You Don’t Know Me
When people have the opportunity to separate their actions from their real world and identity, they feel less vulnerable about opening up. Whatever they say or do can’t be directly linked to the rest of their lives. They don’t have to own their behavior by acknowledging it within the full context of who they “really” are. (Suler 2004)
You can’t see me [physically]
… the courage to go places and do things that they otherwise wouldn’t.
Even with everyone’s identity visible, the opportunity to be physically invisible amplifies the disinhibition effect. (Suler 2004)
See You Later
where there are delays in that feedback, people’s train of thought may progress more steadily and quickly towards deeper expressions of what they are thinking and feeling. Some people may even experience asynchronous communication as “running away” after posting a message that is personal, emotional, or hostile [akin to] an “emotional hit and run.” (Suler 2004)
It’s just a game
some people see their online life as a kind of game with rules and norms that don’t apply to everyday living (Suler 2004)
It’s all in my head
Online text communication can become the psychological tapestry in which a person’s mind weaves these fantasy role plays, usually unconsciously and with considerable disinhibition. (Suler 2004)
Mnemonic: ANONYMOUS person feels INVISIBLE, commits A-SYN in their IMAGINATION of INjecting a needle into an AUTHOR.
Good people behaving badly or bad people running amok?
Does the disinhibition effect release inner needs, emotions, and attributes that dwell beneath surface personality presentations? Does it reveal your “true self.” For example, a woman with repressed anger unleashes her hostility online, thereby showing others how she really feels. Or a shy man openly expresses his hidden affection for his cyberspace companion. (Suler 2004)