With the intention to fill a gap in the research field, this thesis porposes to illuminate privatepersons’ use of Instagram simply as private actors without any profitable interest. The users with a solely personal interest may in some cases attract thousands of followers in the scale ofcelebrity fan base. This thesis aims to map out what motivates and drives a thought-through, strategic use of Instagram, to discover if there is a strategic use of Instagram among the objects of study and also to share the objects of study’s reflections about their Instagram use. Through a selection based on the number of followers of a non-profitable Instagram profile, age and an involvement in the culture and/or media business, ten people were selectedto constitute the objects of study. Through a comparision of five users with many followers (more than 1000) and five with few (less than 500), a comparative study was made to discover differences and similarities in their use and attitudes to Instagram. With an abductive approach and a rich theoretical framework, focusing on theories concering self-presentationand personal branding, in-dept interviews were made to create a deep understanding of the subject of research. The intervew answers were processed through a content analysis that concluded astrategic use among all of the objects of study, motivated by personal satisfaction and hopes of being percieved in a certain way. The users with many followers all reflected on and experience negative psychologial concequenses from their Instagram use, but the reflections and effects were absent among the users with few followers. The study demonstrate user patterns amongst those observed that suggest that a greater commitment to Instagram is more likely to have an effect on mental health.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-275667 |
| Date | January 2015 |
| Creators | Ekström, Signe, Matarasso, Rebecca |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Medier och kommunikation, Uppsala universitet, Medier och kommunikation |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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