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The art of re-invention

E-safety
Social media and the online world allows students to consider the way they are perceived much more clearly, and means they can re-invent how they are viewed by their friends and others. Karen Sullivan considers the implications of this modern trend.

Gone are the days when teenagers are cast in a mould and forced to carry reputations and labels. Instead, social media offers an opportunity for kids to re-invent themselves and to present to their online community the aspects of their personalities that create a positive image. 

There is, in fact, a wealth of research into the concept of self-presentation in social media, and it’s all quite fascinating. For example, Mehdizadeh (2010) found that Facebook users write descriptions that enhanced and promoted themselves in order to receive positive feedback from the public. Gosling, et al, found that students tend to show a type of presentation that is interpreted generally as “emotionally stable” and “open to new experiences”.

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