Social scientists: Managing identity in socio-technical networks

Abstract

Since the advent of the World-Wide Web, academic researchers have constructed Web pages to present a view of themselves, their work, their associations and their interests. This novel form of self-presentation has drawn a lot of attention over the past few years, prompting not only psychologists, but also social analysts, educators and software developers, to reflect on the ways in which technology pervades our self-presentations. Personal home pages are not, however; the only way in which scientists present themselves through technology construction and use - nor even the primary way. In this paper; we examine the technologies that oceanographers use to manage professional identity within their socio-technical networks.