Xiaoqi Wang EDCI 338 Class

Tag: #ProfessionalDigitalIdentity

Personal Digital Identity vs Professional Digital Identity

October 4, 2020 / / 1 Comment

 

 

Above is the V and R mapping that I have come up with. Looking at the map, one could easily see that most of my engagements online are institutional. This is because one of the reasons that I go online is because of my classes. There are sites in the map that I would not discover if not for my classes. For example, I have no idea what WordPress is and I also do not know how it works. Since WordPress is required in one of my subjects so I was mandated to create an account and learn how it works. In the long run, I learned how to use WordPress and I kind of liked blogging so I ended up using it for personal reasons. My V and R mapping got me thinking that if I am not a student, I would not spend so much time online. However, since it is already the digital age, I am pretty sure that when I started working one day, most of my activities online will be work related. Therefore, my V and R map will still be filled with institutional online activities.

With regard to work, some of the digital platforms that students use in order to develop their professional network are LinkedIn and Facebook. According to Johnson (2019), LinkedIn is a “social network that focuses on professional networking and career development.” Users can post their resumes and search for jobs using LinkedIn. Not only that, LinkedIn also allows their users to post updates and interact with other people. In addition to LinkedIn, Facebook also has a feature that allows students develop their personal network and this feature is called Facebook Jobs. Facebook Jobs allow users to search for jobs. Also, just like LinkedIn, Facebook also allows users to interact with professionals.

As a student, I plan to create my online portfolio through creating a WordPress website. In this website, I will create a professional identity that employers would like. I will also publish articles on economics that people can easily relate to. I want people to visit my site whenever they wanted a financial advice or they wanted to know some life hacks on budgeting their money. In order to interact with my audience, I will ask them to leave questions and I will answer them in my next blog. I will also promote my website in my social media so that my personal network can learn about my website. Through this website, I believe that I will be able to create a good digital reputation. This is because my site visitors learn from the articles I write and they may even consider me an expert in the field. Also, if ever a local employer would stumble upon my blog, he/she will be able to assess how much I know about my profession. Also, the blog will be a solid evidence that I am serious with the career path that I have taken to the point that I am determined to share my knowledge to others.

 

 

Reference

Johnson, D. (2019, September 6). ‘What is LinkedIn?’: A beginner’s guide to the popular professional networking and career development site. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-linkedin

OCLC. (n.d.). Visitors and residents mapping app. Retrieved from https://experimental.worldcat.org/vandrmapping/signIn

On Digital Identities

September 26, 2020 / / 0 Comments

The concept of Digital Identity is still considered nebulous. Despite this, Eric Stoller, a Social Media expert, simply defined Digital Identity as one’s presence online (University of Derby, 2016). Also, it could refer to how one, shares, interacts, and utilizes digital tools for his/her own benefit. In other words, one’s Digital Identity is basically his/her digital footprint. One could know a lot about a certain person by looking at his/her digital footprints. This is actually the reason that some companies would search for their applicants’ digital footprints to know if they are going to hire a certain applicant or not. Just as Eric Stoller said, looking into the applicant’s digital footprint is like an initial interview. Moreover, one’s Digital Identity could also be viewed as the product of a person’s interaction in the internet. In fact, Spracklen (2015) explained that the internet helps people create their identity.  This explains why one is likely to engage in political activities if he/she belongs in an online community composed of people who frequently share posts and videos on social activism.

The Digital Identity can be changed according to one’s intention. For instance, if one created his/her social media for personal reasons, he/she can share anything that he/she likes. In addition to this, he/she can follow pages and people that simply caught his/her attention. However, if one needed to create a social media because he/she wanted to reach his/her clients or boss, he/she needs to establish a good Digital Professional Identity (DPI). According to Jawed et al. (2019), DPI refers to the personal identity that professionals create online through internet-based interaction. In creating this identity, the professional carefully uses online platforms and communication tools to appear professional. Unlike the personal approach to Digital Identity, the professional approach is more constrained. This is because as a professional, one needs to create an image that will please his/her employers and clients. Hence, in creating Digital Professional Identity, online users leave their “real” identities behind and create Digital Identities that can best fit their profession.

In networked publics, the personal and the professional identities can converge. For instance, Teacher A has two Facebooks accounts, one for his professional account and the other one is his personal account. It is possible for the friends of Teacher A in his professional Facebook account to find his personal account especially when Teacher A did not strategically hide his personal Facebook account. In this case, Teacher A’s friends can check his personal Facebook account, send him a message, or even send a friend request. When Teacher A accepted his students and employers in his personal account, he will have a hard time deciding what to share, what to post, and who to follow in fear of not appearing professional to the clients and students who invaded her personal Facebook account. On the other hand, the good side of this is that Teacher A’s employers and students will feel that they would know Teacher A on a personal level. In connection to this, problems like these will always be part of our daily life. In the World Economic Forum (2019), the economists said that over 60% of the global GDP is expected to be digitized by 2022. This only means that world gets more digitized each year so we need to know how to responsibly create and handle our Digital Identities.

 

References

Mahboob, U., Jawed, S., & Yasmeen, R. (2019). Digital professional identity: Dear internet! Who am I? Education for Health, 32(1), 33. doi:10.4103/efh.efh_232_17

Spracklen, K. (2015). Identity-making and social media. Digital Leisure, the Internet and Popular Culture, 94-112. doi:10.1057/9781137405876_6

University of Derby. (2016). Eric Stoller – What is digital identity? [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0RryRbJza0&feature=youtu.be

World Economic Forum. (2019, February 5). Davos 2019 – Press conference the value of digital identity for the global economy and society [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=326&v=1-V7lyxrOmw&feature=emb_logo

 

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