“If you had the chance to like, not show people like a bad part of you... you would do it”

Perceptions of Offline Versus Online Social Media Identity Among Emerging Adults From Socio-Demographic Minority Groups in the U.S

Bibliographic Data

ID17822602
AuthorsRoyette Tavernier (0000-0002-2121-7810, Wesleyan University, corresponding author), Danielle Greene (0000-0002-6121-8519, Wesleyan University), Nicole K Watkins (0000-0001-7537-6211, University of Scranton)
Year2024
Volume13
Issue2
Pages322-339
Publication date2024-10-16
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEmerging Adulthood (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2167-6968 • E-ISSN: 2167-6984
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/21676968241291275
OpenAlexW4403510985
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited59

During the COVID-19 pandemic, social media became an especially salient tool for interpersonal connections due to public policy limitations on in-person contact; but little is known about how emerging adults from various socio-demographic minority groups in the U.S. engaged with social media as a tool for identity construction during the pandemic. This qualitative interview study examined the role of social media engagement in perceptions of online versus offline identity during the pandemic. Participants were 24 emerging adults ( M = 18.9 years old, SD = 0.44) from various socio-demographic minority groups. Results of thematic analysis indicated 5 themes: (i) ‘ Highlight reel vs. real life’, (ii) ‘Navigating authenticity’, (iii) ‘Proceed with caution: Fear of judgment’ (iv) ‘Social media as an identity tool’, and (v) ‘The evolved social media identity’. Social media plays a critical role in emerging adults’ identity development by providing both opportunities and challenges for self-expression, emotion regulation, and self-reflection

Aesthetics · Internet privacy · Online and offline · Perception · Social group · Social identity theory · Social media · Sociology · World Wide Web · Computer Science · Gender, Feminism, and Media · Impact of Technology on Adolescents · Psychology · Social Media and Politics · Social Psychology