Gender and Impoliteness Strategies in Cyberbullying: The Case of Algerian Instagram Fashion Influencers
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1602.22Keywords:
impoliteness strategies, cyberbullying, Algerian influencers, fashion, InstagramAbstract
This study aims at investigating impoliteness strategies used in Instagram comments by the two genders. By using Culpeper's framework, the analysis is based on 100 comments (50 from male users and 50 from female users) directed at ten prominent Algerian female influencers who share fashion content that challenges cultural and religious values. The findings revealed that out of the five impoliteness strategies outlined in Culpeper’s model, four were observed: positive impoliteness, negative impoliteness, sarcasm/mock, and bald-on-record. Notably, withhold politeness—characterized by silence in response to others—was absent. The results showed that male users employed both positive and negative impoliteness strategies equally. They often used inappropriate identity markers to insult the influencers personally and to express disagreement with their fashion choices as part of their attacks. In contrast, female users predominantly utilized positive impoliteness, followed by negative impoliteness, also seeking to disagree with the influencers' fashion choices. Both positive and negative impoliteness strategies were aimed at damaging the influencers' face wants, which include their public image and personal identity. The results indicate that such online comments often transcend simple fashion critique, functioning as direct attacks on the influencers' perceived moral character and personal values within their socio-cultural context.
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