Beil 1 Derrick Beil Instructor: Malcolm Campbell English 1102 April 28, 2013

The Disinhibition Effect and the Differences between Online and Offline Identities
Russ Warner, a writer for Mom it Forward, stated that there are two types of the disinhibition effect: benign disinhibition, which results in positive effects; and toxic disinhibition, which results in negative effects (Warner). In other words, cyber-bullying and personal misrepresentation are things that would be caused by toxic disinhibition; and opening up online and revealing more personal information would be caused by benign disinhibition. Regardless of whether the effects are positive or negative, there are distinct differences in the way people act when online and offline. The disinhibition effect attempts to explain why people act differently when on the internet as opposed to the way they act in real life. This effect is defined by six different distinct factors that include: dissociative anonymity, the fact that most people online dont know the user; invisibility, the philosophy that others cannot observe a user while they browse through various webpages; asynchronicity, the idea that users do not have to interact in real time therefore eliminating the need for an immediate reaction; solipsistic introjection, the effect that non face to face communication has on users; dissociative imagination, the act of believing the personas (or characters) made online reside in an alternate space; and finally, minimizing authority, the ideal that if one cannot see anothers surroundings, they are unable to know that

Beil 2 they are at a high level of a societies hierarchy. (Suler) By analyzing the six factors within the disinhibition effect, one is able to diagnose or determine what may cause a person do certain things online and act completely different when in a real-world-offline environment. Personal misrepresentation has always been a part of online communication. This strategic misrepresentation occurs online because when a user has no real world connections with another user they are given the opportunity to create false identities. An article from the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, lists some aspects of a persons identity that are often changed or created. These aspects include (but are most certainly not limited to): personal assets, relationship goals, personal interests, personal attributes, weight and age (Hall et. al). After all, how would one user recognize if another user is being truthful about their identity when they have no real world connections with them? One of the most obvious reasons personal misrepresentation occurs is because online users have no way of knowing whether or not a person is being truthful. Without a base knowledge of a person in real life, an online user can basically fabricate anything they want without worrying if it will conflict with real life facts about themselves or others. This limited knowledge about an online user is best explained by the disinhibition factor called dissociative anonymity, or otherwise known as the You Dont Know Me effect (Suler). Dr. John Suler, professor and researcher at Rider University, states: If so desired, people can hide some or all of their identity . the word anonymous indicates people can have no name or at least not their real name. This anonymity is one of the principle factors that creates the disinhibition effect. When people have the

Beil 3 opportunity to separate their actions online from their in-person lifestyle and identity, they feel less vulnerable about self-disclosing and acting out. (Suler 322) Unlike real life encounters in which both parties have base knowledge (either previously known or inferred off of body language and other visual cues) about one another, online encounters may lack knowledge if any at all even exists. Furthermore, this lack of knowledge can give one a distinct advantage allowing them to feel as though their false truths will go completely unnoticed; which consequently gives them the ability to make themselves into any person they want to be (Warner). Also, as the new online identity is further developed on a continuous basis, the user may begin to feel less vulnerable thus making it exponentially easier to falsify personal aspects. However, on a not-so-negative angle, dissociative anonymity can also lead toward a person being able to reveal personal facts or even reach out for help when they wouldnt normally do so in real life (Suler). For instance, a person struggling with an eating disorder may not feel comfortable enough with their peers to express and reach out for help about the problem. In an online community, they can reach out for help without exposing their identity thus allowing them to be personal yet anonymous and protect their public image. But what if a persons real life public image remains unseen in instances when others want to know who they are? Furthering the effect of dissociative anonymity is invisibility, or otherwise known as the You Cant See Me effect (Suler). Much like the effect created by anonymity, invisibility gives users the ability to falsify portions of their identity; however, this is not created by a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of sight and sometimes even sound. For instance, one of the most common forms of invisibility can be seen on CatFish, a popular MTV documentary television

Beil 4 show. This show, directed by Yaniv Shulman, exposes some of the mishaps that occur when people in online relationships are unable to actually see one another. In almost every single episode, one user was duped and lied to. When the Catfish (or rather a user who lies about their identity) is confronted, it was revealed that more often than not, they used another persons picture(s) in their online profiles and created completely different identities that revolved around the fake picture(s) (Schulman). Moreover, when invisibility is coupled with anonymity, these fake identities can come across to others as very real people. People may think that this alone sounds completely ridiculous in its self, but it doesnt stop there. As a matter of fact, when confronted, these catfish did not seem to understand why the people they mislead in their online relationships were so distraught by their actions. This occurred because they had absolutely no emotional connection to the character they created thus consequently lead to them having no connection to the people they had lied to. Lack of emotional and physical connection between users brings us to our third factor, dissociative imagination. Dissociative imagination explains the reasons why there is an absence of connection between a user and the character(s) they create online. In fact, Suler states: Consciously or unconsciously, people may feel that the imaginary characters they created exist in a different space, that ones online persona along with the online others live in a make-believe dimension separate and apart from the demands and responsibilities of the real world. (Suler 323) For example, lets hypothetically say that Susan, a stay at home mother of three children, stays at home all day long and spends the majority of her hours perusing through social networking sites

Beil 5 like Facebook. However, she does not use her personal Facebook profile and uses one she made up in order to talk to other guys she finds interesting and attractive. This fake profile she created is essentially a means for her to experience the dating experience other attractive and single women have. She wants to feel desired for but does not intend to gain any emotional connection with her online partners. By separating her real-life self and her online-self emotionally, physically, and mentally, she has created a being that only exists in cyberspace. This online character only exists when she wants it too; therefore in essence it is a figment of her imagination. Much like dissociative imagination, solipsistic introjection deals mainly with ones interpretation of online beings and communication. One of the main reasons this factor exists is because online communication does not need face to face cues. When one combines online text communication with the absence of facial and body cues, interesting things occur. To put this in to perspective, think about reading a play, novel, or news article. When you read it in your head do you hear your own voice? Do you hear another voice? Think about reading this paper as if I were reading to you; what does my voice sound like? This effect is part of solipsistic introjection and it can have very powerful effects on ones interpretation of online communication and relationships. With this different interpretation, users may begin to somehow feel a connection to the characters they create online. Also, opposite to dissociative imagination, this effect may cause one to feel a connection to another user, whether that user be real or just another fake character. Moving away from mental influences in online communication brings us to the disinhibition factor asynchronicity, or otherwise known as the See You Later effect (Suler). This effect comes into play when a user posts something online and does not get instantaneous

Beil 6 feedback. Suler writes, Some people may even experience asynchronous communication as running away after posting a message that is personal, emotional, or hostile (Suler 323). For instance, when someone bullies another person online the delay acts as a shield that protects them from looking ridiculous if their subject has any smart comebacks. If the subject were to say something that would make the bully feel inferior, the bully has the choice to either completely ignore the response or wait and think of an even better response. Also, Daniel Goleman, a writer for the Ney York Times writes, the absence of information on how the other person is responding makes the prefrontal circuitry for discretion more likely to fail (Goleman). Or in other words when combining dissociative anonymity with a delay in response awareness, a user with negative intentions may not have the real life response necessary for them to recognize how they are really affecting people. Thus, without this recognition, online users can completely disregard the rules set by their society. But one should also keep in mind that the factor of asynchronicity does not solely deal with hostile communication. Some online users may actually use online communications asynchronous property as an emotional shield for certain things they reveal in online communities. Some people dont have the courage to reveal their real feelings and intentions in real life because they are afraid of what their peers will think of them and whether or not their opinions will have an immediate effect on their life. For example, homosexuals, both male and female, may feel that our society does not accept them. So, instead of revealing their sexuality to their peers in real life they do so through online communities. They may post how they are stressed or confused about who they really are without the worry of there being an immediate reaction which gives them the opportunity to see how others around the world feel about their situation before they have to deal with the reactions or consequences that come from revealing their sexuality.

Beil 7 Finally, when people communicate and interact online they are unable to see anothers surroundings. This creates an effect that minimizes peoples authority thus creating an online society that has little to no influence from the offline world. When there is an absence of authority figures from the real world, people online may begin to misbehave or do things that would not be acceptable when under the supervision of their real-world superiors. However, even though a lack of authority usually causes bad things to happen, it can also allow those who have issues or thoughts that they cant normally express to feel safer when real-life authority figures arent present. For example, Jimmy may not want to seek help for his suicide thoughts in real life because he is afraid that his superiors will intervene in his life too much; but in an online community he can express his feelings and thoughts without having to worry about any possible intervention from his superiors. The disinhibition effect can be seen in almost any online community and when sometimes its effects may be negative while other times they can be positive. Whether a person is reaching out for help or is trying to bully their peers, online communication can have many effects that extend from the online to the offline world. One thing people must keep in mind is that what we post on the internet will often be there forever. Even though those pictures of a person smoking weed were from 10 years ago, there is always the chance that it can somehow have an effect in the present. Moreover, one should also realize that having two different identities isnt always a bad thing. Sometimes online communication can have positive effects on a persons life. If a person is expressing or showing anything related to the factors of the disinhibition effect dont be so quick to judge; but rather, take a step back and try to analyze why they are doing things differently online as opposed to their real life identity.

Beil 8 Works Cited Cody Michael J., et al. "Strategic Misrepresentation In Online Dating: The Effects Of Gender, Self-Monitoring, And Personality Traits." Journal of Social & Personal Relationships 27.1 (2010): 117-135. Academic Search Complete. Web. 26 Feb. 2013. Goleman, Daniel. "Flame First, Think Later: New Clues to E-Mail Misbehavior." The New York Times. The New York Times, 20 Feb. 2007. Web. 28 Apr. 2013. Schulman, Ariel, Henry Joost, Ryan Kavanaugh, Brett Ratner, Tucker Tooley, Andrew Jarecki, Marc Smerling, Zac Stuart-Pontier, Mark Mothersbaugh, Yaniv Schulman, and Angela Wesselman. Catfish. Universal City, CA: Universal Studios Home Entertainment, 2011. Suler, John. "The Online Disinhibition Effect." CyberPsychology and Behavior. Vol. 7. NY: New Rochelle, 2004. 321-26. Web. Warner, Russ. "Anti-Bullying: Cyberbullies and the Online Disinhibition Effect." AntiBullying Cyberbullies and the Online Disinhibition Effect Comments. Mom It Forward, Inc, 4 Oct. 2012. Web. 08 Apr. 2013.