The Journey From Anonymity To Identity
In an earlier post, I had explored the motives for individuals to create and preserve their online alter egos. In the same post, I had also spoken about the coming convergence of digital and physical identities as the internet becomes a networking arena leading to business agreements, income generation and PR.
As more people are turning to the internet for income and influence generation, we find the masks coming off and true identities emerging. What are the reasons for people to shed their carefully cultivated anonymity to seek the glare of public exposure and therefore the ‘challenge’ of regulating one’s behaviour?
While anonymity allows independence without accountability, it also resigns the anonymous to obscurity. As the web gets more organised with greater self regulation, the anonymous population, in a sense, is shunned by ‘moderators’ and ‘members’.
As communities come under greater self-governance, the anonymous are marginalised and banished to the fringes of networks. They are treated as outsiders, strangers, even ‘savages’, as those who refuse to come under the ‘membership framework’. Legitimisation, therefore is the primary reason to shed anonymity within a community. With revelation of personal details, the formerly anonymous gains citizenship to the community. With citizenship comes credibility and the rights of expression and participation.
We fear what we do not know and understand. The anonymous triggers a sense of fear as we do not know who they are and what motivates them. The immediate reaction is one of self-preserving hostility induced by fear. This is another reason for the anonymous to gain legitimisation – to be rid of the hostility and gain acceptance by the community.
The drive to discard anonymity does not merely come from community reorganisation, it is also a function of the individual’s journey. While anonymity offers the advantage of watching and participating from a distance without the anxiety of experiencing humanity, it also speaks of individuals who are perhaps, immature at relationship building. This immaturity may stem from a lack of self esteem or simply from inexperience.
As the anonymous start gaining greater confidence and start cherishing relationships formed on the web, they start to feel comfortable in their own skin. To be accepted and cherished for who you are, to be consulted and listened to – these are the experiences that bring feelings of security. There is a comfort in shedding the mask and revealing your true self to your community in a ritual of registration, similar to a rite of passage.
The coming out of the anonymous is often influenced by ambition. One cannot garner fame by being anonymous. Followers need leaders that are visible, vocal and accessible. With social media, visibility could be a Facebook account and voice, a series of tweets. Social media mavens often go by chat handles, nick names, Twitter id’s – digital identities that make physical identities unnecessary, even obsolete. They organise rallies via Digg or Delicious and distribute propaganda via RSS.
However, the lure of being known in one’s entirety can be quite overpowering. Further, the web has become a tool not merely to generate influence, but also income – via books, conferences, workshops and partnerships. These diverse opportunities more than persuade the anonymous to leave behind anonymity and reveal their identity.
Some interesting thoughts on the same subject:
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/igeneration/video-the-repercussions-of-an-anonymous-web/5217
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_19/b4083064456431.htm
http://www.yalelawtech.org/anonymity-online-identity/we-are-anonymous-we-are-legion/
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