Introduction: One form of influence described in this chapter is impression management. This exercise will help you see the relationships that might exist between impression management and the Internet.
Internet Assignment: Many individuals today have their own web pages. Some are career oriented-here I am, there's what I can do, and so forth. Others are more a reflection of the individual's employer and the work the person does for that employer. For example, the partners in a law firm might each have their own page outlining their particular legal qualifications, expertise, and so forth. Still others appear to be making more of a personal statement about the individual, such as list of favorite music, sports teams, artists, and so forth. Using whatever means you prefer (search engines, referrals, hot links, directories), obtain addresses for and visit five different individual web sites.
Follow-up: Carefully review each of the five web sites you have visited. Write a brief statement for each, describing the kind of impression that the individual is apparently wanting to make about her- or himself-professional, talented, cool, or whatever. Next, exchange web site addresses with a classmate, visit those sites, and repeat the exercise. Finally, respond to the following questions:
- How similar or dissimilar were the descriptions written by you and your classmate?
- How interested do you think each individual really is in portraying an image or impression of him- or herself?
- Do you have a web page? If so, to what extent is image or impression important to you? If you don't have a web page, what role might impression management play if you were to decide to create one?
