“What kind of girl is she?”: good and bad diasporic daughters on social media

ABSTRACT

Social media, such as Facebook and Instagram, act as online spaces where young migrants can engage in diasporic practices. This research captures the ways in which Indian young women living in Australia perform the “good girl” and “bad girl” on social media as a means through which to showcase their hybrid identities. With a focus on social media, the research stems from an investigation into the processes of identity construction for young migrants. The use of PhotoVoice and digital diaries were employed to assist with visualising the online identity performativities of the participants. The findings highlight the continued importance for the young women to be seen as good diasporic daughters who follow traditional roles of Indian womanhood; however, it will be shown how social media settings can be manipulated in such a way that the young women are able to contest these traditional roles and perform “bad” Indian behaviour.

KEYWORDS:

• E-diaspora
• identity performativity
• young migrants
• social media
• women
• sexualisation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The research carried out was funded by a University of the Sunshine Coast Research Scholarship.

Notes on contributors

Catherine Rita Volpe

Catherine Rita Volpe is a lecturer in the Faculty of Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences and Education at the University of New England in Australia. She received her PhD in Human Geography from the University of the Sunshine Coast. Her areas of research include investigations into the uses and impacts of digital technology and social media in the lives of children and young people. She is also interested in the uses of digital methodologies and visual methods in research.