The Web of Identity: A Model of Digital Identity Formation in Networked Learning Environments

Marguerite L. Koole, Gale Parchoma

Source Title: Digital Identity and Social Media

ISBN13: 9781466619159|ISBN10: 1466619155|EISBN13: 9781466619166

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-1915-9.ch002

MLA

Koole, Marguerite L., and Gale Parchoma. "The Web of Identity: A Model of Digital Identity Formation in Networked Learning Environments." Digital Identity and Social Media, edited by Steven Warburton and Stylianos Hatzipanagos, IGI Global, 2013, pp. 1-15. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-4666-1915-9.ch002

APA

Koole, M. L. & Parchoma, G. (2013). The Web of Identity: A Model of Digital Identity Formation in Networked Learning Environments. In S. Warburton & S. Hatzipanagos (Eds.), Digital Identity and Social Media (pp. 1-15). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-4666-1915-9.ch002

Chicago

Koole, Marguerite L., and Gale Parchoma. "The Web of Identity: A Model of Digital Identity Formation in Networked Learning Environments." In Digital Identity and Social Media, edited by Steven Warburton and Stylianos Hatzipanagos, 1-15. Hershey, PA: IGI Global, 2013. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-4666-1915-9.ch002

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Abstract

This chapter examines how learners develop a sense of self and belonging in networked learning environments. The authors propose that individuals create and negotiate their identities through an iterative process of dialogic and symbolic exchange with other individuals. The process is always in flux as individuals constantly readjust their understanding and actions within a given context. Individuals strive to reach comfortable levels of cognitive resonance in which they integrate experiences and beliefs of the external world into their personal narratives. To explain this process, the authors provide the Web of Identity (WoI) model. Based on the work of Goffman (1959) and Foucault (1988), this model is composed of five dramaturgical strategies: technology, power, social structure, cultural, and personal agency. These strategies both guide and enable the enactment of behaviour. For researchers, exploring identity and affiliation through the WoI lens raises a series of thought-provoking questions worthy of further investigation.