Abstract
Expressions of territoriality have been positioned as one of the main reasons users alter their behaviors and perceptions of spatiality and sociality while engaging with location-based social networks (LBSN). Despite the potential for this interplay to further our understanding of LBSN usage in the context of identity, very little work has actually been done toward this. Addressing this gap in the literature is one of the chief aims of the article. Drawing on an original 6-week study with 42 participants utilizing a bespoke LBSN entitled “GeoMoments,” our research explores the following: (1) the way that territoriality is linked to self-identity; and (2) how this interplay affects the interactions between users as well as the environments they inhabit. Our findings suggest that participants affirmed their self-identity by selectively posting and claiming ownership of their neighborhood through the LBSN. Here, the locative decisions are made related to risk, hierarchies, and the users’ relationship to the area. This practice then led participants to discover and interact with the digital information overlaying their physical environments in a playful manner. These interactions demonstrate the perceived power structures that are facilitated by identity claims over a virtual area. In the main, our results reaffirm that territoriality is a central concept in understanding LBSN use, while also drawing attention to the temporality involved in user-to-user and user-to-place interactions pertaining to physical place mediated by LBSN.
Highlights
Smartphones encompass a number of significant technologies
Gina and Jim said the following after being shown their early posts and global position system (GPS) traces against the aggregated posting activity and GPS traces of other participants: When I saw that others were posting moments near the University, Linkcity mall, the lake [. . . ] I did the same
The participants used GeoMoments in an effort to control and curate a narrative of identity in a manner directed toward other users, one that potentially affirmed their self-identity through the “self” represented through this location-based social networks (LBSN)
Summary
Two noteworthy integrations include the mobile web and the global position system (GPS) This assimilation has enabled mobile technologies to take advantage of location-based services [82], and engage with what de Souza e Silva refers to as “hybrid space.”. This “hybrid space” occurs when physical environments are overlaid with digital and location information that can be accessed with suitable mobile devices. Following these developments, social networking sites (SNS) have expanded to encompass locative features, just as location-based social networks (LBSN) have developed into a unique form of SNS in their own right.
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