28-03-2018
Literature review - Self-representation of
crime in social media
INTRODUCTION TO MEDIA STUDIES I
, Self-representation of crime in social media
Literature review Word count: 1067
With the development of social media self-organized production by ordinary people has
increased. Examples of this self-organized production are self-authored web pages/blogs and
self-produced video and images on social media. This new opportunity of self-representation
led to the new phenomenon of people performing acts of crime in order to record them and
upload them to the internet. This kind of ‘will to representation’ can be seen as a new kind of
causal inducement to law- and rule- breaking behavior. I think the issue of self-representation
of crime in social media gives new light to the question that has already been asked so many
times: “Do media encourage crime or fear of crime”. I want to look at the literature
concerning the research question “How can the possibility of mediating oneself to an audience
through self-representation on social media, be bound up with the genesis of criminal
behavior?”.
This review will look at literature concerning the problem of self-representation of
crime on social media, to define key terms and concepts and to summarize relevant studies.
Existing research uses the following terms concerning ‘self-representation’: self-presentation,
self-formation or self-creation in identity building. Terms used to signify ‘social media’ are:
new/social communication media or social networking sites.
Identity relates to forms of communication in social media websites where identity is
developed. Stryker and Burke (2000) explain that identity theory must include a look at how
social structures like social media affect the self and how the self affects social behaviors.
This can be complemented by the theory of the self by Thompson (2005) “The self is a
symbolic project that the individual actively constructs out of symbolic materials which are
available”. In addition, Blumenberg pointed out in 1985 that in the modern age a new
conception of subjective ‘self-assertion’ lives in which the individual is both liberated and
required to create herself anew, without reference to pre-existing metaphysical anchors.
1
Literature review - Self-representation of
crime in social media
INTRODUCTION TO MEDIA STUDIES I
, Self-representation of crime in social media
Literature review Word count: 1067
With the development of social media self-organized production by ordinary people has
increased. Examples of this self-organized production are self-authored web pages/blogs and
self-produced video and images on social media. This new opportunity of self-representation
led to the new phenomenon of people performing acts of crime in order to record them and
upload them to the internet. This kind of ‘will to representation’ can be seen as a new kind of
causal inducement to law- and rule- breaking behavior. I think the issue of self-representation
of crime in social media gives new light to the question that has already been asked so many
times: “Do media encourage crime or fear of crime”. I want to look at the literature
concerning the research question “How can the possibility of mediating oneself to an audience
through self-representation on social media, be bound up with the genesis of criminal
behavior?”.
This review will look at literature concerning the problem of self-representation of
crime on social media, to define key terms and concepts and to summarize relevant studies.
Existing research uses the following terms concerning ‘self-representation’: self-presentation,
self-formation or self-creation in identity building. Terms used to signify ‘social media’ are:
new/social communication media or social networking sites.
Identity relates to forms of communication in social media websites where identity is
developed. Stryker and Burke (2000) explain that identity theory must include a look at how
social structures like social media affect the self and how the self affects social behaviors.
This can be complemented by the theory of the self by Thompson (2005) “The self is a
symbolic project that the individual actively constructs out of symbolic materials which are
available”. In addition, Blumenberg pointed out in 1985 that in the modern age a new
conception of subjective ‘self-assertion’ lives in which the individual is both liberated and
required to create herself anew, without reference to pre-existing metaphysical anchors.
1
