The perception of social media users regarding digital citizenship

Abstract

Digital social networks have been frequently accessed by a large portion of individuals worldwide, and Brazilians have not been an exception. The virtual environments created for people's closeness have grown, turning them into sources for information, business, entertainment, and, obviously, contacting and relating to other individuals. This work aims to analyze users' perception of digital social networks as subjects of rights and duties, as digital citizens. To do so, a quantitative methodology of responses obtained through an anonymous Likert-scale questionnaire was adopted, conducted with 216 individuals, with questions covering topics such as data privacy, perception of rights awareness, use of third-party images, and reporting abusive content, for example. It addressed topics ranging from the Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil of 1988 to the Internet Civil Rights Framework and the General Data Protection Law. The research results suggest a good level of users' awareness of good social media etiquette, with only specific issues highlighted in the results and discussions. Considering the findings, suggestions were made to improve the quality of interaction in the virtual environment.