Abstract
Studies of identity and location-based social networks (LBSN) have tended to focus on the performative aspects associated with marking one’s location. Yet, these studies often present this practice as being an a priori aspect of locative media. What is missing from this research is a more granular understanding of how this process develops over time. Accordingly, we focus on the first six weeks of 42 users beginning to use an LBSN we designed and named GeoMoments. Through our analysis of our users' activities, we contribute to understanding identity and LBSN in two distinct ways. First, we show how LBSN users develop and perform self-identity over time. Second, we highlight the extent these temporal processes reshape the behaviors of users. Overall, our results illustrate that while a performative use of GeoMoments does evolve, this development does not occur in a vacuum. Rather, it occurs within the dynamic context of everyday life, which is prompted, conditioned, and mediated by the way the affordances of GeoMoments digitally organize and archive past locational traces.
Publication Date
Summer 2021
Document Type
Article
Department, Program, or Center
School of Interactive Games and Media (GCCIS)
Recommended Citation
Papangelis K, Saker M, Khan JV, Cao T, Saker M, Chamberlain A. Locating Identities in Time: An examination of the Impact of Temporality on Presentations of the Self through Location-based Social networks. Submitted to the ACM Transactions on Social Computing. ISSN: 2469-7818. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/3473043.
Campus
RIT – Main Campus
Comments
© The Authors 2021