Dhara
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- Jan 1, 2015
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- #21
Suler names six primary factors behind why people sometimes act radically differently on the internet from the way they do in normal face-to-face situations:
The notion of "You Don't Know Me" comes down to simple anonymity: when the person remains anonymous, it provides a sense of protection; within the framework of the Internet, this allows the user to move about without any kind of indication of identity or even distinguishing characteristics other than potentially a username. This kind of protection provides a meaningful release for people. They may feel free to say things they might otherwise be embarrassed by. It also provides an outlet for behaviors that others might term antisocial or harmful.
"Your rules don't apply here"
Online, a person's real life status may not be known to others. If people cannot see the user, others have no way to know if the user is a head of state, a celebrity, or a regular private citizen. While real-world status may have a small effect on one's status on the Internet, it rarely has any true bearing. Instead, things such as communication skill, quality of ideas, persistence, and technical ability determine one's status in cyberspace.[1] Additionally, people can be reluctant to speak their minds in front of an authority figure. Fear of reprisal or disapproval quashes the desire to speak out, and on the Internet, levels of authority that might otherwise be present in real life are often completely absent; this turns what might otherwise be a superior-inferior relationship into a relationship of equals, and people are far more likely to speak their mind to an equal than a superior.
Online disinhibition effect - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The notion of "You Don't Know Me" comes down to simple anonymity: when the person remains anonymous, it provides a sense of protection; within the framework of the Internet, this allows the user to move about without any kind of indication of identity or even distinguishing characteristics other than potentially a username. This kind of protection provides a meaningful release for people. They may feel free to say things they might otherwise be embarrassed by. It also provides an outlet for behaviors that others might term antisocial or harmful.
"Your rules don't apply here"
Online, a person's real life status may not be known to others. If people cannot see the user, others have no way to know if the user is a head of state, a celebrity, or a regular private citizen. While real-world status may have a small effect on one's status on the Internet, it rarely has any true bearing. Instead, things such as communication skill, quality of ideas, persistence, and technical ability determine one's status in cyberspace.[1] Additionally, people can be reluctant to speak their minds in front of an authority figure. Fear of reprisal or disapproval quashes the desire to speak out, and on the Internet, levels of authority that might otherwise be present in real life are often completely absent; this turns what might otherwise be a superior-inferior relationship into a relationship of equals, and people are far more likely to speak their mind to an equal than a superior.
Online disinhibition effect - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
