Most people have an online identity, similar to the concepts that the video Growing Up Online discussed. A copious amount of teenagers feel that online they are the "real" them. They feel as if others, perhaps in a similar position, will support them. But there are also times when having online identities can generate consequences. When someone has an online identity and on their Face book they post "risky" pictures of themselves, there will be two reactions. The first reaction will be a "positive", in the up-loader's mind, the online community will praise these pictures showering the up loader in compliments. However the second reaction will be a swarm of negative comments and insults which "judge" the up loader. Overall I think that having an online identity might be fun for a while but in the long turn might engender consequences.
Should we behave online the same way we interact with people offline?
Online some people will have a different identity, but there are others who will have the same personality off-line. I would not know about people whose personality changes online because i do not own a Face book, Myspace etc. Everyday in the news you will hear a report on child abduction or rape, cases like these cause concern. Most of the time a child will state that they had met the person online and that they did not expect their physical meeting to turn negatively. I strongly believe that as humans we owe it to ourselves to be honest to ourselves and others. This meaning that if you feel as if you are in a bad social position do something about it, but not to the point that you will become someone else. There are always things that one can do that are within one's boundaries, that you will not have to behave differently online or off-line.
If we are online, are we responsible for our own actions and behaviors?
If you are writing posts online, or putting someone else's picture online then you are responsible for your actions. A lot of social networks allow the up loader to delete or edit posts. If you write a post that you did not like or felt that was insulting when you did not mean it then you can delete it or edit it. I have heard of stories where people insult others online but off-line they are friends. I honestly do think that whatever someone writes online is their full responsibility. For example as I am writing this i know the responsibility that i withhold, that in this post i could be offending someone but i chose not to. I f the day were to come that I do happen to offend someone then thanks to this site i will be able to edit my post. If someone were to post risky pictures of themselves then they know exactly what they are doing.
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