The Finstagram Phenomenon: A Place to Open Up
Who is not familiar with social media? One form of this new media, of course, is already owned by almost all levels of society. Along with the times and technology, everything can be done online.
Social media makes it easier for people to communicate, interact, and socialize with other people virtually. In addition to the three benefits of social media, social media is also used by the public, especially young people, to carry out self-disclosure.
One of the phenomena on social media regarding self-disclosure is the phenomenon of Finstagram-fake Instagram-or often known as a second account. The account is an Instagram account that was created intentionally only for the closest people who have been determined by the account owner.
In general, Finstagram accounts do not use the owner's photo and real name, use a username that does not describe the account owner's real name, and lock the account (private).
The main factor in self-disclosure through a Finstagram account is freedom. In general, the first account or main account tends to be used by Instagram users as a page for their personal branding. Through the first account, they show the side that is expected by others or which can create a good impression on him.
In other words, they filter the content they will upload. So, not a few young people are afraid to upload content on their first account because they are worried about people's comments.
Unlike the first account, Finstagram is used as a place to express their true selves. Through Finstagram, they can freely upload whatever they want to the people they have selected without worrying about being judged by others. In Finstagram, they can express all emotions and stories through uploaded content without going through the previous filtering process.
The phenomenon of self-disclosure through Finstagram is in accordance with the notion of self-disclosure described by DeVito, namely the act of a person to provide information about himself that is generally not known by others. In accordance with the habits of Finstagram users who select who can access the account, the self-disclosure they do on Finstagram are of course things they don't open to people they only follow on the main account.
In addition, this phenomenon can also be associated with the Johari Window concept which was initiated by Joseph Luft and Harrington Irham. In this concept, there are four levels of self-disclosure, namely open areas, hidden areas, blind areas, and unknown areas.
Seeing the behavior of young people from the above phenomenon, they were originally at the hidden area level. This area is the area where they hide or cover up their behavior from others. However, with the presence of Finstagram, they are in an open area where they are very open about themselves to others.
The Finstagram phenomenon among young people can certainly make it easier for them to express themselves and all the emotions they feel to people they trust. They conjure up Finstagram accounts as public diaries that can be read by others without worrying about people's comments. Without realizing it, this phenomenon has shown the positive side of the presence of social media in the midst of our lives today.
