This is a sidebar to my earlier post about social norms as one of the solutions to social cruelty online – in case readers would like a little more definition. Social norms are practically super powers. As I mentioned in my main post, this doesn't occur to us much because, well, these are norms, after all – part of the wallpaper, socially speaking. They're everyday behavior based on intangibles … [Read more...] about Zooming in on social norms
social influencing
The anti-EDIs social norm: A counterargument
They're more like DEDIs (digitally enabled displays of insensitivity) than EDIs (electronic displays of insensitivity), because the behavior is human not electronic. But that's beside the point. This NPR commentary suggests that EDIs are becoming a social norm. It cites an unscientific survey of 2,000 newsletter subscribers as finding that this insensitive behavior – people checking their phones … [Read more...] about The anti-EDIs social norm: A counterargument
For solving social problems: The social media jujitsu remix
The other day I blogged about the collective conscious that social media users could become – are becoming, actually. Then I wrote about how users themselves – and not just ethical venture capitalists – could demand that startups bake safety and other pro-social basics into their apps and other services and that anti-social policies in established services get fixed. Then I watched this … [Read more...] about For solving social problems: The social media jujitsu remix
‘Compassion mobs’ & other digital-age nonviolence stands
You've probably heard the phrase "kill 'em with kindness" for disarming detractors, well in social media it's more like swamping – flooding – public, sometimes collective, cruelty with kindness, acceptance, respect, etc. That was a powerful tactic used by students I wrote about in Part 1 of this series, but it has been practiced to huge ripple effect by students in Nova Scotia, Iowa, Minnesota, … [Read more...] about ‘Compassion mobs’ & other digital-age nonviolence stands
Developing self in the digital age
Yet another article on Twitter by an expert in something (like authoring or marketing books) who's new to Twitter ran in the New York Times this week. I think it's much more interesting to read articles about Twitter by anybody (not necessarily an expert) who's not new to Twitter – in other words, someone who knows that Twitter use is highly individual and not all trivial pursuits, celebrity … [Read more...] about Developing self in the digital age