Some consequences of de-individuation in a group.

Festinger, Léon; Pepitone, Albert; Newcomb, Theodore M.

doi:10.1037/h0057906

Cited by 530 publications

(275 citation statements)

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“…Our results reveal that anonymity (on its own) did not affect the use of aggressive expressions in online comments: There was no difference between participants who had commented with the anonymous WordPress guest account and participants who had used their Facebook account. Based on deindividuation theory (Festinger et al, 1952) and research on incivility in online discussions (Santana, 2014), we had expected anonymity to be a driving factor for verbal aggression in online comments. The method of this study could be one reason for not finding any effects of anonymity because, other than most studies in the field of online aggression, we used a controlled experimental design and did not analyze existing data from web forums or online discussion groups.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This feeling of disinhibition may lead to "benign" or "toxic" effects in CMC, with toxic consequences, such as uncivil language, harsh criticism, threats, or hate speech in online comments (Suler, 2004). From a psychological point of view, people in a deindividuated state feel less inhibited and less responsible for their behaviors, and, as a result, act more antisocially and aggressively (Festinger et al, 1952). Thus, the process of deindividuation describes how individuals lose their identities and, by that, control over their behaviors.…”

Section: Anonymity Deindividuation and Aggressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Verbal Venting in the Social Web: Effects of Anonymity and Group Norms on Aggressive Language Use in Online Comments

Rösner

Krämer

2016

Social Media + Society

107

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Scholars often blame the occurrence of aggressive behavior in online discussions on the anonymity of the Internet; however, even on today’s less anonymous platforms, such as social networking sites, users write plenty of aggressive comments, which can elicit a whole wave of negative remarks. Drawing on the social identity and deindividuation effects (SIDE) model, this research conducts a laboratory experiment with a 2 (anonymity vs. no anonymity) × 2 (aggressive norm vs. non-aggressive norm) between-subjects design in order to disentangle the effects of anonymity, social group norms, and their interactions on aggressive language use in online comments. Results reveal that participants used more aggressive expressions in their comments when peer comments on a blog included aggressive wording (i.e., the social group norm was aggressive). Anonymity had no direct effect; however, we found a tendency that users’ conformity to an aggressive social norm of commenting is stronger in an anonymous environment.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Anonymity Deindividuation and Aggressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Verbal Venting in the Social Web: Effects of Anonymity and Group Norms on Aggressive Language Use in Online Comments

Rösner

Krämer

2016

Social Media + Society

107

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“…Largely influenced by descriptions of crowd behavior, Festinger, Pepitone, and Newcomb [5] defined deindividuation as a state in which people are not seen or paid attention to as individuals in groups or other collectives. Zimbardo [6] further developed deindividuation into a full-fledged theory.…”

Section: Anonymity Studies: From Loss Of Self In Crowd To Identity Swmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…He defined deindividuation as a complex, hypothesized process in which ante- To explain how anonymity produces deindividuation, early deindividuation theory proposed that immersion and anonymity in the group could result in a "loss of self" or at least reduced self-awareness [5] [6] [7] [8]. Whether the "loss of self" identity actually occurs in anonymous conditions becomes the key that distinguishes another school of deindividuation researchers [9] who argue that anonymity in the group does not necessarily produce a loss of identity, but actually promotes a switch from individual identity to social identity and enhances the salience of group identities.…”

Section: Anonymity Studies: From Loss Of Self In Crowd To Identity Swmentioning

confidence: 99%

Anonymity Effects and Implications in the Virtual Environment: From Crowd to Computer-Mediated Communication

Wang¹

2018

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Anonymity, an important feature of computer-mediated communication (CMC), is embedded in this new technology. With the penetration of the Internet in society, many daily activities involve online interactions. Anonymity affects both the task and social aspects of online communication including information exchange, decision making, and relationship development. This review examines the effects of anonymity on human behavior. It outlines how the prior literature has attempted to address this issue and how the Social Identity Deindividuation (SIDE) model has developed as an attempt to tackle this question. More importantly, it discusses a framework describing the multidimensions of anonymity in CMC [1], and subsequently raised five propositions inspired by this framework. Furthermore, using McLeod's framework, this review evaluates SIDE studies with regard to their anonymity manipulations. This critique reveals possible future research directions for refining the SIDE model and better studying the effect of anonymity in virtual environment. KeywordsAnonymity, Virtual Environment, Computer-Mediated Communication, SIDE Literature ReviewAnonymity, an important feature of computer-mediated communication (CMC), is embedded in this new technology. The internet community is quickly changing and evolving as more of the world comes on-line. Free speech and anonymity have always been important real-world societal issues. These issues are becoming increasingly important as more people discover the digital world and Interest in the effects of anonymity on identity issues is growing fast with an increasing diversity of empirical studies. In particular, research on deindividuation and its application in the online environment using the Social IdentityModel of Deindividuation (SIDE) [2] is influential and has started to snowball.However, given the fact that the definition and operationalization of anonymity are not agreed-upon among researchers, it poses a problem for generalizing across the results. Anonymity Studies: From Loss of Self in Crowd to Identity SwitchThis paper first provides a historical account of anonymity research. Early anonymity studies stem from the research on crowd behaviors. A crowd context alters the way in which people see themselves and their social world, as well as the ties that bind individuals [3]. As Reicher [4] summarized, "It frees them both from the ordinary relationships which bind them into social convention and also from the coercive power of authority. It therefore allows individuals to act upon their understandings even against the constraints of their opponents. In sum, the crowd provides both the inclination and the ability to act as a collective subject" (p.175). In other words, being an indistinguishable part of the mass leads to a mix of power without responsibility, which in turn makes crowd members act in uncontrolled ways. Incorporating this idea of the crowd mind-set in early anonymity research, social psychologists developed deindividuation theory, which claims that immers...

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“…So here was proof of the reality of Lord of the Flies principle. At that point, there had only been two studies on deindividuation, one by Festinger [ (Festinger, Pepitone, & Newcomb, 1952)] another one by Jerry Singer [(Singer, Brush, & Lublin, 1965)]. Their studies had no impact at all, in part because the Festinger study used as its dependent measure memory [and its correlation with subjective ratings].…”

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confidence: 99%

Philip G. Zimbardo on his career and the Stanford Prison Experiment's 40th anniversary.

Drury¹,

Hutchens²,

Shuttlesworth³

2012

History of Psychology

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name is mentioned often in tandem with the experiment, he has distinguished himself in many other areas within psychology before and after the experiment, beginning with an accomplished early career at New York University in which he took interest in social psychology research on deindividuation. We discussed the Stanford Prison Experiment in the greater context of his varied and illustrious career, including recent pioneering work on heroism, the establishment of The Shyness Clinic at Stanford University, and the iconic Discovering Psychology series. We also addressed his adroit and candid approach to the experiment itself over the years.

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Some consequences of de-individuation in a group.

Cited by 530 publications

References 0 publications

Verbal Venting in the Social Web: Effects of Anonymity and Group Norms on Aggressive Language Use in Online Comments

Verbal Venting in the Social Web: Effects of Anonymity and Group Norms on Aggressive Language Use in Online Comments

Anonymity Effects and Implications in the Virtual Environment: From Crowd to Computer-Mediated Communication

Philip G. Zimbardo on his career and the Stanford Prison Experiment's 40th anniversary.

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