Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media
- The Open Access Proceedings Series for Conferences
Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media
Vol. 36, 15 January 2024
Open
Access | Article
Generational Differences in WeChat Avatars: Transmutation of Identity Symbols in China's Generation X and Generation Z
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
With the internet development in China, social media is becoming more and more popular, and many older people are beginning to use social media. Thus, a generation gap regarding identities on social media begins to appear. In this article, the author focuses on the generation gap in WeChat profile pictures between Generation Z and Generation X. The author uses Netnography and in-depth interviews to examine and analyze the differences between the WeChat profile pictures and the reasons behind one’s choice of social media profile pictures of the two generations. The author categorizes the sampled WeChat profile pictures based on the nine cultural spheres and analyzes the differences and their causes based on the cultural spheres. Dramaturgy, identity symbols, developmental psychology, and history are being used to analyze the reasons behind these differences. This study reveals how the introduction of foreign culture into China and identity symbols influence the choice of profile pictures for Gen Z and Gen X.
Keywords
WeChat Profile Picture, Identity Symbol, Generation Gap, Cultural Sphere
References
1. Yang Man, Cao Congying, and Cheng Yuanyuan. (2019) "A Study on the Presentation and Motivation of Social Media Avatars: A Case Study of WeChat Application among College Students." Journal of Beijing Institute of Technology (Social Sciences Edition) 21.02: 182-188.
2. ZHAO C, JIANG G. (2011)Cultural differences on visual self-presentation through social networking site profile images[C]//Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, ACM, 1129-1132.
3. Tong Hui. (2014) "Self-Presentation and Interpersonal Communication on WeChat: A Case Study in Chongqing." Social Sciences in Chongqing, (1): 102-110.
4. Lin Shengdong, Wu Jingjing, Yi Yuan, et al. (2021)"Cultural Interpretation of Avatar Selection among Chinese Social Media Users." Shenzhen Social Sciences, 4(04): 76-85.
5. Niu Shuang. (2019) "Classification of Social Media Avatars and Analysis of the Psychological Factors Behind Them: A Case Study of WeChat Avatars." Communication and Copyright, (04): 4-6.
6. Li Yun.(2020) "Research on Methods and Applications of Online Ethnography." South China University of Technology, MA thesis.
7. Karl Heinrich Marx. (1960) The Collected Works of Marx and Engels: Volume Three. People's Publishing House.
8. Huang Yong. (2012) "Identity Symbols in the Perspective of Political Philosophy." [Master's thesis]. Communist Party School of Guangdong Provincial Committee.
9. Dai Yingjie and Jiang Fengxiang. (2022) "Regulation, Resistance, and Compromise: An Analysis of Intergenerational Interaction Processes behind WeChat Avatars." Future Communication, 29.01, 29-36. doi:10.13628/j.cnki.zjcmxb.2022.01.010.
10. Zou Guangwen. (2001) “Contemporary Chinese Mass Culture and Its Generative Background. “Journal of Tsinghua University (Philosophy and Social Sciences Edition). 02: 46-53+67
11. Wu, Xiaoyong, et al. (2008) “Development of the Research on Identity and Related Issues.” Journal of Southwest University (Social Sciences Edition), vol. 34, no. 3, May.
12. Peng, Lan. (2018) “The Illusion and the Self in Beautiful Pictures.” Modern Communication, vol. 12.
13. Cong, Shuguang, and Yunpeng Li. (2011) “The Study About Development Status, Trends and Paths of Cultural Industry in China.” Energy Procedia, vol. 5, Elsevier BV, 2078–81. Crossref.
Data Availability
The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Authors who publish this series agree to the following terms:
1. Authors retain copyright and grant the series right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this series.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the series's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this series.
3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See Open Access Instruction).
- Volume Title
- Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Social Psychology and Humanity Studies
- ISBN (Print)
- 978-1-83558-273-2
- ISBN (Online)
- 978-1-83558-274-9
- Published Date
- 15 January 2024
- Series
- Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media
- ISSN (Print)
- 2753-7048
- ISSN (Online)
- 2753-7056
- DOI
- 10.54254/2753-7048/36/20240438
- Copyright
- 15 January 2024
- Open Access
- This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited