Incidents In The Life Of A Cyber Girl: Exploring Instagram As A Potential Counterspace For Black Girls’ Literacy Practices

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Anderson, J. (2022). Incidents In The Life Of A Cyber Girl: Exploring Instagram As A Potential Counterspace For Black Girls’ Literacy Practices. Unc Charlotte Electronic Theses And Dissertations.
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Abstract

Although research has been done to explore social media as a safe space with Black girls (Womack, 2013), there is limited research that assesses social media as a counter space for Black girls’ literacies. According to The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research (2017), Black teens are the largest users of Instagram and SnapChat. While broader research has looked at Black girls’ literacies and digital literacies among (Muhammad & Haddix, 2016; Price-Dennis, 2016), there is limited research that has explored the literacy practices of Black girls specifically in the digital space they predominantly use, Instagram. Most importantly, the need to explore the elements of literacy that engage Black girls in non-formal academic spaces in which they utilize excessively may provide context for application in academic curriculum. This research study explored whether Instagram may provide a potential counterspace for Black girls’ literacies and the ways in which they practice literacy through the examination of digital posts, online observations, and interviews with two adolescent Black girls during an eight-week period. Findings showed that Instagram offered several affordances of active resistance and counter-narrative formation with Black girls but lacked in building meaningful relationships that did not already exist in their physical lives. While acts of racism and sexism were shared to be visible on Instagram by participants, findings showed that Instagram empowered Black girls to advocate for themselves and others. Additionally, findings from this study highlighted that literacy practices with Black girls were multiple in practice, tied to their identities, historical, intellectual, critical, and collaborative with an emphasis on emotional connection.

Details
Author

Anderson, Jimmeka

Title

Incidents In The Life Of A Cyber Girl: Exploring Instagram As A Potential Counterspace For Black Girls’ Literacy Practices

Physical Description

1 online resource (230 pages) : PDF

Date

2022

Degree Granting Institution

University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Abstract

Although research has been done to explore social media as a safe space with Black girls (Womack, 2013), there is limited research that assesses social media as a counter space for Black girls’ literacies. According to The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research (2017), Black teens are the largest users of Instagram and SnapChat. While broader research has looked at Black girls’ literacies and digital literacies among (Muhammad & Haddix, 2016; Price-Dennis, 2016), there is limited research that has explored the literacy practices of Black girls specifically in the digital space they predominantly use, Instagram. Most importantly, the need to explore the elements of literacy that engage Black girls in non-formal academic spaces in which they utilize excessively may provide context for application in academic curriculum. This research study explored whether Instagram may provide a potential counterspace for Black girls’ literacies and the ways in which they practice literacy through the examination of digital posts, online observations, and interviews with two adolescent Black girls during an eight-week period. Findings showed that Instagram offered several affordances of active resistance and counter-narrative formation with Black girls but lacked in building meaningful relationships that did not already exist in their physical lives. While acts of racism and sexism were shared to be visible on Instagram by participants, findings showed that Instagram empowered Black girls to advocate for themselves and others. Additionally, findings from this study highlighted that literacy practices with Black girls were multiple in practice, tied to their identities, historical, intellectual, critical, and collaborative with an emphasis on emotional connection.

Genre

doctoral dissertations

Subjects--Topics

Educational technology
Ethnicity--Study and teaching
African Americans--Study and teaching
Curriculum planning

Degree

Ph.D.

Keywords

Black Girls
Counterspace
Instagram
Literacy
Social Media

Subject Area

Curriculum & Instruction

Advisor(s)

Lewis, Chance
Anderson, Brittany

Committee Members

Salas, Spencer
Barnes, Meghan
Noble, Bonnie

Degree Note

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 2022.

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Rights Holder Information

Copyright is held by the author unless otherwise indicated.

Identifier

Anderson_uncc_0694D_13083

Permalink

http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.13093/etd:2828