The Role of Women and Anonymity in Computer-Mediated Communication

Abstract

Due to the anonymity provided by computer-mediated communication (CMC) on the Internet, it is now believed that the gender of online communicators is considered unimportant or difficult to determine. This is contrary to the common tendencies of male dominance that are seen in interpersonal communication. Research consistently indicates that males tend to hold leadership positions in confrontations. This is a well-established fact in the field of interpersonal communication. This programme aims to streamline the process of achieving gender equality by promoting equal recognition and engagement for individuals of all genders. This purpose will be accomplished by promoting equitable and impartial opportunities for participation and acknowledgment among individuals of all genders. This chapter presents a comprehensive literature analysis that covers the research completed between 1989 and 2013 on the subject of gender and computer-mediated communication (CMC). The study included a wide range of communication methods, including mobile, textual, and multimodal, among others. This inquiry covers the time period from 1989 to 2013. Research abundantly refutes the assumptions that computer-mediated communication (CMC) eliminates gender-related power dynamics and status inequality, and that gender is either invisible or immaterial in this arena of activity. The assertions were put up by scholars who hypothesised that computer-mediated communication (CMC) would eradicate the power dynamics and status differences linked to gender. At some point, both the idea of anonymity and the difference between variety and inequality will surely be explored.