Interpersonal Communication- A Mindful Approach to Relationships, 2020a

is a deceptive activity perpetrated by Internet predators when they fabricate online
identities on social networking sites to lure unsuspecting victims into an emotional/romantic relationship.
In the 2010 documentary Catfish, we are introduced to Yaniv “Nev” Schulman, a New York-based
photographer, who starts an online relationship with an 8-year-old prodigy named Abby via Facebook.
Over the course of nine months, the two exchange more than 1,500 messages, and Abby’s family
(mother, father, and sister) also become friends with Nev on Facebook. Throughout the documentary,
Nev and his brother Ariel (who is also the documentarian) start noticing inconsistencies in various stories
that are being told. Music that was allegedly created by Abby is found to be taken from YouTube. Ariel
convinces Nev to continue the relationship knowing that there are inconsistencies and lies just to see how
it will all play out. The success of Catfish spawned a television show by the same name on MTV.
From this one story, we can easily see the problems that can arise from anonymity on the Internet.
Often behavior that would be deemed completely inappropriate in a FtF encounter suddenly becomes
appropriate because it’s deemed “less real” by some. One of the major problems with online anonymity
has been cyberbullying. Teenagers today can post horrible things about one another online without
any worry that the messages will be linked back to them directly. Unlike FtF bullying victims who leave
the bullying behind when they leave school, teens facing cyberbullying cannot even find peace at home
because the Internet follows them everywhere. In 2013 12-year-old Rebecca Ann Sedwick committed
suicide after being the perpetual victim of cyberbullying through social media apps on her phone. Some
of the messages found on her phone after her suicide included, “Why are you still alive?” and “You
haven’t killed yourself yet? Go jump off a building.” Rebecca suffered this barrage of bullying for over a
year and by around 15 different girls in her school. Sadly, Rebecca’s tale is one that is all too familiar in
today’s world. Nine percent of middle-school students reported being victims of cyberbullying, and there
is a relationship between victimization and suicidal ideation. 50
It’s also important to understand that cyberbullying isn’t just a phenomenon that happens with
children. A 2009 survey of Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union members, found that 34% of
respondents faced FtF bullying, and 10.7% faced cyberbullying. All of the individuals who were targets of
cyberbullying were also bullied FtF. 51
Many people prefer anonymity when interacting with others online, and there can be legitimate
reasons to engage in online interactions with others. For example, when one of our authors was
coming out as LGBTQIA+, our coauthor regularly talked with people online as they melded the new
LGBTQIA+ identity with their Southern and Christian identities. Having the ability to talk anonymously
with others allowed our coauthor to gradually come out by forming anonymous relationships with others
dealing with the same issues.
Pseudonymous Identity
The second category of interaction is pseudonymous. Wood and Smith used the term pseudonymous
because of the prefix “pseudonym”: “Pseudonym comes from the Latin words for ‘false’ and ‘name,’
and it provides an audience with the ability to attribute statements and actions to a common source
[emphasis in original].” 52 Whereas an anonym allows someone to be completely anonymous, a
pseudonym “allows one to contribute to the fashioning of one’s own image.” 53
Using pseudonyms is hardly something new. Famed mystery author Agatha Christi wrote over
66 detective novels, but still published six romance novels using the pseudonym Mary Westmacott.
Bestselling science fiction author Michael Crichton (of Jurassic Park fame), wrote under three different
pseudonyms (John Lange, Jeffery Hudson, and Michael Douglas) when he was in medical school.
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