Certificate: View Certificate
Published Paper PDF: View PDF
Tanuja Sharma
Independent Researcher
India
Abstract
This study provides an in‐depth exploration of how academic identities are constructed, negotiated, and expressed in digitally mediated contexts. Academic identity—defined as the evolving self‐conceptualization of one’s role as learner, scholar, and member of academic communities—has long been associated with in‐person interactions such as classroom discourse, mentorship, and participation in research labs. With the advent of digital technologies, including learning management systems (LMS), massive open online courses (MOOCs), social media platforms, e-portfolios, and open science repositories, scholars and students now engage in identity work through virtual channels. Such channels afford unprecedented opportunities for self-presentation, reflection, and community engagement but also introduce new challenges, including comparison anxiety, digital fatigue, and inequitable access. Drawing on self‐efficacy theory (Bandura, 1997), situated learning (Lave & Wenger, 1991), and frameworks of digital literacy, this mixed‐methods survey of 350 undergraduate and graduate students examines the relationships between digital engagement practices and dimensions of academic identity: self-efficacy, sense of belonging, and identity consolidation. Quantitative analyses reveal that regular curatorship of e-portfolios is strongly associated with higher identity consolidation, while active participation in social learning networks correlates with an enhanced sense of community belonging. Engagement on professional social media platforms shows a moderate positive relationship with research self-efficacy. Qualitative responses highlight the value of reflective blog posts, virtual conference presentations, and peer feedback in fostering scholarly self‐concepts, as well as the detrimental effects of constant peer comparison and information overload.
Key words
Academic Identity, Digital Era, Online Learning, Self-Concept, Social Media
References
- Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W. H. Freeman.
- Barrett, H. (2007). Researching electronic portfolios and learner engagement: The REFLECT Initiative. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 50(6), 436–449.
- Bawa, P. (2016). Retention in online courses: Exploring issues and solutions—A literature review. SAGE Open, 6(1), 2158244015621777.
- Beijaard, D., Meijer, P. C., & Verloop, N. (2004). Reconsidering research on teachers’ professional identity. Teaching and Teacher Education, 20(2), 107–128.
- Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101.
- Cronin, B. (2017). From bibliometrics to altmetrics: A changing scholarly landscape. Loughborough University Press.
- Crawford, K., & Joler, V. (2018). Anatomy of an AI system. Share Lab.
- Ellison, N. B., Steinfield, C., & Lampe, C. (2007). The benefits of Facebook “friends:” Social capital and college students’ use of online social network sites. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 12(4), 1143–1168.
- Eshet-Alkalai, Y. (2004). Digital literacy: A conceptual framework for survival skills in the digital era. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 13(1), 93–106.
- Fiore-Gartland, B., & Neff, G. (2015). Communication, visualization, and interaction: The boundaries of “Data Science.” In C. W. Anderson, R. A. Anderson, & M. H. Neff (Eds.), Data visualization (pp. 63–78). Bloomsbury Academic.
- Kizilcec, R. F., Piech, C., & Schneider, E. (2013). Deconstructing disengagement: Analyzing learner subpopulations in massive open online courses. Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Learning Analytics and Knowledge, 170–179.
- Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge University Press.
- Markus, H., & Nurius, P. (1986). Possible selves. American Psychologist, 41(9), 954–969.
- McMillan, D. W., & Chavis, D. M. (1986). Sense of community: A definition and theory. Journal of Community Psychology, 14(1), 6–23.
- Noble, S. U. (2018). Algorithms of oppression: How search engines reinforce racism. NYU Press.
- Rosen, L. D. (2008). Rewired: Understanding the iGeneration and the way they learn. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Veletsianos, G., & Kimmons, R. (2012). Assumptions and challenges of open scholarship. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 13(4), 166–189.
- Yancey, K. B. (2009). Reflective practice and electronic portfolios. The WAC Clearinghouse.
- Dede, C. (2005). Planning for neomillennial learning styles: Implications for investments in technology and faculty. Educause Quarterly, 28(1), 7–12.
- Siemens, G., & Tittenberger, P. (2009). Handbook of emerging technologies for learning. University of Manitoba.