The Question Exists, but You Don't Exist With It

Strategic Anonymity in the Social Lives of Adolescents

Bibliographic Data

ID2413752
AuthorsNicole B Ellison (0000-0003-2793-4842, University of Michigan, corresponding author), Lindsay Blackwell (University of Michigan), Cliff Lampe (University of Michigan), Penny Trieu (0000-0001-8394-803X, University of Michigan)
Year2016
Volume2
Issue4
Publication date2016-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial Media + Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2056-3051 • E-ISSN: 2056-3051
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/2056305116670673
OpenAlexW2541037941
LanguageEN
Citations received19
References cited34

Anonymous interactions may have important implications for adolescents' social and psychological development. In this article, we use semi-structured interview data collected from US adolescents aged 13-18 years ( N = 22) to explore how the specific affordances of an online platform that enables selective anonymity shape adolescents' practices and perceptions. We contribute to scholarship on the effects of anonymous interaction online by surfacing positive outcomes for young adults who choose to interact in anonymous contexts-specifically, a question-and-answer site popular with teenagers ( Ask.fm )-and explicating the ways in which these interactions assist in key developmental tasks during adolescence. We identify five primary themes: (1) perceived authenticity, (2) circumventing social expectations, (3) learning about the self, (4) managing identity and self-presentation, and (5) initiating and developing relationships. Across these themes, we find that users strategically employ anonymity to achieve their social goals. Use of the site was often deeply embedded in offline social structures, such that the platform was used to circumvent rigid norms around socialization (who can talk to whom) and information-seeking (who can ask what), enforced in educational institutions and elsewhere. We conclude that the strategic use of selective anonymity has the potential to scaffold social processes through which adolescents work toward critical developmental goals

Affordance · Anonymity · Cognitive psychology · Computer security · Internet privacy · Perception · Political science · Scholarship · Socialization · Child Development and Digital Technology · Computer Science · Impact of Technology on Adolescents · Psychology · Social Media and Politics · Social Psychology