Emerging Identities
Asynchronous Session
Avatars and Self-fashioning: The Metaverse and Negotiation of Identity View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session James Hutson
With the launch of the Metaverse in 2021 by the social media platform Facebook, users in the virtual space were required to tether their avatar, and digital self-identity, to their personal FB accounts. Concerns were immediately raised with regard to what identity would mean if users were linked to previous accounts. However, shortly thereafter the company rebranded as Meta, no longer requiring a social media “connective tissue” for the planned digital world that affords 3D interactions, commerce, entertainment and more. The implications of self-fashioning in this new digital space raises many interesting questions. As the virtual self is no longer bound as a singular entity, the choices made in the creation of visual characteristics of avatars will be compounded and the negotiations of identity pluralized. This study presents the results of studies on demographic preferences of avatars and self-representation in digital worlds and the implications for the future of society, including education, work, leisure, and socialization.
Nomadic Texts: Migrant Texts in Translation and the Visual Arts View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Shakir Mustafa
The paper presents poems, translations, paintings and sculptures to develop insights into the manners in which a text migrates from one medium or a register into another. Because two of the poems are translations, the paper will also discuss translations as nomadic texts. Specifically, I argue that texts of various genres such as words in Arabic or English, translations, paintings, and sculptures may relate to each other in unpredictable manners. “Text” refers to discursive and non-discursive formations or entities that move in and out of genres, registers, agencies, and traditions. A poem or story, their translations, the paintings, sculptures, and other art forms they may generate, as well as the responses they invite will be treated as texts. As they float in relative autonomy, these texts can form a pool of connections to one another without apparent purpose or plan. Nomadic texts will retain enough independence to ensure clear referencing, but the transformations they demonstrate will be the focal points of my paper. “Nomadic,” thus, refers to the kind of fluid movement characteristic of these texts. The term draws heavily on the deep trajectory of nomadic traditions in Arab cultures. It also draws on Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari’s concept of “rhizomatic” structures of thought in their A Thousand Plateaus, specifically their argument that a rhizome develops its own roots and the capacity to extend shoots, and hence it is an appropriate concept to address the kind of multiple connections and departures generated by nomadic texts.
Multiple Drawing Functions in Equivalence Classes
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Dean Reid
Using nonsense syllables to form two 3-member stimulus equivalence classes (A1-B1-C1, A2-B2-C2), this study examines the effects of training drawing functions at two stimuli within Class 1 (B1 & C1). Within Experiment 1, participants were instructed to draw a ‘stickman’ and a ‘stickwoman’ at B1 and C1 respectively. Subsequent tests for function transfer revealed various novel drawings that often included a combination of the originally trained drawings at A1. Experiment 2 modified the training by showing drawings of the figure of a ‘stickman’ and ‘stickwoman’ that were required at B1 and C1; results were similar to those seen in Experiments 1. Experiment 3 simplified the drawing function to the left-hand arc of a circle and the right-hand arc of a circle. The majority of participants responded at A1 by drawing various combinations of the behaviours trained at B1 and C1. Results are discussed in the context of the emergence of novel behaviour.
Memes For Future: How New Generations Shape Climate Change Debate on Social Media View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Lucia Casiraghi
The power or visual communication as a tool to inform, express viewpoints, and create engagement is broadly recognized by science communication scholars. This study investigates how young climate activists use memes to communicate about climate change on Instagram, and how other users engage with them. A corpus of memes and comments was collected, and a qualitative content analysis was used to observe the memes' topics and references. Moreover, the interactions between activists and their audiences was observed to identify potential principles for effective climate change communication through memes. The results of these analyses shed light on the new tools and platforms that users engage with to discuss this urgent issue in both local and global communities, and on the importance of addressing the social, political, and economic dimensions involved in climate change for younger generations.
