Typology of Digital Religious Identity: A Sociological Study of Youth's Religious Expressions on Facebook

Abstract

This study analyses the religious profile of Facebook users as an expression of digital religious identity. The principal research question is: How do Facebook users construct their digital religious identity through their personal profiles? To answer this question, the paper utilizes a netnographic approach by observing and analysing 40 Facebook accounts of Moroccan young people. The conclusion of the study defines a typology of digital religious identity based on these profiles, which differ in terms of privacy/publicity and the presence of religious indicators. The study concludes that the construction of religious profiles is not determined only by system settings, but also by choices of the users, as active agents navigating technology.