Human Identity in the Digital Age
Human identity, personally and collectively, is always evolving. Digital technologies are having a huge impact. In the end, that may be very good. Why?
Our sense of our self, our own identity and that of our families, clans, tribes, communities and even nations is an important aspect of what it means to be human. Technologies have long played a role in our personal and broader identities from ceremonial spears to smartphones.
As we move ever further into the Digital Age, identity will become increasingly important, personally and more broadly. Why?
Human identity is neither fixed nor static. It has been evolving for hundreds of thousands of years. It is a wonderfully complex thing, identity. All wrapped up in where we come from, our socioeconomic conditions, foods, norms, traditions, language, belief systems. It is all these forms of identity that make up our cultures, and so many cultures makes our world so interesting and wonderful to be a part of.
Our own personal sense of identity evolves as we age too. Who we are as a youth is not who we are in our 70’s. Our communities change over time as new influences, ideas and norms evolve. Parts of a city change as groups move in and out over time, as economic conditions change and new ideas of societal governance evolve into being.
Digital technologies, especially communications technologies, are playing an increasing role in our sense of identity, both personally and societally. Think of the smartphone. The model type, its age, the type of case you use, where and how you use your phone, even how you set up your apps and wallpapers are deeply tied to your identity.
With the internet now connecting humanity at a global scale and the rise of social media, this has lead to us thinking about identities in ways unlike ever before at a scale unlike ever before. In the worst cases, this is seen through cyberbullying, social shaming and so on. In good ways, communities of support arise and people become more comfortable in their evolving identities.
Communications technologies like social media and the way phones connect us today, are perhaps the most influential on personal and societal identities. This is because the most significant influence on our identities comes from ideas, from our imaginations. The more, and faster, we can share ideas, the greater their influence.
Communications technologies reduce the frictions of mass communication, enable faster organisation and deeper collaboration. Social media is a hotbed of ideas, opinions and the development of social movements. Social media has enabled the rise of the MeToo movement, Black Lives Matter, gender identity discussions and more.
They have also fostered negative aspects of identity in a civil society such as racist ideologies, autocratic political movements, misinformation and so on. Though these movements may seem large, they are not. They are amplified through communications technologies, but they are far smaller than they seem.
That we can see them as a broader society however, helps the majority to see systems of identity that are, over time, rejected. This is where group identities come into play.
The exposure of different individual and group identities through communications technologies while sometimes negative, overall is a net positive. We begin to learn about each other in the ways that matter most to us as humans. Food, languages, fashion, architecture, art, music, literature. The aesthetic parts of culture.
We have already seen mashups of music styles with bagpipes and Bhangra, a wonderful combination of styles enabled by digital technologies. A Mongolian band playing Jingle Bells. Music is an important aspect of both personal and national identities. We are mixing these identities in new and fascinating ways.
Evolving Human Identities in the Digital Age
While it would be impossible, and perhaps a bit silly, to make any definitive statements on will and won’t happen, we can be fairly confident that we will see some significant changes in personal, societal and cultural identities. We are already seeing these.
At times, there will be, and have been, sociocultural frictions. We’ve seen frictions arise over issues of gender identity, race and cultural appropriations through the use of communications and information technologies. But these same tools are used to find common ground and set new norms, traditions and behaviours.
As I wrote at the start of this article, identity is in constant flux. Personally and societally. This is part of what it means to be human. It’s just that it’s happening faster and at larger scales than ever before. Social debate, discussion and arguments are an important aspect of the evolution and development of identities.
I believe that in the long run, as we move through these complex periods of identity changes, our sociocultural systems will evolve and overall, be beneficial to humanity. No, it won’t lead to some sort of utopian ideal, but it does mean progress.
It is an odd reality of being human that we are always changing, yet we dislike change. Especially too much, too fast. But we love to socialize. We enjoy discovering more about each other than not. It is why we imagine technologies that enable us to communicate more and faster.
We’ve been coming together for thousands of years in different ways, sometimes good, sometimes bad. But we’ve always been growing closer as populations increase and our technologies improve and evolve.
Increasingly, archeological and anthropological evidence shows that humans preferred trade over warfare. Sorry Hobbes, maybe we’re not nasty creatures overall.
We are in a turbulent period of dealing with individual and collective identities because we can connect unlike ever before. Conflicts, arguments and messiness is to be expected. At times it is violent, at other times, more often than not, it is exciting and fascinating.
Studying and understanding what it means to be human in the Digital Age is more important than ever before. Looking at how we formed societies, cultural identities, political and economic systems in the past can give us greater insights into being human as digital tools play an increasingly significant role in our lives.