LOCATING THE SPACE OF SOCIAL MEDIA WITHIN THE PATRIARCHAL

HEGEMONY: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY AMONG COLLEGE GIRLS.

Submitted by
Ms. ROOPA HARI
Ph.D Research Scholar
Department of Sociology
Gandhigram Rural Institute Deemed University
Gandhigram
Dindigul District 624302
roopahari.7@gmail.com
Ph:8943415817
&
Dr.R.KUMARAN
Assistant Professor
Department of Sociology
Gandhigram Rural Institute Deemed University
Gandhigram
Dindigul District 624302
rkumara@gmail.com

Context

Social media has emerged as a very influential force in the lives of

people and societal interactions of the contemporary times. The
possibility of a personalized media combined with disembodied
communication and virtuality which has been realized with the arrival
of social media is unprecedented and hence throwing up new
dynamics to the everyday life of people. The dynamics would be
intense for women, as, they tend to operate in cyber sphere, because,
historically, the patriarchal hegemony has refused to shed or confine
its boundaries in relation to any new social changes.

Purpose

This paper attempts to understand how young women make sense of

the spaces offered to them, by social media, in the background of their
parallely ongoing offline world.
For the purpose, the researcher
attempts
to
navigate
the
nature
of
cyber
sphere
through the lens of contiguities, disruptions and resistances against
patriarchy.

Design/ Methodology/
Approach/ Materials and

Phenomenology, the theoretical framework involving meaning-making

processes of people has been deployed for the present research paper

Methods / Experimental

suiting the given research objective. The data for the study are
generated by analyzing the various social media posts put up by these
girls, complemented by face-to-face interaction with them under
various categories such as cyber sphere as an alternative/contrast/
violator confirming/extension of patriarchal hegemony.

Results / Findings / Results The patriarchal elements have been negotiated and diverted in certain
and Discussion / Findings and cases by these young women by engaging with the possibilities offered
Interpretation
by social Media. On the other hand, one finds the reassertion of an
intense patriarchal hegemony within this sphere.
Originality/Value

This paper aspires to engage with new media as it obtains in the form
of Social Media. The observations made in this paper may provide
directions for feminist research as well as new media studies centering
around social media. For the policy makers too the research has
insights as to how to facilitate the emergence of gender-sensitive social
media. For the curriculum designers in academic institutions the
conclusions of this research paper can contemporarise the content of
media studies paper.