Young people's personal take on digital technologies

• Author: European Institute for Gender Equality (EU body or agency)
• Pages: 46-59

4. Young peoples personal take on digital technologies

European Institute for Gender Equality46

4. Young people’s personal take on digital

technologies

(41) Girl, IT, 17.

To analyse young people´s experiences of digital

technologies and explore the potential of digi-

talisation for gender equality, this report draws

on feminist citizenship studies. Such research is

broadening the notion of citizenship to include not

only the legal, political and social aspects, but also

the cultural, sexual and body-related dimensions

of citizenship (Roseneil et al., 2012). Born from the

need to capture how women exercise their citizen-

ship, feminist citizenship studies seek to capture

notions of identity, belonging and participation

(Abraham, 2010; Lister, 2007). Concerned with ex-

ploring lived citizenship, the focus is on what cit-

izenship means in the lives of young women and

men and how people´s lives as citizens are affect-

ed by their social and material circumstances, as

well as by widespread usage of digital technolo-

gies (Hall & Williamson, 1999; Roseneil et al., 2012).

The concept of lived citizenship thus offers an in-

novative way to explore relationships between the

state and indi viduals (the vertical aspects of citi-

zenship), as well as between individuals (the hor i-

zontal aspects of ci tizenship), including through

feelings of inclusion or exclusion (Roseneil et al.,

2012; Siim, 2000; Yuval-Davis, 2008)

Through analysing opportuni ties and risks of dig-

italisation, this report transcends the normative

ideal of citizenship and considers t he absence

of rights, non-par ticipation, the lack of capacit y

to exercise respo nsibility and agency, as well as

experiences of outsider-status and non-belong-

ing (Roseneil et al., 2012). Dimensions of feminist

citizenship that will be touched upon in the sub-

sequent sections include intimate, bodily, multi-

cultural and political citizenship. Given the pro-

found ways in which digitalisation is af fecting not

only representative democratic structures but

also social relationships and gender relations,

employing these dimensions of citizenship pro-

vides a useful lens of analysis for young peoples

online experiences.

4.1. Self-presentation and the

importance of the body

Recent research has underlined the importance

of analysing not only the aspects of citizenship

related to political representation (see Sec-

tion 4.3) but also other aspects of well-being, in-

cluding issues linked to the body (Oleksy, Hearn,

& Golaska, 2011). Authors acknowledge that the

body plays an important role in determining who

will benefit from citizens rights and who will not.

The social construction of women as ineligible in

society because of their ver y identification with

the body, nature and sexuality has been well doc-

umented in the literature (Lister, 2003).

Bodies of women and men, girls and boys, are

perceived differently in societ y and these dif-

ferences have constituted grounds for the rep-

resentation of women and girls as others and

excluding them from full citizenship (Halsaa,

Roseneil, & Sümer, 2011). This section discusses

young peoples bodily experiences and the dif-

ferentiated treatment received by human bodies

online.

Tensions around self –presentation: ‘Surely,

we don’t post photos that can, for example,

“destroy us”’ (41).

Young people in focus groups were asked if they

want to appear and be perceived in a certain way

or if they compare themselves with peers when

posting on social media. The respondents talked

about physical appearance as well as desirable

personality trait s. Some young people repro-

duced stereotypes uncritically, either by report-

ing preoccupation with body image and present-

ing only the best version of themselves (girls in

particular, but at times also boys) or mocking

girls for being preoccupied, whereas others rec-