Lecture Notes on Identity, Gaming, and Social Theories

Key Concepts on Identity

• Flexible Identity:

  • Identity should be viewed as flexible, multiple, and changeable.
  • Gaming is often mislabeled as 'virtual,' implying it’s not real, but it constitutes a real part of one's identity.

• Gaming as Identity:

  • A 16-year-old spending hours gaming has a significant gaming identity.
  • Gaming incorporates specific language, expressions, and community membership.
  • Withdrawal from gaming is perceived as an attack on one’s identity.

The Onion Model of Identity

• Layers of Identity:
  • Traditional view: Identity as layers (e.g., work role, shopping role) with the 'real self' at the core.
  • Weekend or holiday as moments to express the 'real self'?
  • Reality: We are uniquely ourselves in various ways.

Dating Example:

• CV Analogy:
  • A CV does not define who you are in a dating context—highlights the difference in self-presentation across social situations.
  • Importance of learning to navigate different identities in various contexts.

Life Changes and New Identities

• Adapting to New Norms:
  • Life changes, such as illness (e.g., diabetes), require learning new norms and adapting to different identities.
  • New social interactions and relationships arise based on these changes.

The Role of Learning in Identity Formation

• Informal Learning:
  • Massive amounts of informal learning occur in the online realm (YouTube, Facebook groups).
• Norms and Identity:
  • Increase in the variety of identities and norms influenced by the internet.

Theoretical Framework: Émile Durkheim

• Relevance of Durkheim:
  • Examining classical social theory to understand contemporary social dynamics.
  • His view on society as a moral world that is structured by norms.

Key Ideas from Durkheim:

1. Moral World:

   • Norms are internalized and shape individual behavior within society.

2. Organization of Labor:

   • Modern society is organized by labor division rather than traditional structures (villages, religion).

Changes in Society Due to the Internet

• Escalation of Norms:
  • The internet drives diverse norms in different life areas.
• Specialization:
  • Increased need for specialization in professions and personal identities.
  • People buy narratives and identities connected to commodities.

Contextualizing Durkheim in Modern Society

• Societal Changes:
  • Early 20th-century sociologists sensed societal disarray, mirroring current perceptions of change due to the internet.
• Orthosociology:
  • Sociologists aimed to reconstruct society in response to perceived social crises.

Conclusion

• Acute Sense of Change:
  • The feelings of uncertainty and chaos in society are reflective of early sociological sentiments regarding transformation and identity.