Ontological security as an unconscious motive of social media users

Abstract

Reactions to nostalgia-evoking content on social media platforms like Facebook and YouTube suggest an unconscious motive of ontological security, defined as a 'sense of presence in the world as a real, alive, whole, and in a temporal sense, a continuous person'. In addition to the unprecedented access to the past provided by social media, additional factors such as increasing human longevity, the acceleration of technological and social change, the expanded size and greater interconnectedness of social networks, the proliferation of directly and vicariously experienced places and the secularisation of society have contributed to a growing need for ontological security. Engagement with nostalgia-evoking social media content fulfils the need for ontological security by reintegrating memories of the past into an ongoing, self-affirming narrative or 'life story', while the digital archiving of photos and videos offers the possibility of 'digital immortality' for a virtual self that can be projected into the future.

Targeting Ontological Security: Information Warfare in the Modern Age

“…For one, debates are increasingly polarized, as technological advances enable the avoidance of dissonant, and acquisition of affirming, information (Lupovici, 2012, p. 818). Second, the Internet has become a primary “transitional object” for achieving OS, embedding individuals within online networks (Areni, 2019) that reinforce social affiliations and deliver digital sources of news (Milina, 2012, p. 55), providing the “warmth and information” critical for OS (Cohen & Metzger, 1998, p. 52). A consequence, however, is individuals are progressively interacting within “identity bubbles” (Kaakinen, Sirola, Savolainen, & Oksanen, 2020), helping increase partisanship as a salient social identity (Lupton, Singh, & Thorton, 2015; McCoy, Rahman, & Somer, 2018, p. 22).…”

Techno-Social Disruption, Autobiographical Obsolescence and Nostalgia: Why Parental Concerns about Smart Phones and Social Media Have Historical Precedents as Old as the Printed Word

“…Withdrawal could take many forms, some with disastrous consequences. Echoing contemporary concerns about suicides linked to social media (Areni 2019), earlier accusations about television addiction received considerable attention when a boy committed suicide after his father banned him from watching television (Silverstone 1994).…”

“…Yet, despite the negative publicity, usage rates of smartphones and social media have continued to climb (Areni 2019; Auxier, Anderson, and Kumar 2019), prompting concerns among parents and policy makers alike that smart phones and other “addictive” devices should have warning labels (Berthon et al 2019), age requirements (Busby 2019), and usage restrictions (Brown 2018), and that social media content should be regulated by the government (Leung 2019; Tay 2020). However, remarkably similar criticisms have been levelled against television, radio, newspapers, the telegraph, the printing press, and even the printed word in the past (Rymarczuk 2016), yet these (once technologically-advanced) forms of communication did not have apocalyptic effects on humanity.…”

“…DCT often impose profound changes in mundane, day-to-day behavior that create psychological divisions between contemporary practices and memories of experiences from the past. Life before the DCT seems psychologically remote, and in extreme cases, almost unreal (Areni, 2019). Autobiographical obsolescence also influences conceptions of the future because the break between the past and the present inhibits the ability of older generations to communicate and share past experiences with their own children and grandchildren (Moore, Wilkie, and Lutz 2002; Palan and Wilkes 1997).…”

“…These findings are consistent with the results of laboratory experiments examining the antecedents and consequences of nostalgia experiences (Juhl et al 2010; Sedikides et al 2015), and establish the ecological validity of the “existential functions” of nostalgia to consumer phenomena occurring in natural settings. Nostalgia channels on YouTube and other social media platforms have become big business generating millions of dollars per annum as consumers flock to these sites to view and discuss reminders of yesteryear (Areni 2019). This research proposes an underlying motive – anxiety about autobiographical obsolescence.…”