Mapping your own technology use using the visitor/resident typology is more challenging than it appears. White & Le Cornu (2011) define visitors as users who perceive technology as a tool to perform a task, whereas residents see it as a social space where they can interact. They also argue that between these two roles a continuum of profiles exists. Reflecting on my own use reveals an obvious division between my personal use — shifting toward a visitor behaviour — and my professional use — leaning toward a more resident stance — of digital tools.
But even in the latter case, I tend to operate within semi-private contexts, which confirms a general tendency to keep my fully public digital footprint to a minimum. This appears consistent with broader trends: according to Ofcom (2026), roughly half of adults have reduced or stopped posting on social media altogether. This trend may be even more pronounced when considering that up to 90% of users browse without ever interacting — a profile Mitchell (2026) refers to as “lurkers”.
That said, this lack of nuance limits the explanatory power of the visitor-resident/personal-institutional tension pair. Cormier’s (2018) alternate model provides a different angle, accounting for more organic forms of interaction that I, as an IT professional, tend to favour.
Transparency statement : This post was drafted with the assistance of AI, used for grammar checking and light editing. All ideas and arguments are my own.
References
Cormier, D. (2018, March 31). Digital practices mapping – Intro activity for digital literacies course. Dave’s Educational Blog. https://davecormier.com/edblog/2018/03/31/digital-practices-mapping-intro-activity-for-digital-literacies-course
Mitchell, S. (2026). Psychology suggests people who browse social media but never post or comment aren’t passive. Silicon Canals. https://siliconcanals.com/d-psychology-suggests-people-who-browse-social-media-but-never-post-or-comment-arent-passive-theyve-simply-opted-out-of-the-performance-while-retaining-access-to-the-information-which-is-a/
Ofcom. (2026). Passive social media use, AI companionship, and online side hustles: UK adults’ media and online lives revealed. https://www.ofcom.org.uk/media-use-and-attitudes/media-habits-adults/passive-social-media-use-ai-companionship-and-online-side-hustles-uk-adults-media-and-online-lives-revealed
White, D. S., & Le Cornu, A. (2011). Visitors and residents: A new typology for online engagement. First Monday, 16(9). https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v16i9.3171
Flo,
I enjoyed your take on this project. I agree with the idea that some of us have become “lurkers” in our older age. Do you think that this is due to unsavory experiences? Or to avoid attention? Something else? I know that I have personally limited my use of social media in the last 5 years due to many factors mostly because of my work which has consequentially made my online presence much less engaging. It makes me think of what Russ mentioned in the April 21st zoom meeting; the part where he was explaining a graph called: “The Gartner Hype Cycle” which was about different technologies following a specific path of interest. According to that graph, I think social media might now be in the downward flow towards the “Trough of Disillusionment”, I could very well be wrong, but that is what it currently feels like.
Hey Jenn,
That’s actually a great point you’re highlighting. I personally never had a bad experience but I for sure have witnessed it happen to others. The Swiss French national TV network (RTS) actually aired last night a very interesting report about identity and digital identity theft and its consequences. While most of the damage they described was financial, they were also showing the devastating emotional impact on the victims. Althought probably rare, this kind of example could probably explain why some of us would rather not “feed the machine” and take unnecessary risks. Plus as you mentioned, our age group is probably into the disillusionment phase of social media use already.