68 Informatica Economică vol. 19, no.

3/2015

Homo Digitalis – in Search of a Patterned Usage Identity

Adrian STOICESCU
University of Bucharest, Romania
[Link]@[Link]

There is a great debate around the ways identity is shaped online, mainly as a result of
understanding the online as networked individuals. The present papers tries to open the
discussion on whether the quasi-synonym words constantly used to talk about the online
communication cyber, virtual and digital define the same reality or whether they can be
associated with particular aspects of the identity forged within the computer mediated
communication. The search for the differentiating aspects is carried out against the backdrop
of technological development which inevitably alters with every new aspect unveiled a new
side of each individual’s identity.
Keywords: Identity, Cyber, Virtual, Digital, Historical Development

1 Introduction
More than four decades ago, Clifford
Geertz [1] began the analysis of his The
constantly changing cultural realities. The
large array of fields which incorporate in
their texts such concepts on the other hand
Interpretation of Cultures by referring to erode their capacity of deciphering realities
Susanne Langer’s views on great ideas and the constant scientific hype around them
which, as she understood, appear all of a might eventually render those useless. A
sudden to offer a solution to all the questions fortunate way of escaping from a conceptual
unanswered before or to shed a new light on uselessness lays within the use of
those that had already been answered. determiners, functioning both to delineate the
Recontextualisation appears to be a sort of a filed in which they are used and to grade
key in reading the world as it has never been various particular usages within a certain
done before. But the overuse of such field.
terminology and the suitable-in-all-fields With an ever increasing pace of development
feature it may hold for a time eventually and ubiquitous presence, the field of
backfires. Such great ideas alongside their computer-mediated communication makes no
great wordings wear out becoming nothing exception. The scientific discourse constantly
more than buzz words. Strictly speaking, as borrows from adjacent narratives of social
Geertz suggests, the great ideas only science leading thus to a networked
transiently suffice the multitude of fields they conceptual frame pretty much in the sense of
may comprise of on various degrees. the networked individual it seeks to analyse.
On the other hand, before proving their This is, in fact, the purpose of this article: to
worthlessness and passing into the oblivion try to define a type of identity stemming
of the scientific discourse, such concepts from the contemporary use of technology, the
become the primary focus of epistemological digital identity.
debate under constant struggles to enlarge
and to fine tune their meaning. Far and away, 2 Identity
the greater the complexity of the era is, the Incorporated in the anthropological discourse
bigger the number of concepts defining the of the 60s and 70s of the 20th century, the
way the scholars narrate about their concept of identity migrated from one
surrounding realities. Today, such concepts discipline to another and changed its
are, among others, memory, trauma and meaning quite a few times [2], [3]. Of the
identity emerging as intrinsic to all social multitude of definitions and perspectives the
sciences discourses and combining in various concept incorporated over the years, only
ways to become sufficient in depicting the
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those useful to this paper will be reviewed same interactions manner on the relation
here. between the individual and the group,
Generally speaking, the central meaning performativity alters dramatically from the
today, resulting from the binary opposition emphasis placed on the group, in the early
with otherness, could be narrowed down to work of Goffman, to that on the individual,
an intricate exercise of self-identification as identity is represented now. A multiple,
with a group or the self-identification of a fluid and fragmented identity is to be found
group, whereas such identification is, in fact, on both definition leading to the idea of a
a constant cultural negotiation for achieving very strong connection to the context of
various degrees of sameness or, on the performing. But while for Goffman the group
contrary, paradoxically, various degrees of shapes the individual performance with a
difference. Identity is so seen as a process of view to select from the multiple, fluid and
constructing (rather than the construction fragmented identities a person has in order to
itself) based on `independent (or achieve sameness to any given circumstance,
individualistic) and interdependent (or Butler’s identity pictures the group as the
collectivistic) cultural construal's` [4]. The reality against which the individuals may act
fear of essentialism leads the discourse away or, most importantly, react, and enact various
from a type of reification it was subjected to aspect of the individual identity facets, for
thus enabling identity to become a synonym purposes of differentiation.
for multiplicity, fluidity and fragmentation Goffman’s perfomative identity represents a
[5]. kind of being tailored to the group
The trinomial enlargement of meaning may expectations in a sense of conformity, while
be seen as a direct consequence of the fact Butler’s is a kind of doing [8] exploring the
that the negotiation of identity is performed individualities in a solid grasp of conflicting
between the individual characteristics, i.e. disagreement.
personality traits, values and preferences, Furthermore, these two definitions picture
etc., and the social one, i.e. the roles a person perfomative identity first as means of
plays in the group [6]. empowering individual traits to fit a specific
But, it is crucially important to mention that socio-cultural context, while the second
the individual vs. the social characteristics in converts these to a sort of denial, the
shaping identity is hardly an invention of appropriation of the context traits being made
recent trends in conceptual appropriation, the to be tailored to the individual.
uneven weigh they carry having shifted
repeatedly over time. One of the classics of 3 Cyber, Virtual, Digital as Online
identity studies, Erving Goffman, in his Identities?
ground breaking The Presentation of Self in Narrowing down the concept of identity to
Everyday Life deems identity as perfomative, the software-dependant environment, it
picturing it as theatrical and understanding it comes natural to say that the fluidity of
in its mobility of the role. For him, identity is mainly determined by constant
performance represents: ‘all activity of an transformation the technology is subjected to.
individual which occurs during a period Each and every hardware or software
marked by his continuous presence before a upgrade immediately reverberates through
particular set of observers and which has the intricate process of identity building.
some influence on the observers (…) [and To begin with, the matters related to identity
this performance] regularly functions in a building within the larger context of the
general and fixed fashion to define the human computer-interaction processes must
situation for those who observe the be clarified in the sense that, although much
performance’ [7]. of the studies condense over the computer
By sheer contrast, although both meanings of mediated-communication, that intrinsically
identity presented above capitalize in the contain the online component, there is

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another smaller but far from being neglected extent the words cyber, virtual and digital
aspect related to this interaction in can actually represent individual types of
connection free contexts. It is here the place identity or rather patterns of exclusion
where one should consider the early stages of relevant for the development of interaction,
that particular interaction with the devices and, at the same time, being the hyponyms of
that run on a particular software that does not the types of interaction with or enabled by a
require connection to the Internet. softwared device. Of course, this association
Surprisingly or not, they were designed for does not represent a definitive way of
children in the form of animated toys and classification but rather an opening path to
offered the first glimpse of ‘computers in the further discussion mainly due to the fact that
culture of living things’ [9]. These toys offer, they are interchangeably used in the online
as it shall later on be seen, a strong identity research fields today.
component to the first stages of possible Furthermore, the three words are very rarely
classification in the identity shaping process. used as nouns but rather as adjectives (or
The second type of identity construct on the determiners) collocating with basically every
realm of human-computer interaction is the word used for the scientific approach to the
special type of individual or group identity software-animated devices: cyberspace,
building process in the online environment cyberpl@y or cyber greeting [12], virtual
which is polarised around connection. worlds, virtual relationships, virtual identity
Irrespective of the stage of its technological or communication, virtual reality, virtual
development, but in a reductionist view, the persona and the list may go on. Even the
rather simple Internet architecture consists of disciplines themselves negotiate the
individual pages all linked together. It pretty terminological use, oscillating between
much doubles the way the humankind exists virtual / digital ethnography or anthropology
as a network, but on a virtually infinitely or, furthermore, with rather limited usage,
higher scale. In fact, O’Neil defines the cyber-ethnography [13].
Internet in such words as ‘a network, a Reading thus the recent text on various
connection of nodes by ties. Any node on the aspects related to the online identity people
Internet is accessible from any other node, display might become a conundrum since
and there are no differences between the ties concepts appear to be used as it may be
that connect the nodes: all hyperlinks are handy at a certain moment. Only one sample
equal’ [10] which, in turn, enables a of such randomly picked texts might be
‘spontaneous expression and organisation enough in order to justify the need for
[11]. terminology clarifications: ‘based on virtual
But such a perspective on the Internet is both ethnography and discourse analysis of online
self-contained and rather useless for the user arenas that are central to Israeli transgender
generated content perspective that moves community, the study indicates that
away from the Internet as an object to the transgender users employ cyberspace in three
Internet as a medium. Additionally, for the main ways: as preliminary, complementary,
purpose of placing under scrutiny the and/or alternative spheres. By paying close
onliners’ identity, the Internet definition attention to cyberspace as an alternative
leaves aside the technical devices that sphere, which is especially pertinent to the
function as gateways to it. In other words, transgender users, the paper revisits two
not only the Internet as either object or central issues in Internet research, namely the
medium is relevant, but the computer relationships between the online and the
(irrespective of its shape) too, especially if offline worlds, and identity issues
the identity building process espouses the (authenticity versus falseness) within the
historical perspective. online settings’ [14].
Having this in mind, the question to be asked Quoting such a long piece of text is not for
that stems from this periodization is to what the purpose of a critical reading of the

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author’s undertaking, but for that of seeing words might me added including the cyborg,
how the language of this constantly this last one carrying a certain degree of
developing scientific field may be additional meaning for the subsequent
insufficient or confusing when describing its undertaking in the discrimination among
object. In term of scientific approach, the meanings process.
author states his methodology as belonging Besides a comprehensive review of the
to the field of virtual ethnography by means definitions cyberspace benefited from during
of which he intends to conduct a research on its short but intense scientific depiction life,
the Internet, embracing together both the Strate conceptualized it in the form of a
online and the offline, by conducting complex structure of superimposed layers of
participant observation and discourse physicality, meanings and perception: ‘to use
analysis in the cyberspace. What he basically an architectural analogy, the zero order is the
does here is to put together virtually all the equivalent of a building’s basement or lobby
words at hand at the moment which, even as opposed to the first floor. The next level I
though can be synonyms to a certain point, as refer to as first order cyberspace; it focuses
we shall from this point later see, are but on cyberspace’s basic elements or building
synonyms. blocks. The final level is the second order
The first aspects to be contextualized revolve cyberspace; it represents synthesis of those
around cyber which, when used in the field basic elements.’ [19]
of human computer interactions, statistically Intended as a taxonomy of cyberspace,
speaking, takes the form of the compound Strate’s concept charting [20] is extremely
nouns cyberspace. The first use of the term valuable since it combines the referenced
appears on the other hand to have more to do sources in a wider definitions that are
with the fiction rather than science, the transparent in the sense of a chronology
person being credited with the creation of the following each author’s approach and, most
term being William Gibson in his 1984 novel valuably the connection between the
Neuromancer [15] in which the main individual and the very diverse degrees of
character displaces himself on a realm of the coherency displayed in the relations to the
networked computers where he finds ‘an softwared object.
alternative and rather dark social universe Strate’s up to date to the year 1999 taxonomy
whose interaction with real life drove the coalescences idea of space both as strictly
novel’s plot’[16]. fictional (in the traditions inaugurated by
Although besides creating the word nothing Bukatman or Gibson) and relational as with
else appears to be standing out of Gibson’s the all other definitions reviewed.
word the escape behind the computer Furthermore, the relational feature such
network reality may offer a clue on potential definitions share is tightly related to the idea
meanings of this word. The matter of that cyberspace is mind-generated as a result
alternative reality is what one should be from the human-computer interaction, or
reminded of when it comes to this, and, more quite differently, it is generated by the
importantly, that of navigability [17] computer interface and the human senses.
Strictly lexically speaking, cyberspace Last but not least, cyberspace is defined by
belongs to rather significant in number the material base of the hardware and the
family of words, parented as it appears in its usage they are subjected to.
present meaning by the 1948 Norbert But on the other hand, such a great
Weinder’s term, cybernetics. Cognate among agglutination of definitions and conceptual
themselves by the compound element cyber, appropriations leaves the impression that
the list is varied and complex: cyberpunk, cyberspace in a very wide reality combining
cyberculture, cyberlife, cybernauts, fact and fiction, materiality and mind
cyberselves, cybersec cybersociety, projection, relations and individual
cybertime [18], to which a great deal of other experience.

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In fact, it is the place here to look back to Without any doubt, or at least for the digital
what human-computer interaction really natives, computers not only build up identity
represents. The present meaning of computer but they also validate it. The question that
irrevocably links it to the idea of connection springs to mind now is to what extent they
to other similar devices, which is in fact the exert influence on this process of growing up
corner stone of the networked-self as it may technologically and, moreover, which is the
appear in various discourses. This is the measurable contribution easily
reason why I preferred so far the use of the distinguishable in their identity profile. This
softwared devices instead of other phrases in question, rather difficult to answer this day,
order to cover the reality of the first such appears to have a solution in Turkle’s
devices that were not able to connect. From analysis. Irrespective of the complexity of a
this point of view, the relational nature of computer, ‘a medical diagnosis, a move in a
cyberspace must be taken into account, chess game – all the computer really does is
which, in fact, leads to three types of distinct add. [24]’
relations: the first, between the human and Whether it betters an old functionality or
the software device which is unable to develops new ones, whether it sharpens
connect, the second, the human and the perception or opens new mediated ones, this
connectable devices, whilst the third is the early stage in computing technology is no
core of the computer-mediated more or no less than an add on to humans.
communication, the relation between humans This early assumption on what the computer
via a software connectable device. It is my does for the humans (and less on what the
belief that this tri-level relation classification computers does to the humans), opens the
can on the other hand offer a key in grounds for bringing forth the previously
reassessing the history of concepts in the mentioned concept of cyborg.
field of human-computer interactions. Although helpful to a certain extent to
At the same time, one should also take into understand what cyberspace is and
account another factor of discontinuity when additionally how identity takes shape, the
it comes to defining the cyberspace and concept of cyborg proves to be equally
identity: the digital natives [21]. Identified in challenging when it comes to being defined.
connection to the education studies, the The understanding of a cyborg as a coherent
digital natives oppose the digital immigrants combination between human and mechanical
as being brought up in a computer world or electronic parts is easily transcended by
opposes the learning process of a second picturing it as ‘all entities that carry human
language. culture’ [25], basically capitalising further on
Sherry Turkle [22] opens her ground what Turkle hinted at as the addition
breaking 1984 study by addressing issues provided by a computer. But these cultural
surrounding the novelty represented by the bearing devices are moreover subject to an
rather rudimentary devices that run on even a adaptive nature, pretty much like the natural
more rudimentary software which children beings adapting to the environment [26]. To
computer toys represented back then, this end, the cyborg is definitely seen as a
followed by the more complex reality of user responsive entity both in complying
video games, both in arcade and at home, or with the tasks it receives and in the sense of
the early impact of introducing computers in its very own adaptive nature to the new
schools. Either questioning the human nature requirements from its users which are
of such device or trying to understand those converted in new capabilities the software
in their own particular system of meaning, provides.
the early forms of computers represent, as The cyborgic adaptive nature of software
Turkle pinpoints unarguably, an integral part devices is on the other hand specific only to
‘in their process of world and identity two of the three categories of relations
construction’ [23]. mentioned earlier, namely human-human

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interaction mediated by the softwared computer-mediated performed identities.

devices and that between the humans and the And equally true such identities are shaped
connectable ones. on the realm of fluidity, multiplicity, and
The introductions of connectivity to all the fragmentism as stated at the beginning of this
discussion here recasts the understanding of paper.
the devices and contiguously the process of Yet such identity features although unevenly
the identity building they are a part of into a identifiable in all types of online interactions
new kind of mould in which the cyborgic which may be reduced to only two
nature of space becomes dramatically altered. contiguous dimensions – with the content
Overstepping the views picturing the and with the other users – seem to embody
computer as a tool and growing increasingly realisations on at least two levels of content
distant from an exclusive utilitarian the cyberspace comprises of. These two
understanding of computing, the introduction levels on the other hand are but dissonant:
of the Internet brings a third variable to the the cyber and the virtual. The latters is but a
binomial relations. Especially synchronous portion chiselled out of the much larger
its mass accessibility the identity build online environment of cyberspace.
now is pretty much carved out of the bulk of Virtual reality is ‘a new kind of environment,
features the Internet has. First, the negated created by human perceptions triggered or
geometry and the death of distance [27] mediated by a video computer technology’
creates in the connected world of the online [30]. Pretty much identical to the cyberspace
the ‘potential of immediacy and the itself, becoming now its synonym for the
experienced reality of waiting for same mediated reality in which the content
information to download’ [28]. can be modified, personalised, incorporated
Of course here Hine literally refers to the or denied, virtuality is thus only a part of
actual process of retrieving numbers of bytes cyberspace. It is that part of literally
of information either in the form of a file or fictionalised existence benefiting from what
in that of accessing the informational content Coleridge defines as suspension of disbelief
of a site, and thus consuming the pieces of [31] in the immersion in a very particular
identity the other, the skilled ones, to type of environment. Although constantly
paraphrase O’Neil, who will later on, once associated with literature the very essence of
the web 2.0 is developed, become the which it is, fiction is embodied on the other
authoritarian figures that shatter into pieces hand an as constitutive element of a large
the equalitarian structural view on the portion of the Internet in which it actually
Internet by incorporating ‘structural shapes the individual identity. This fictional
inequalities’ and a sense of domination [29]. identity located on the realm of cyberspace
But above this, the moment of great is, unlike other types of fiction, at the same
importance in marking a total switch in the time performative and conditioned, and
way the individual becomes involved with exclusively found on web-based platforms
the online is that when the content hosted like Second Life and pages from Facebook or
here becomes user generated. I will MySpace [32] to name just a few.
deliberately jettison matters of identity Virtual worlds on the other hand must be
related to either solitude or togetherness, defined resorting again to binary oppositions.
online / offline continuities or discontinuities, They oppose the real worlds to which they
utopian or dystopian orders the online may still remain linked [33] and, most
offer. Although relevant to a great extent and importantly, they oppose a part of cyberspace
very much debated over in huge series of which paradoxically they are a part of in
pros and cons they fall aside the purpose of some constitutive elements which are the
this present undertaking. Indeed all the recreation of the real world.
binary oppositions above can be easily The virtual worlds and implicitly the virtual
perceived and form integral parts of identity oppose the real world in the sense

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that they are a fictional derivatives of it, but, telling. Not only does each individual create
most importantly, they do not constitute and a fictional virtual world of its own but at the
antagonistic facet of humans, nor do they same time it enacts the narration which is
represents a recent addition to the humankind actually now ‘written’.
contemporary to the technological boom To sum it up, the virtual world which
from the last couple of decades. In the World generates the virtual identity is only one
of Techne, Boellstorff drawing on Turkle’s limited side of the much larger cyberspace. It
work considers virtuality as an opening of a incorporates literally the creation of a
different platform of the operating system it personal narrative which the user both
is programmed to function in the way to ‘writes’ and ‘plays’ the entrance in which
incorporate its relation to technology [34]. following the rules of fictions (be it mimetic
This world of games, the virtual, can thus be or not) in the sense literature allows the
seen pretty much in the complex manner creation of new worlds. Furthermore, such
Goffman understood the performed identity worlds and their identities are conditional, in
as a ‘front stage’ undertaking. It is on the the sense of adjusting the narrative to the
other hand, a way to further take the idea of technical constraints the designers impose
performance. The virtual identity first and performative in the sense of simulating
conditionally creates its world, its rules, and the existence.
its patterns of interaction so that only after it
can be literally performed. In fact, such 4 Homo Digitalis
world resemble a lot fairy tale in the sense of The incorporation of the digital in the
its fictional conditionality. A preset system of discourse about the human-computer
blocks of action or functions as V.I. Propp interaction is a novelty and its attributive use
[35] names them are selected and combined is linked to the creation of a new discipline,
in order to make the narration of a folktale. the digital anthropology. Claiming ‘the
Pretty much similar, a virtual world is also profound theoretical silence’ [37]
combined from a predefined set of images surrounding the term digital, Boellstorff
this time, which may be in the form of some dismisses the digital understood as a string of
sets of user actions the alteration of which is 0s and 1s and, resorting to the indexicality
rather less possible. With various degrees of theory from linguistics, concludes that the
modification possibility these can be digital is the indexical sign for both online
combined and tailored to the user’s needs so and offline. Bearing this in mind, he
that they eventually incorporate into a interprets digital anthropology as being
coherent patterned interaction that form the ‘more than just a study of things you plug in
virtual life narrative. or even the study of Internet-mediated
But, if in the case of the folktale the sociality’ [38].
functions come from a generally accepted Although very coherent in the sense of
oral community system of values and the determining what digital anthropology is, the
incorporation of such functions answers the author only drops hints at what the digital
general views of such community, in the case may be when it does not collocate with
of the virtual worlds the negotiation process anthropology. A by far more useful account
of building the narrative takes part between to this end is Roger’s [39] who, advocating
the users and the virtual world general frame the end of real-virtual divide, again for
made by the designers who ‘have certain reasons of methodological clarifications,
goals and desires about what people will do’ draws the conclusion that the computer
[36]. But if in a folktale the degree of media are not so much relevant for
performance is limited to only a few representing refashioned media but more for
elements the teller might add when narrating, their capacity of production or, to put it in
the performance in the virtual worlds is other words, poetic dimension must be
extensively shaped as interactive story completed by a poietic one.

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The digital identity will become synonym to Of course the rather ludic way of presenting
first, the latest form of the Internet his categories questions the scientific value
embodying features of content generating of such findings, but leaving aside the not so
processes, second, the consumption of such very fortunate way of labelling some of the
user-generated content in order to fill in gaps categories, one can still perceive the rather
of knowledge, relations, and emotions, and strong social discontinuities the Internet users
third, the abolishing of the strong sense of represent when it comes to extrinsic factors
discontinuity between the technical and the of classification. This does not lead to the
non-technical sides of the individual. idea that uniformity is what the study of the
Keeping these three features in mind, the homo digitalis seeks, nor that such patterns
homo digitalis reveals under at least three will try to categorise extensively how people
facets which cognate to the cyber and virtual will shape identities by dissecting the
as understood before but which nevertheless patterns of interaction to their smallest bits.
bear the specificities of the technological The identity of homo digitalis will take shape
development. here by observing two types of interactions,
Attempt to classify internet users are a rarity that with the informational content and that
in the anthropological discourse since the with the other users of the digital
focus was almost exclusively on niches of environment. The first category of
how human behave on the online observation includes both the producing and
environment. Not surprisingly, such the consumption of web content, irrespective
classification come from the marketing of its types, ranging from ‘utilitarian’
specialists who, in order to target better their information (banking, schedules, online
activity, were interested in the patterns of buying, research on various aspect of
Internet usage. everyday life etc.) to ‘non-utilitarian’ one
One such attempt is Kozinets’ who, (gaming, Facebook or Tweeter post, etc.),
integrating the individual in the online whilst the relation to the other user focuses
community (and not communities understood exclusively on how a person posting online
as theme driven associations) by means of information of all kinds follows that piece of
the degree of involvement in the online, information and reacts to other posters
identifies four types of users: the newbies, linking to that information.
the minglers, the insiders and the devotees Combining these two criteria together brings
[40]. Furthermore, Kozinets identifies at the forth two major kinds of homo digitalis
same time some patterns of interaction based identities in term of the visibility of its
on the intensity of the relations, i.e. geeking, presence on line: the stealthy and the open
building, bonding and cruising [41] ones.
On the other hand, another study available This stealthy feature does not relate to
online, conducted on 2000 British consumers matters of anonymity the digital environment
by Davin Zeitlyn who claims he authored the analysis may foster, nor questions of avatars
‘fist digital anthropology report’ [42] but and misleading or camouflaged identity the
who might only benefit from the novelty of users may take when going online. This does
his title collocation, and posted by Jukka not refer either to the idea of traceability
Jouhki, takes such research a step further. which the core of other types of analysis. The
The six tribal categories of homo digitalis the stealthy homo digitalis simply represents the
author identifies benefit from an in depth type of individual who, irrespective of age,
identification in terms of gender, age, active gender or social class, uses the internet
profession and income weighed against the content just a source of information. He
British average. These are the digital never uploads, he is the type of the
extroverts, the timid technophobes, the social downloader which is in the form of the
secretaries, first lifers, e-ager beavers, and, retriever of information either literally saving
last, web boomer. web information on his local drive or reading

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or watching that information online. This made for him by others, but more the
type of homo digitalis fits best the category searcher, the hyperlink individual. That
of the consumer who puts no effort into particular type of interaction identity can be
generating content but only in getting it. understood as the position of the active
The stealthy homo digitalis is on the other information seeker who cross-checks what is
hand no different from the previous media available from the received feeds replacing
consumer for which the communication the horizontal trajectory of a simple gatherer
process has always been one-sided. Pretty with an in depth, vertical, detailed
much the communication process the stealthy undertaking in data mining.
domo digitalis is involved in resembles that If the gatherer simply turns on the alert on
of a monologue where only just one of the new topics the webpages host, the hunter
part encodes information, while the second actively involves in searching for these new
only decodes it. Stemming from this emergent topics besides simply being the
particular monological feature of the beneficiary.
communication process the stealthy homo Taking the discussion a steps further, the
digitalis enact exclusively the role of moment a user abandons the stealthy identity
audience. that particular user migrates from the role of
But such role of audience is what, in its turn, an audience to the role of the performer,
divides the rather large class of stealthy which, in turn is understood as content-
homo digitalis in two smaller classes which generating. The open homo digitalis is
we might name the gatherers and the hunters, noticeable in the sense that he produces
categories which migrate easily depending on content, and not in that of leaving trace of his
the interest on a certain topic. There is for the observance. His presence, on the other hand,
purpose of this identification of patterns of is observable not simply by hitting a like
consumption a preference for using this two button on a social media page or reposting a
roles separate and not in combined formula tweet, he is active in the sense of
as the evolutionary anthropologists do. The commenting those. Unlike the previous type
reasons for dubbing these as individual, of identity, the open digital individual grows
distinct types of identities is generated by the increasingly present by offering a sort of
way such digital individuals involve in the feedback to the information available to him.
process of accessing information. But this is only one side of his visibility
The gatherer stealthy homo digitalis is which employs the use of some ready-made
typically the subscriber to news feeds of any tools which have the purpose of expressing
type, chat rooms, message boards, mailing some feeling related to the content or just
lists or similar. He is in part the individual acknowledging that the information was
identified by Kosinetz as ‘the lurker’ [43] seen. More than this, the visible identity is
whose only interaction with the Internet synonym to generating content. This feature
content is simply harvesting whatever stresses the two-dimensional character of the
information is there at his disposal. But communication flow and involves the
unlike in Kozinets identification of this class, dialogical nature of the relation with the
the gatherer hardly makes any effort to informational content of the Internet.
migrate to another category of users, being Having such characteristics in mind, the
constantly satisfied with what the digital visible digital individual is not simply a
medium has to offer. consumer of the available information, but
The moment a gatherer starts to put some more, he becomes involved a process of
effort into searching whatever interests him, manufacturing demand. Such visible identity
he migrates from the easy posture of a simple for instance a blogger has leads to bouncing
recipient of data to the more challenging off ideas which is, above all, an offer made to
position of hunting for more. The hunter is an alleged general or niched audience. And
the individual not satisfied with the selection the greater the impact such information has,

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Informatica Economică vol. 19, no. 3/2015 77

the more evident the nature of manufactured 5 Conclusion

demand is. And even more, in some case, As the discourse on human-computer
like those in which the visible digital interaction and computer-mediated
individual doubles his roles of a performer communication shows both the methods and
with that of following the reverberations such the scientific jargon are borrowed from
posts have converts him to a monitor neighbouring science. At the same time, the
position. This position, in turn, may be at constant and rapid changed this field is
least divided in two. On one hand, the subject to poses new difficulties with every
monitor may simply act as a part in the new feature the softwared devices have. This
dialogue an earlier post has generated or, on is the reason why, to a much greater extent
the other hand, may become a sort of truth than any other social science the realities
holder position in the sense of censoring the behind the concepts are constantly adapting.
ideas which he dislikes. The monitoring Cyber, virtual, digital, online, Internet based
position converts in this particular instance in and so one proved thus to be challenging
the role of an information dictatorship either concepts which double the complexity of the
for own-generated content or for others’ medium the research is carried out on. These
when the open individual enacts the role of concepts that do not exclude themselves and
an administrator. trying to define very accurately each of the
Furthermore, such open individuals may may become a rather far-fetched undertaking.
have various identities with various degrees They are as fluid as the realities they define
of transparency either if it were to weigh it and that is why a conceptual description can
against the real life identity or against a only be done in terms of maybe and possibly.
constant avatar the individual may have The introduction of the homo digitalis
online. But this last feature may have little if identity makes no exception. It is only a class
none impact on the user generated content with various way of approximation based
since the discussion here does not aim to exclusively on the present stage of
build correlations between the real and the development of the softwared devices
digital identities, nor at the gap between the incorporating as seen various aspects the
online and the offline ones. earlier described realities.
Last but not least, these three types of
instances the homo digitalis may consist of Acknowledgement
benefit from a very high level of fluidity in This paper is supported by the Sectorial
the sense of abandoning one and taking Operational Programme Human Resources
another of these identity as it is the users Development (SOP HRD), financed from the
choices. More precisely, for instance, a European Social Fund and by the Romanian
stealthy homo digitalis may very easily Government under the contract number SOP
migrate to ad hoc visible one as the web HRD/159/1.5/S/136077
content may function as a trigger for such At the same, I would like to thank Acad.
identity development and very easily Florin Filip for being overly patient with
migrating back once the purpose of such reading my materials, discussing and
undertaking was reached. supporting me during the entire duration of
Finally, another distinction is to be made my postdoctoral research.
here, a distinction that has been earlier
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Inaugural Speech, Chair, New Media &

Adrian STOICESCU is a lecturer at the Department of Cultural Studies,

Faculty of Letters, University of Bucharest. He has graduated philology in
2003, has an M.A. in Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology and also has a
PhD in philology all from the University of Bucharest. His fields of interest
are the internet studies, cultural anthropology, gender studies, and cultural
studies approach to fictional texts.

DOI: 10.12948/issn14531305/19.3.2015.06