these barriers and provided a well-conditioned environment where communities can thrive and turn the mentioned limitation into social capital for the members (Sharma et al.,2014).

As seen, the primary trigger to the formation of an online community is the similarities among the group members. Consequently, for one to identify with a given group, he or she must possess the common interest or trait. However, while the similarities initially attract a member into the community, the initial attraction allows the individual to recognize and their individual differences. Basically, the recognition of the individual differences prompts the formation of a social identity that is cultivated and developed in internet platforms such as online communities. According to Code and Zaparyniuk (2010), depending on the social groups, an individual adopts multiple identities that enable them to cope with various roles and adapt to the varying social context. As such, online groups cannot exist without the members' social identity, which is cultivated by the interaction in that particular community.

While online communities are shaped by the constructed social identities of their members, the internet space has become a "playground" for identity experimentation. First, the internet provides anonymity, which highly encourages self-expression that basically allows identity experimentation and development. Under this perceived safe space, people, especially teenagers, are able to take advantage of the internet ambiguity to explore different identities that would be impossible in a physical environment. In one of the study findings by Valkenburg, Schouten, & Peter (2005) investigating whether early adolescents were more likely to engage in identity experimentation compared to late adolescence, it was found that the former was likely to engage in experimentation of identities to promote interaction. These findings further affirm the increasing use of the internet as an inhibited identity experimentation space, contrary to the long-time held assumptions of the internet as predominantly medium for communication.

How does social interaction online change as you move from the micro to meso and macro levels of analysis? What have we learned from micro-level studies versus meso and macro level studies of how actors use the Internet? Is one aspect of social interaction more important than another for research purposes?

At the micro level, social interaction in online platforms essentially allows some of the users to extend their true personalities while also adding to them. This phenomenon is triggered by the ego-centric nature of internet applications such as networking sites. Additionally, the impersonal nature of the interaction has also facilitated the creation of an entirely new and unrestrained personality that a person would never show in the real world. At the meso level, online social interaction and consequences vary greatly with age. For instance, according to a study finding by Thayer and Ray(2006), young adults, unlike middle and late adult groups, showed a higher preference for online communication with friends and strangers. While the variance in findings has been associated with changes in privacy concerns, older people avoiding online communication because of privacy intrusion, online space as mentioned gives younger users a safety perception where they can experiment on multiple identities.

Finally, at the micro level, online social groups have become a force that politicians, CEOs, profit and even non-profit organizations have to bow to. Unlike the past when the organizations and political parties had control over the information about themselves, the online users have taken control. Consequently, the online social interaction and participation have become critical tools in fighting against oppression, corruption and major corporations. However, at the society level, the online social interaction has attenuated the issue identify theft and loss of personal data thus promoting the development of laws and policy to address them (Zeitel-Bank & Tat,2014).

As seen from the above three-level analysis of online social interaction, the impact at the micro level mainly affects the individual identity of the participant rather than a collective persona at meso and macro level. As such, the detrimental effects of online social interaction are more pronounced at the micro level compared to the rest two levels. For instance, at the micro level, the anonymity in the internet space has resulted in unreal personalities that prompt struggle within a person and as result impose negative mental health. At the macro level, the resultant effect of online social interaction is mainly globalization and lobby groups that mainly protect people against various forms of oppression. Consequently, to ensure that negative impacts associated with the struggle of identity formation at the micro level are not propagated to the meso and macro levels, it is important to invest on research at the lowest possible level.

Examine your own daily interaction with the internet. Explain this interaction using the micro, meso, and macro-levels of analysis. Discuss any internet communities you belong to and explain how it has impacted your identity formation.

Personally, the daily interaction with the internet has been mainly communication and information gathering. On the social media platform, I have three accounts, that is, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram while for messaging I mainly use the WhatsApp. Interestingly, consistent with the micro level analysis of online social interaction, I have been very intentional on the identity I have assigned to these platforms. For instance, on Twitter, I am very cautious about what I Retweet, Like and Comment. The innate urge to maintain and develop an intelligent and cool identity sometimes conflict with a spontaneous impulse to leave a ridiculous comment on a tweet or a Facebook post, which affirms the identity formation concept seen in the previous part of the essay.

At the meso level, there is no doubt that online social interaction consumes significant hours of the day. Compared to the times I did not have access to the internet, the urge to keep looking at the feed and communicating with friends through the online messaging application has drastically increased. The internet has become a daily utility hard to live without. As such, it is now clear to understand and relate with the study findings on the impact online interaction has on the user at a meso level.

At the micro level, online interaction has notably influenced my stance on various controversial political and social issues. On Twitter, for instance, I have often found myself engaging in heated arguments with high profile people in society on certain topics that I would never have the courage to face in real life. On these platforms, I feel empowered and confident to call out on perceived injustices regardless of the of the authority of the opposing party. Consequently, I can attest that the internet has greatly contributed to a fearless persona identity showed I mask under in an online community.

Nonetheless, while the internet social networking sites have provided tools to reveal in self-centered behaviour and engage with virtual strangers, the interaction has boosted my confidence and freedom to express the desired identity. Imperative to note, with age, I have gradually found a balance between true and desired personalities, consequently cultivating an adjust identity both online and offline.