Sunday, February 25, 2007
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
part of my thesis...
This is a section of my thesis that I thought would provide some background for future discussions of virtual communities.
One of the founding texts in the history of community theory was written by German sociologist Ferdinand Tonnies in 1887. His work Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft presents a sociological theory of community by making a distinction between community and society. His idea of Gemeinschaft (community) was based on the subjective or essential will of the members. That is, its very existence is based on the consciousness of belonging together and the affirmation of mutual dependence. This shared togetherness results from the essential will, in which individual members see themselves as means to serve the goals of the group.
This characterization makes Gemeinschaft fundamentally different from Gesellschaft. For Tonnies Gesellschaft (society) is a grouping based on rational or arbitrary will. This type of group refers to purposefully types of relationships. Rational will is characterized by an individual seeing the social group a a means to further his individual goals. Therefore, Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft are essentially opposite in terms of an individual’s means for becoming part of a social group. Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft are each characterized by different, mostly opposite, components, as seen below. [1]
Gemeinschaft
• strong identity with community
• emotionalism/sentiment
• traditionalism
• holistic relationships with other members
• Example: families, neighborhoods
Gesellschaft
• no identification with community
• affective neutrality
• legalism
• segmental conceptions of other members
• Example: company, state in modern society
The distinction between and Gemeinschaft (community) and Gesellschaft (society) represents and important foundation for understanding for community theory and community studies. The ideal distinction, however, is never completely seen in practice; most social groups a a combination of the two ideals.
[1] Dr. Cindy Jardine. Introduction to community studies. Dept. of Human Ecology, University of Alberta,
2006.
One of the founding texts in the history of community theory was written by German sociologist Ferdinand Tonnies in 1887. His work Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft presents a sociological theory of community by making a distinction between community and society. His idea of Gemeinschaft (community) was based on the subjective or essential will of the members. That is, its very existence is based on the consciousness of belonging together and the affirmation of mutual dependence. This shared togetherness results from the essential will, in which individual members see themselves as means to serve the goals of the group.
This characterization makes Gemeinschaft fundamentally different from Gesellschaft. For Tonnies Gesellschaft (society) is a grouping based on rational or arbitrary will. This type of group refers to purposefully types of relationships. Rational will is characterized by an individual seeing the social group a a means to further his individual goals. Therefore, Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft are essentially opposite in terms of an individual’s means for becoming part of a social group. Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft are each characterized by different, mostly opposite, components, as seen below. [1]
Gemeinschaft
• strong identity with community
• emotionalism/sentiment
• traditionalism
• holistic relationships with other members
• Example: families, neighborhoods
Gesellschaft
• no identification with community
• affective neutrality
• legalism
• segmental conceptions of other members
• Example: company, state in modern society
The distinction between and Gemeinschaft (community) and Gesellschaft (society) represents and important foundation for understanding for community theory and community studies. The ideal distinction, however, is never completely seen in practice; most social groups a a combination of the two ideals.
[1] Dr. Cindy Jardine. Introduction to community studies. Dept. of Human Ecology, University of Alberta,
2006.
Monday, February 12, 2007
construction of identity
while pondering what to write in my next post, i have been thinking a lot about the construction of identity in online communities. i was reminded of a chapter i read earlier in the year as part of my thesis research and i though i would share some of the intersting points made by the author, Manuel Castells.
"Identity is the source of meaning and experience."
Castells describes many of the different building materials used in the construction of identity, including biology, history, reproductive institutions, collective memory, and personal fantasies. what i find particularly interesting about Castells's analysis is that he places identity construction within a framework of "social determinations and cultural projects that are rooted in their social structure, and in their space/time framework."
if identity construction is specific to a certain space/time we must consider the effect of networked society and the internet on individual construction of identity. indeed Castells remarks that "because networked society is based on the systemic disjunction between the local and the global for most individuals and social groups" it has changed the process on identity construction and introduced new forms of social change.
identity construction is affected in many ways by the communities one belongs to. as such, the community structure, what we now think of as a social network or an online community, not only affects identity construction, but it fundamentally changes the way individuals interact within a community.
Reference: Castells, Manuel. "The Power of Identity" Massachusetts: Blackwell, 1997.
"Identity is the source of meaning and experience."
Castells describes many of the different building materials used in the construction of identity, including biology, history, reproductive institutions, collective memory, and personal fantasies. what i find particularly interesting about Castells's analysis is that he places identity construction within a framework of "social determinations and cultural projects that are rooted in their social structure, and in their space/time framework."
if identity construction is specific to a certain space/time we must consider the effect of networked society and the internet on individual construction of identity. indeed Castells remarks that "because networked society is based on the systemic disjunction between the local and the global for most individuals and social groups" it has changed the process on identity construction and introduced new forms of social change.
identity construction is affected in many ways by the communities one belongs to. as such, the community structure, what we now think of as a social network or an online community, not only affects identity construction, but it fundamentally changes the way individuals interact within a community.
Reference: Castells, Manuel. "The Power of Identity" Massachusetts: Blackwell, 1997.
Friday, February 9, 2007
...dick in a box
In my "spare" time today I was of course browsing my friends' profiles on Facebook. Their most recent addition: the ability to give a "gift" to a friend. The various gift include everything from a thong to a troll, but what struck me the most was the box with a hole. For those who haven't seen the popular SNL video my dick in a box, this gift is straight out of the music video - a popular one indeed on YouTube.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=1dmVU08zVpA
What strikes me about this is the place of the Internet in popular culture. Without the mass distribution of popular media that is made possible via the Internet, there is no way this symbol of popular culture could have permeated social culture as is has.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=1dmVU08zVpA
What strikes me about this is the place of the Internet in popular culture. Without the mass distribution of popular media that is made possible via the Internet, there is no way this symbol of popular culture could have permeated social culture as is has.
Monday, February 5, 2007
questions to consider
as i said before this blog is for an anthropology class, life online. the class has an even bigger interest to me because i am writing one of my senior theses on essentially the same topic. i thought i would post some of the questions i have been thinking about in formulating my thesis. they are as follows....
While the main question of interest is to decide whether ICT's and CMC allow individuals to expand their social networks and the consequences of this new idea of community. One must also consider a number of related or illucidating questions as well. Some of these additional questions are outlined below.
What is community? What are the values of community? Do we need community? (theoretical discussion)
Do internet communication technologies (ICT's) create community? Are there specific communities that exist now that couldn't have before the advent of ICT's?
Does computer-mediated communication (CMC) allow people to expand social networks? Do the size of people social networks grow with internet use? Does it specifically expand the number of strong or weak ties in a person's social network?
Is CMC replacing face-to-face interaction and/or redefining community? Do people with high ICT use still participate in local community? How has the definition of community changes with the advent of the internet?
What about participation in online communities is highly desirable for some people?
Do online social networks resemble real world networks? Do they exhibit the same characteristics?
What are the consequences of using technology as a means of social interaction? Do people question their use of technology as a means of communication?
While the main question of interest is to decide whether ICT's and CMC allow individuals to expand their social networks and the consequences of this new idea of community. One must also consider a number of related or illucidating questions as well. Some of these additional questions are outlined below.
What is community? What are the values of community? Do we need community? (theoretical discussion)
Do internet communication technologies (ICT's) create community? Are there specific communities that exist now that couldn't have before the advent of ICT's?
Does computer-mediated communication (CMC) allow people to expand social networks? Do the size of people social networks grow with internet use? Does it specifically expand the number of strong or weak ties in a person's social network?
Is CMC replacing face-to-face interaction and/or redefining community? Do people with high ICT use still participate in local community? How has the definition of community changes with the advent of the internet?
What about participation in online communities is highly desirable for some people?
Do online social networks resemble real world networks? Do they exhibit the same characteristics?
What are the consequences of using technology as a means of social interaction? Do people question their use of technology as a means of communication?
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