Objective Summary

           There are millions of blogs in the world today that range among many different topics. One such topic that has struck a chord with teens in today’s society is a fashion blog. In these blogs, teens (usually girls) attempt to show the world how they express themselves without any kind of real limitations. Because of this digital presence, teens can be someone online, and someone else offline. This allows for an open playground for both good and bad influences to be presented to teens. In “Digital Dressing Up: Modeling Female Teen Identity in the Discursive Spaces of the Fashion Blogosphere”, Tara Chittenden suggests that blogs are transforming the way teens express themselves and build their identity in the social world.

            Chittenden starts out her article with some sources of recent studies about teenagers having to do with the digital influence. She has also gathered some information herself by studying ten female fashion bloggers. These bloggers were given open ended questions to answer and, using this data along with the other data collected by other sources, Chittenden was able to make conclusions.

Continuing with the methodology of the performed study, Chittenden gives the reader information regarding specifics about the blogs and bloggers she had access to. All of the ten bloggers’ blogs were easily accessible, and it was not uncommon to see edited pictures of the blog owners portraying their fashion tastes. In some instances, to add a more powerful fashion effect, they would use editing software that edited their facial features or body image. Also, the author continues to outline the ways in which her research is credible and that she is doing her best to eliminate any sort of bias.

Chittenden then continues to give her conclusions based on her results, using her research and the data from external sources as evidence. She states that the blog provides a gateway to allow the teenager to rake in “social capital” or social gain. All in all, social networking and blogging behaviors are a product of an extreme want for social approval, which the teenager interprets as a social “credit” or gain. Things may seem more complicated than that, but this one truth is simply what it boils down to. When a teenager blogs, they are able to receive feedback on all areas of life besides fashion. They start to receive suggestions on how to become better in a sociological perspective. Because of the following and feedback received, the teen is then able to gain knowledge of self worth, and importance in society, which was the goal from the beginning. This can either be taken positively or negatively, which is an issue for many teens that decide to put their necks out into the digital social regulatory network.

            Blogs have created a large footprint in the ways that teens express themselves to the outside world. Also, this truth presents some major challenges on an individual basis. It is here where we need to make the decision whether or not this change is undermining or nurturing better social behaviors and values for the next generation.

Sources:

Chittenden, Tara. "Digital Dressing Up: Modeling Female Teen Identity in the Discursive Spaces of the Fashion Blogosphere." Journal of Youth Studies Vol. 13.Issue 4 (Aug2010): 505-20. Print.