The presentation of the networked self: Ethics and epistemology in social network analysis

D’Angelo, Alessio; Ryan, Louise

Abstract

Drawing on the seminal work of Goffman, Krackhardt and others, this paper argues that there is a crucial step in between participants’ perceptions and the collection and visualisation of data – i.e. what we call the presentation of the networked self. We employ examples from our own empirical work in the UK to argue that the presentation of the networked self requires researchers to adopt a highly reflexive approach. Framing our analysis within the context of contemporary society – including the impact of social media on a ‘networking mindset’ – we explore the range of ethical dilemmas which can emerge during a research encounter.

Citation

D’Angelo, A., & Ryan, L. (2021). The presentation of the networked self: Ethics and epistemology in social network analysis. Social Networks, 67, 20-28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socnet.2019.06.002

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 31, 2019
• Online Publication Date: Jul 24, 2019
• Publication Date: 2021-10
• Deposit Date: May 19, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 25, 2021
• Journal: Social Networks
• Print ISSN: 0378-8733
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 67
• Pages: 20-28
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socnet.2019.06.002
• Keywords: Sociology and Political Science; General Social Sciences; General Psychology; Anthropology
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2636045
• Publisher URL: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378873319300425?via%3Dihub