Paper Type
Complete
Abstract
This paper analyzes how content creators in the rapidly expanding creator economy construct and manage their digital identity. Grounded in the concept of six digital identity dimensions, the study explores how audience perceptions shape the online personas of creator entrepreneurs. Using a random sampling approach, five YouTube content creators from diverse thematic areas were selected, and audience comments were examined through text mining and sentiment analysis to identify recognizable identity patterns. The findings extend existing digital identity theories by demonstrating how these six dimensions converge into three overarching pillars: Self-Presentation (authenticity and aestheticization), Social (social closeness), and Success (professionalism, commerciality, transformation). Together, these pillars form the 3S Digital Identity Model, which offers a structured framework for understanding and managing identity in social platform-based environments. The model provides creators with strategic directions for building coherent and trustworthy identities while helping brands and platforms better capture creators’ professional and communicative practices.
Paper Number
1024
Recommended Citation
Baj-Rogowska, Anna; Kowalski, Jakub; Kowalska, Julia; and Sztuczka, Oliwia, "Unveiling the Digital Identities of Social Media Content Creators" (2026). AMCIS 2026 Proceedings. 1.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2026/social_comput/social_comput/1
Unveiling the Digital Identities of Social Media Content Creators
This paper analyzes how content creators in the rapidly expanding creator economy construct and manage their digital identity. Grounded in the concept of six digital identity dimensions, the study explores how audience perceptions shape the online personas of creator entrepreneurs. Using a random sampling approach, five YouTube content creators from diverse thematic areas were selected, and audience comments were examined through text mining and sentiment analysis to identify recognizable identity patterns. The findings extend existing digital identity theories by demonstrating how these six dimensions converge into three overarching pillars: Self-Presentation (authenticity and aestheticization), Social (social closeness), and Success (professionalism, commerciality, transformation). Together, these pillars form the 3S Digital Identity Model, which offers a structured framework for understanding and managing identity in social platform-based environments. The model provides creators with strategic directions for building coherent and trustworthy identities while helping brands and platforms better capture creators’ professional and communicative practices.
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