DOI: 10.11118/978-80-7509-820-7-0318

SHAPING AND MANAGING SELF-IMAGE AND MODULAR IDENTITY 2.0 – THE CASE STUDY OF POLISH LANGUAGE WIKIPEDIA USERSPACE

Sebastian SKOLIK, Anna KARCZEWSKA, Katarzyna KUKOWSKA

The user pages of Wikipedia enable self-presentation and are used to build a personal brand. Managing self-image is possible, among others, by small banners called userboxes. Initially, they were supposed to be objective information about someone, not an element of self-presentation of one's personality. However, different types of userboxes were introduced.
Purpose: The aim of the research is to analyze the use of the userboxes in the context of managing one’s self-image and discussing the idea of modular identity 2.0.
Methodology: In the presented research, an attempt was made to characterize the course of the variability of userboxes as cultural elements that allow to shape and manage the image and determine the identity of the individuals posting them. For this purpose, qualitative and quantitative analysis of the content of the userboxes placed on the userpages was conducted, focusing primarily on the frequency of their occurrence and their modification over time.
Findings: The analysis of the content of over a thousand userboxes shows that after a short period of high variability at the beginning, the growth of new banners became smaller. As the results indicate, the most frequently replicated userboxes in Polish-language Wikipedia are those related to Wikipedia's digital environment, community identity and health. Moreover, the construction of self-image is becoming more and more reproductive, schematic and based on imitation.
Research limitations: Research has been conducted on one language version of Wikipedia. Some further comparisons with other language versions are recommended.

Klíčová slova: digital marketing, image management, personal brand, userboxes, Wikipedia

stránky: 318-326, Publikováno: 2021, online: 2021