The Effects of Social Media on Personal Identity and Human Dignity: An Evaluation of the Botho Perspective

Abstract

Over the years, social media has grown into a modern way of socializing. It has become a platform where people exhibit their living experiences and allows them to create their own community as well as enabling them to present themselves to others and determine how other people perceive their identity and that of others. It also affords them the security of showing their interests without feeling that they will be persecuted. People utilize social media in different ways for different reasons like creating online self-identity to enable them to be recognized in the society. Some may choose to use their real names while others choose to use pseudo names. The main objective of this paper is to evaluate effects of identity construction on social media from Botho perspective. Does the online self-construction limit personal identity or broaden it to an extreme point? What are the positive impacts of online constructed identity on human dignity and how does it jeopardize the dignity of the human person?  Botho is a Setswana term meaning personhood or the essence of being a human person. Botho says people are what they are because of, with and through other people.