The Selfer, Personality in a Virtual Paradigm
An Ethnomethodological Study on the Subject of the Selfie
Abstract
In view of the emerging behaviors facilitated by digital innovations, this article proposes an insight of the development of identity in the virtual paradigm. The task is to inscribe the selfie phenomenon in an exploratory manner within a pertinent theoretical framework that allows apprehending its aspects in terms of value and relationships. Using a qualitative ethnomethodology (Semantic Analysis Based on Images), it’s sought to locate certain narrative of the body in a context of interdisciplinary exchange in relation to a hypothetical category; namely the Selfer. Compiled sources derived from psychoanalysis, psychology, sociology, cybernetics etc. offer to inscribe these new phenomena into theories of mediation and the Subject. The ethnomethodology employed here considers selfie-narrative as a deployment of the body image. The interest lies in understanding motivations and consequences as individuals and societies through discursive consciousness. A group of three components were derived from the collected data: Self, The Ideal Virtual Collective Self (IVCS) and the Symptom. The results are presented as a narrative analysis of the participants’ discourse. This study considers selfies as trans-aesthetic objects with notable elicitation of self-impressions, based on a critical analysis of the participants’ testimonies. The findings of this study are relevant in a social context in terms of exploring the effect of selfies on mental health, psycho-dynamics and semiology.
References
Barthes, R. (1986). El mensaje fotográfico. Lo obvio y lo obtuso. México, D.F: Paidós.
Canga-Sosa, M. (2015). Introducción al fenómeno del Selfie: valoración y perspectivas de análisis. Fotocinema. Revista científica de cine y fotografía, 10, 12-21.
Caillois, R. (1986). Los juegos y los hombres. Las máscaras y el vértigo. México, D. F: Fondo de Cultura Económica.
Corte, J. P. (2015). La morfología de la naturaleza humana. In J. Muñoz-Delgado, J. L. Díaz, & C. Moreno (Eds.), Genealogía de la mente humana, evolución, cerebro y psicopatología (pp. 393-394). México, D.F: Herder; Salud Mental.
Eagar, T., & Dann, S. (2016). #selfie: Genre categories in human branding: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, proceedings. France, Lille.
Freud, S. (2015). Civilization and its discontents. New York, NY: Broadview Press.
Freud, S. (1950). Totem and taboo. UK, London: Complete Psychological Works.
Han, B. C. (2015). El aroma del tiempo. Un ensayo filosófico sobre el arte de demorarse. Spain, Madrid: Herder.
Han, B. C. (2017). Psychopolitics: Neoliberalism and new technologies of power. New York, NY: Verso Books.
Jesús, Galindo C. (1998). Técnicas de investigación en sociedad, cultura y comunicación. México, D.F: Pearson Educación
Jiménez, E. (2009). Lacan y la definición de un sujeto atópico. In I Congreso Internacional de Investigación y Práctica Profesional en Psicología XVI. Argentina, Buenos Aires: Jornadas de Investigación Quinto Encuentro de Investigadores en Psicología del Mercosur.
Kazdin, A. E. (2009). Modificación de la conducta y sus aplicaciones prácticas. México, D.F: Editorial El Manual Moderno.
Kolmogorov, A. N. (1958). Cybernetics. Russia, Moscow: Bolschaya Sovetskaya Entsiklopediya, 51st Supplementary Volume.
Kyriazis, M (2015). Technological integration and hyperconnectivity: Tools for promoting extreme human lifespans. Complexity, 20, 15-24.
Lacan, J. (2009). Escritos (Vol. 1). México, D.F: Siglo xxi.
Lacan, J., & Fink, B. (2006). Ecrits: The first complete edition in English. UK, London: WW Norton & Company.
Lacan, J. (2002). Family complexes in the formation of the individual. Ireland, Dublin: Lacan in Ireland.
Lacan, J. (1961). Identification. Ireland, Dublin: Lacan in Ireland.
Lacan, J. (1990). Los cuatro conceptos fundamentales del psicoanálisis. 1964. Mexico, D.F: Paidós.
Luppicini, R. (2013). Technoethics and the State of Science and Technology Studies (STS) in Canada. Moral, Ethical, and Social Dilemmas in the Age of Technology: Theories and Practice: Theories and Practice, 5, 224-249.
Lyu, S. O. (2016). Travel selfies on social media as objectified self-presentation. Tourism Management, 54, 185-195.
Marwick, A. E. (2015). Instafame: Luxury selfies in the attention economy. Public Culture, 27, 137-160.
McLuhan, M., Powers, B. R., & Ferrari, C. (1995). La aldea global. Spain, Barcelona: Gedisa.
Murolo, N. L. (2015). Del mito del Narciso a la selfie. Una arqueología de los cuerpos codificados. Palabra-Clave, 18, 676-700.
Nasio, J. D. (2013). ¿Por qué repetimos siempre los mismos errores?. Mexico, D.F: Paidós.
Olguín, C. G. L. (2008). El discurso psicoanalítico y su implicación en la era posmoderna. Mexico, D.F: Acheronta
Rabaté, J. M. (2007). Lacan literario: la experiencia de la letra. Mexico, D.F: Siglo XXI.
Reynolds, T. J., & Gutman, J. (1984). Advertising is image management. Journal of Advertising Research, 24, 27-37.
Senft, T. M., & Baym, N. K. (2015). What does the selfie say? Investigating a global phenomenon. EUA, Washington, DC: archive.
Warfield, K. (2015). Digital Subjectivities and Selfies: The Model, the Self-conscious Thespian, and the# realme. International Journal of the Image, 6, 16-29.
Watzlawick, P., Beavin, H., & Jackson, D. D. (1981). Teoría de la comunicación. Mexico, D.F: Tiempo contemporáneo.
Zepeda Herrera, F., & Herrera, F. Z. (1995). Introducción a la psicología: una visión científico humanista. México, D.F: Pearson Educación.
This is an Open Access journal. All material is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence, unless otherwise stated.
Please read our Open Access, Copyright and Permissions policies for more information.
