EXTENDED SELF IN A DIGITAL WORLD

[Audio] Drawing on James, Simmel, Fromm, Csikszentmihalyi, and many others, Belk ( 1988 ) theorized that "knowingly or unknowingly, intentionally or unintentionally, we regard our possessions as parts of ourselves" ( 139). The extended self was proposed in 1988. Since it was formulated, many technological changes have dramatically affected the way we consume, present ourselves, and communicate. This conceptual update seeks to revitalize the concept, incorporate the impacts of digitization, and provide an understanding of consumer sense of self in today's technological environment. It is necessarily a work in progress, for the digital environment and our behavior within it continue to evolve. But some important changes are already clear. Five changes with digital consumption are considered that impact the nature of self and the nature of possessions. Needed modifications and additions to the extended self are outlined, and directions for future research are suggested. The digital world opens a host of new means for self-extension, using many new consumption objects to reach a vastly broader audience. Even though this calls for certain reformulations, the basic concept of the extended self remains vital..

[Audio] The extended self consists of self plus possessions and is that part of self-identity which is defined by possessions including gifts, money, body-parts, monuments, and places ( Belk 1988). The extended self formulation envisions that certain possessions and certain other people are seen to be a part of us. They extend our identity beyond our mind and body alone. When they are damaged, die, or are lost, we feel their loss as an injury to the self. The concept of extended self is an extremely important considered as it helps in defining the nature and extent of the relationship between the concept of self and possessions. Hence, it can be stated that for understanding the concept of extended self, possessing and consumer behaviour play a significant role. A glimpse on the ideas or Russel W. Belk on his " Extended Self in a Digital World" could give more light on the topic. Belk presents five changes emerging from current digital age: Dematerialization, Reembodiment, Sharing, Co construction and distributed memory.

[Audio] First, let us talk about dematerialization. The term dematerialize means to cause to become or appear immaterial. According to Belk " Things are disappearing right before our eyes". For example our music has come to reside somewhere inside our digital storage devices or on servers whose location we will never know. Likewise, money has become digitalized such as cryptocurrencies, g-cash, lyka gems and others. Online gamers own things in their virtual games that they consider precious. They can even sell and trade them for money. In other words, digital natives are growing up in a world where many of their possessions aren't actually physically possessed..

[Audio] The question is: "Can we gain status or an enhanced sense of self from virtual possessions?" Belk proposes four functions of virtual consumption: It stimulates consumer desire for both material and virtual goods. It actualizes possible daydreams such as those of wealth and status by enacting them in video games It actualizes impossible fantasies such as being a magician or space pirate with magical objects. It facilitates experimentation such as being a criminal in a video game. Reports show that virtual goods are now some of the most valued commodities for cybercriminals who attempt to hack into games and steal possessions to resell. Suicide may also result to a stolen virtual or digital possession.

[Audio] The second change due to digital age is reembodiment. This is characterized as the " breakout of the visual" online, leading to new " constructions" and definitions of the self in the virtual world where online games, blogs, web pages, photos and video-sharing sites, internet dating sites are possible. For example, in our personal social media accounts we are disembodied and reembodied as avatars. We share identity with the chosen avatar virtually. Online, the plain represent themselves as glamorous , the old as young, the young as older. Those of modest means wear elaborate jewelry, in virtual space , the crippled walk without churches , etc. We may employ anonymous and pseudonymous identities online and enact wild fantasy identities in online games and virtual worlds. In some cases, even virtual sex, marriage and divorce are made possible. Virtual participants may also have multiple characters, increasing one's anonymity..

[Audio] The third change brought by digital age is how we share and what we share about us. Uploading, downloading , sharing , and others provide free access of information through web surfing. But how does sharing of possessions online enhance our individual and aggregate sense of self? One of the key factors for sharing something online is having an emotional connection. Research says that experiencing a surge of emotion – positive or negative – makes us more prone to share news, stories, images or videos online, which in turn let's others know about our feelings. According to researchers who have tried to identify motivations of social media users, people could share an article or video for a variety of reasons: Fun and entertainment, Self presentation, Developing relationships, Personal satisfaction, Demonstrating support and A memory aid.

[Audio] 1) Fun and entertainment: Nearly half of all users ( 49%) say that they share things that they found interesting; or that they think their friends will like. They use sharing on social media as a way to connect with others by offering interesting tidbits for their friends and family..

[Audio] 2) Self presentation: For a majority ( 68%), sharing on social media has become an effective way to tell people about who they are. Sharing only material that is in line with personal views is a (mostly) non-confrontational way to let people know what our interests are, how we think about different issues, and what our opinions are..

[Audio] 3) Developing relationships: Nearly 80% of social media users use these platforms as a way to stay in touch with friends and family. Gone are the days when moving cities or making life changes meant that you lost touch with old friends. For those who want to (and most do want to), social media lets people maintain relationships by sharing material with people we don't meet that often..

[Audio] 4) Personal satisfaction: When we have an opinion, what can we do with it?. Many ( 69%) now use social media as a platform to share these opinions – whether they be about politics, social issues, or products used – with others. This often connects us to like-minded people; and interacting with them makes us feel better..

[Audio] 5) Demonstrating support: When tragedies occur, like the recent terrorist attacks in Paris, people can often feel helpless and confused. One of the ways that people respond to these types of events is via social media. Changing your profile picture or posting messages of solidarity is a way for people to express their support for friends and wider, global issues. Sometimes dubbed slacktivism, this type of support however, has its critics..

[Audio] 6) A memory aid: An interesting side effect of sharing something, is that we tend to remember it better than material we read / hear but do not share. It's likely that this happens because we pay more attention to the material we plan to share; or because the act of sharing creates a more detailed memory..

[Audio] Different personality types share for different reasons. Research shows that extroverts, for instance use social media to supplement their existing social networks. Introverts on the other hand use it to compensate for their difficulties in interacting with a lot of people. With the rise of social media, a new set of personality characteristics – specific to how people use different social media platforms – have emerged. According to one study most people who share on social media fall into one of six categories based on what material they choose to share and how they go about doing it..

[Audio] The Hipster shares material to cultivate discussion and debate, and likes to be ahead of the new topics as they come..

[Audio] The Altruist tends to share because they want to help people stay informed about the new opportunities and ideas..

[Audio] The Selective will share posts directly with someone who they think can profit from receiving them; and likes to receive appreciation for doing so..

[Audio] The Careerist uses online material to build professional contacts and engages meaningfully in incoming as well as outgoing material. The Connector uses social media to build and fortify relationships that they have in the physical world and tend to share more heartwarming and meaningful material. Finally, the Boomerang likes to share posts that will spark a controversy or start a debate since they enjoy the attention this creates..

[Audio] The Connector uses social media to build and fortify relationships that they have in the physical world and tend to share more heartwarming and meaningful material..

[Audio] Finally, the Boomerang likes to share posts that will spark a controversy or start a debate since they enjoy the attention this creates..

[Audio] The fourth change is the Co-construction of Self. Our digital involvement is social in nature. Our blogs invite comments, social interactions which help in constructing our individual and joint extended sense of self as the new version of Cooley's " Looking Glass Self Theory" known as the collaborative self. What are the effects of this? Seeking affirmation is obviously identified. Friends also help to construct and reaffirm each other's sense of self through their postings, tagging and comments..

[Audio] Lastly, it serves as memory aid. In a digital world, there is a new set of devices and technologies for recording and archiving our memories. The dilemma is seen in the narrative of the self. Our identity is not to be found in behavior nor in the reactions of others but in the capacity to keep a particular narrative going, done by continually integrating events in the outside world into our ongoing story about the self. Photos posted in the online world may not be accurate in giving memories in the past since the photos, blogs, etc. may just be selected representations of happy times, may not be sufficient to tell our stories..

[Audio] As part of your activity, you are to answer the following questions at the LMS. Each question is equivalent to 5 points..