Abstract:
Employing the theory of Self-presentation, Goffman’s presentation of the self, with a
touch on Impressions Management, this study is centered on the identity construction of
Muslim women on Facebook in Ghana; taking into consideration the kind of identities
Muslimahs in Ghana construct on Facebook, the ways in which they perform these
identities and the factors that account for the construction of their identities on Facebook.
Using qualitative research approach and case study as a design, the study sampled 10
Muslimahs on Facebook. The data for the study was collected using interviews and online
observation.
The findings revealed different identities constructed by each participant, depending on
their orientation and their understanding of Islam as a religion. It was also discovered that
the respondents of the study perform multiple identities based on the salience of that
identity to them and the situations in which they find themselves at a given time. The study
revealed that participants expect positive feedback from their audiences and tend to be
introverted from identities which are not supported by their audiences as they are the
shapers of the identities they construct.
The study recommends that in future, using the Uses and Gratification Theory, studies
could be done to investigate the identity construction of Muslim women on Facebook in
Ghana, concentration only on ‘Facebook Status’; one of the newest features added to
Facebook, which comprises mostly video updates and a few pictures, seen by only people
who follow the subscriber. The study recommends that, to keep Facebook as the easiest
form of SNS, changes in the features of the app should be done with people who are less
tech savvy in mind. Also, employing Goffman’s presentation of self, Muslimahs should
ensure that the identities at the backstage conforms with the ones they have on social (the
frontstage), as they can never tell who is watching and forming certain impressions that are
unintended. Muslimahs should be mindful of their professional image when enacting
identities on social media.
Description:
A Thesis in the Department of Strategic Communication,
School of Communication and Media Studies, Submitted to the
School of Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfilment of the
Requirements for the Award of the Degree of
Master of Philosophy
(Business Communication)
In the University of Education, Winneba
November, 2022