Digital Identity: Personal vs. Professional

Digital identity describes how an individual presents themselves online, including personal and professional networks.

An individual’s personal online identity may include casual content that features their personal relationships, hobbies or daily life (Jawed et al., 2019). This content is often shared on social media platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat, or TikTok. 

Alternatively, professional identity content features an individual’s career, academic achievements, and industry-related engagement (Jawed et al., 2019). This content is typically found on professional networks such as LinkedIn, professional blogs, or digital portfolios.

There are some online safety precautions that individuals can take to ensure clear boundaries between their personal and professional online identities. Personally, I take the following precautions to ensure my online safety:

    • Privacy Settings: I regularly update my personal social media settings to restrict access to only close friends and family.

    • Content Filtering: I ensure that all of my posts suit my professional image and align with my career aspirations. 

    • Platform Separation: I only engage in professional discussions when using LinkedIn and academic forums while reserving other platforms for personal interactions.

Maintaining this separation is important to me because employers and recruiters may review online profiles before making hiring decisions. Carefully curating my personal and professional online identities can improve career opportunities and avoid unintended consequences (Pape & Vogel, 2019). By mindfully customizing my digital presence, I can ensure my online content reflects my values and aspirations.

For more information about navigating digital identities, please feel free to review the following podcast:

Digital Visitor and Resident Map

The “Visitors and Residents” framework categorizes online engagement into two modes:

    • Visitor Mode: In this mode, individuals use the internet as a tool for specific tasks, such as researching or making online purchases.

    • Resident Mode: In this mode, users engage in online communities, maintain a social presence, and contribute content (White & Cornu, n.d.).

In Visitor Mode, I primarily engage with search engines, online groceries, and educational resources like Brightspace. These interactions are task-oriented, with minimal social engagement.
In Resident Mode, I actively participate in social media discussions, engage in professional networking on LinkedIn, and contribute to online communities like academic forums.

Below, I have attached an image of my personal Digital Visitor and Resident Map. In this image, I have demonstrated which sites I most frequently use and how they relate to Digital Visitor and Resident concepts.

Reflecting on these aspects of my online identity helps me understand how my digital identity may evolve over time based on my purpose and motivation. For example, I expect that my Resident Mode presence may gradually shift from personal social media posts to professional engagement as I progress in my career. This shift will impact my online interactions by increasing networking opportunities and using a more strategic approach to content sharing.

Theories of Personalized Learning

Personalized learning tailors education to accommodate an individual’s strengths, needs, and interests. 

Two Theories of Personalized Learning:

    • Constructivist Learning Theory:

      Generated by ChatGPT (DALL-E 2025)

      Emphasizes active learning through experiences, encouraging students to construct knowledge rather than passively absorb information (Banihashem et al., 2022).

    • Self-Directed Learning: Empowers students to take control of their education by setting goals and pursuing knowledge at their own pace.

I enjoy personalized learning as it allows me to apply my knowledge while exploring topics I am interested in. For example, online resources and discussion forums help me explore new topics in my studies, while course projects develop my understanding. This approach supports my academic and professional goals by encouraging critical thinking, self-motivation, and adaptability.

Privacy, Surveillance, and Digital Footprint Awareness

Every action online contributes to one’s digital footprint. This online presence is categorized in two ways:

    • Active Footprint: Content we intentionally share like posts, comments, and uploads.

    • Passive Footprint: Data collected without direct input like cookies, location tracking, and browsing history.

It is important to protect personal data across all platforms, including websites, apps, and social media algorithms. Methods to protect your privacy include:

    • Strong Passwords: Create new, unique passwords for all required websites and enable two-factor authentication.

    • Privacy Settings: Restrict public access to social media accounts by reviewing privacy permissions.

    • Mindful Sharing: Avoid sharing unnecessary personal information to prevent consequences like identity theft, robbery or stalking.

The following video demonstrates some common practices to keep your information secure online.

 

Understanding privacy and surveillance is important because our digital presence can affect our personal and professional goals. Practicing good habits, such as mindful content sharing and secure browsing, can help ensure a safe and respectful online identity (Regan & Jesse, 2019).

Conclusion

To conclude, it is important that all online users carefully consider their online engagement. Information shared online can affect many aspect of one’s life. Therefore, it is important to monitor online informaiton to support a positive digital identity, ensure appropriate online engagement, and maintain personal privacy. By supporting clear boundaries between personal and professional networks and practicing online safety, I plan to maintain a positive and secure digital presence.

References:

Banihashem, S. K., Farrokhnia, M., Badali, M., & Noroozi, O. (2022). The impacts of constructivist learning design and learning analytics on students’ engagement and self-regulation. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 59(4), 442–452. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2021.1890634

Jawed, S., Mahboob, U., & Yasmeen, R. (2019). Digital professional identity: Dear internet! Who am I? Education for Health (Abingdon, England), 32(1), 33–35. https://doi.org/10.4103/efh.EfH_232_17

Regan, P. M., & Jesse, J. (2019). Ethical challenges of edtech, big data and personalized learning: twenty-first century student sorting and tracking. Ethics and Information Technology, 21(3), 167–179. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10676-018-9492-2

White, D. S., & Cornu, A.L, (n.d.). Digital visitor and residents map. Dave O. White. https://daveowhite.com/vandr/