Compliance and resistance : An investigation into the construction of gender identities by Pakistani women on Facebook

Abstract

Facebook has recently gained popularity among young, digitally literate and predominantly urban Pakistanis. Such social networking sites allow users the freedom to express themselves using usernames, visuals and topics of their own choice. In this article, I examine how Pakistani Facebook users mobilize such resources in their identity work. Using Multimodal Discourse Analysis, I investigate how Pakistani women construct their gender identities on Facebook using visual and linguistic resources. The results revealed the significant impact of Facebook on the socio-cultural and linguistic norms of discourse in Pakistan that enables women to challenge established communication models while they simultaneously reinforce traditional gender models.