Digital Gender Identities and Identity Construction in Social Media Culture

Abstract

With the advent of social media, gender identity has been renegotiated through interactions and the creation of personas on platforms such as Instagram, X (Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok. Unlike mainstream media channels, social media is a user-driven medium that allows people to generate representations rather than be dictated to or shaped by mainstream media corporations. In this manner, social media offers people from all walks of life, especially women and the LGBTQ+ communities, the means to engage in discourse and representation through their digital selves. Social media can both empower people to challenge traditional gender representations and be used to perpetuate inequalities within society. The present study investigates the link between digital gender identity and the politics of representation in today’s social media environment. By applying theories from feminist thought, queer theory, and cultural studies, the study analyses the performative aspects of digital gender representation and negotiation on social media. Specifically, the paper argues that social media is a space where both empowerment and regulation occur.