Abstract
Significant research has examined social media users' self-presentation strategies, both within a single account and across multiple platforms. Few studies, however, have considered how users' self-presentation varies across multiple accounts on a single platform. In this survey study, we examine how Instagram users manage content sharing decisions and the audience for their content across two types of Instagram accounts: Rinsta ("real" Instagram) and Finsta ("fake" Instagram). Data analyzed includes 499 Finsta and Rinsta posts rated across different dimensions of self-presentation (e.g., self-presentation intention, picture editing effort) and 453 open-ended responses about participants' rationales for using the two accounts. Through this mixed-method approach, we find that Rinsta accounts are more likely to be public, focus on positive and uplifting content, and involve more careful editing and selection, while Finsta accounts are used for more off-the-cuff, emotional, and inappropriate content, as well as those photos that do not make the Rinsta cut. Participants also rated how they perceived responses to their Finsta and Rinsta posts. Mediation analysis suggests that participants perceived responses to Finsta posts as less satisfying, useful, and supportive - partly because Finsta posts contained more negative emotions and received fewer comments than Rinsta posts. We discuss these findings in relation to prior work on social media, self-presentation, and platform affordances, and consider the benefits of this more time-intensive approach to managing two distinct personas on one platform.
Published Version
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