Context Collapse

 One topic I found particularly interesting this week was context collapse! Before this course, I had never heard of it before, but it makes sense that when one person has so many communities, interests, phases of life, etc. parts of it are bound to combine at one point or another. 

While listening to the VoiceThread player about context collapse, I couldn't help but to think of a birthday party. Funnily enough, this is something that I've talked to about with many of friends. We all find it funny when our different communities are all together at birthday parties or birthday dinners. Especially back in high school, it felt like I had different communities that I interacted with well enough to want them all at any birthday events I had. I had my high school friends, my family-friends, and my middle school friends who I was still close to. For my sixteenth birthday, I had a small lunch party where I invited people from all three communities. It was weird to see them all together, in one spot, at the same time, when typically, they would be in all separate spaces. It was weird seeing them interact, or even separating themselves into their own groups of those who they were familiar and comfortable with. 

In an online context, I would say I have two social media platforms where I have experienced context collapse. The first would be Facebook. I originally created my Facebook account when I got accepted to FSU for undergrad, because I had heard that the FSU Facebook groups were a great spot to meet other incoming freshman's, and to get tips and tricks on campus and about Tallahassee. As I continued to use my Facebook, I then started adding my family members to the account. Then, I had friends from middle school and college, and now, I even have some old high school teachers on my Facebook account. I don't post much, but when I do, it's interesting to see the range of likes and comments from so many different people from different communities of my life. The same goes for Instagram, where I have my friends, mutuals of friends, some of my friends parents, people I've met at concerts or events, etc. Since I post more on Instagram than I do Facebook, I can see more clearly what communities of mine interact with what posts from random stories, birthday posts, reposts, etc. 

- Lydia

Comments

  1. VanessaMay 31, 2025 at 6:21 PM

    Facebook really is the platform of context collapse!

    ReplyDelete
  2. StephenJune 1, 2025 at 3:22 PM

    Every day on Facebook is my birthday!? My wife has observed my American birthday parties and is very confused why I would choose to have all these circles together at one event. Wouldn't you rather meet with one community and celebrate a few times, rather than have to tiptoe and around your communities in one big bash?

    ReplyDelete

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