Online Shaming in the Asian Context: Community Empowerment or Civic Vigilantism?
Main Article Content
Abstract
Online shaming is a phenomenon where citizens engage in social policing by shaming transgressions via the Internet. It has been argued that the proliferation of new communication networks and digital recording devices could bring about a new paradigm for ensuring conformity to social norms through the self-regulation of society. Incorporating literature from criminology, law, psychology, sociology, and surveillance studies, this two-part exploratory empirical study conducted in Singapore aims to give an account of why people engage in online shaming (Study 1) as well as who is likely to be deterred and who is likely to contribute content in relation to personality traits, adherence to Asian values and social responsibility (Study 2). The in-depth interviews revealed that people engage in online shaming mainly to raise awareness about the lack of civic-mindedness in society. Furthermore, a survey of 321 Singaporeans suggest that people who are more likely to be deterred by the threat of online shaming are those who more socially responsible, more agreeable, more neurotic and adhere more strongly to Asian values. Furthermore, our findings suggest that individuals who are more likely to contribute to online shaming websites tend to be more socially responsible and open to new experiences. The theoretical, technological and policy implications of the findings are discussed.
Article Details
Surveillance & Society uses a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
- The author. The author licenses the article to the Surveillance Studies Network (SSN) for inclusion in Surveillance & Society (S&S), right of first publication. The copyright to the article remains with the author and any subsequent commercial reuse must be agreed by both parties.
- Non-commercial Users. SSN authorises all persons to use material published in S&S in any manner that is not primarily intended for or directed to commerical advantage or private monetary compensation, also provided that it is not modified and retains all attribution notices.
- Commercial Users. SSN retains the right to benefit from commerical reuse, in each specific case subject to the agreement of the author, and payment to SSN of a standard per-page fee (set by a vote of the Network and Editorial Board) by the Commercial User.
- Surveillance & Society supports open access archives and the free distribution of the results of academic work. Authors are encouraged to place copies of the final published version of their article in their university and / or other open access archives. We only ask that you make sure to include a link to the original published version on the Surveillance & Society website.