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The Power of Visual Communication: Shaping Modern Society's Lifestyle and Behaviors

  • Writer: Jelita Riharso
    Jelita Riharso
  • Mar 28, 2024
  • 10 min read

(Source: Berlin School of Business & Innovation, 2022)

 

Since the discovery of photography, visual communication has helped build bridges between societies, cultures, and perspectives and is a means of discovering the unknown. Combining visual technologies with various consumer-level technologies like smartphones has integrated visual communication into the foundation of daily social interactions (Hand, 2018), and social media use is heavily visual as they use digital screens as their central platform. The mobility provided by smartphones allows visual communication platforms such as Instagram to be embedded in consumers’ everyday life, enabling changes within numerous life aspects that are significant to their lives (Serafinelli & Villi, 2017). This mobility also provides context to the relationship between technology and human in the contemporary period. Using Gillian Rose’s visual methodologies, this essay will explore the contention of visual communication that has changed aspects of everyday life in the modern context. It will start by examining key theorists relating to the topic, a critical examination of Instagram as a case study within the lens of Rose’s critical analysis framework, and the dynamic impact of Instagram as a visual communication platform in changing numerous aspects of life.


Prior theoretical discourses regarding the internet (Jenkins, 2006; Granieri, 2012; Bolter & Grusin, 1996) have examined the probability of a network’s interconnectedness, thus opening further discussion regarding different theoretical paradigms through the lens of the relationship between technology and human. As visual communication is now heavily connected to the internet (Serafinelli, 2018), understanding the behaviours of humans in response to technological advancements is only possible with the conception of media convergence by Jenkins (2006). From his point of view, convergence is integrating content across numerous platforms and cooperation among media industries and their audiences. The shift to the rise of interactivity is evidently reflected in tangible devices like mobile phones and laptops, which provide comprehensive levels of engagement, such as using social media platforms. Applying Jenkins’ theory to utilising contemporary social media such as Instagram, users can now modulate their behaviours and actions to produce, disseminate, modify, and transfer different narratives, content, and visuals across various platforms. Furthermore, Farman (2012) suggested theoretical methods to further understand the role of mobile interfaces and visual communication in determining one’s experiences. He asserted how technological devices can facilitate advanced forms of sharing and communication, allowing individuals to embed visual communication practices into the fabric of their screen-mediated interactions. His idea aligns with what Sheller and Urry (2006) suggested regarding the dynamic interplay among information, individuals, and technology within the context of the technology-human dichotomy. They stated the importance of mobile technology in everyday life as it allows individuals to stay connected through visual data, especially in remote locations. Furthermore, the idea proposed by Rubinstein and Sluis (2008) emphasised mobile phone photography or visual communication products as modern visual speeches, highlighting the intersection of mobility, mediation, and visuality. This integration reflects the significant change in the practice of instant communication as it revolutionises a mass of contemporary communicative customs. Indeed, from their perspective, the variety of screen-mediated techniques, such as the use of social media applications, increased the perception of the Internet as a communicative platform. In addition, expanding on Baudrillard's (1988) input, one could argue that the comprehensive prevalence of smart mobile devices urges individuals to utilise their mobile devices virtually and visually to any location within their range. This has created a new mediation state and modified perception modes (Serafinelli, 2018). Thus, the advancement of visual communication utilisation by users and technological development urge a complex and thorough framework to critically analyse contemporary media products such as social media platforms. Rose (2001) then proposed a framework to assess visual elements from multiple dimensions as every site is influenced by three modalities, namely, compositional, technological, and social. Using these sites makes it plausible to asses possible methodological limitations of social media platforms (Hand, 2018). Consequently, while the dynamic of visual communication and technological advancement has been a complex discourse throughout history, applying critical methodologies to assess contemporary media platforms helps determine the credibility of past critical theorists, especially when navigating shifts happening within everyday life in the modern context.


To implement prior theories regarding visual communication and modern digital advancements, Instagram is a suitable case study for this context. Based on Rose's (2001) visual methodology framework, the sites of production and the image itself are some of the crucial dimensions to be assessed for social media platforms. Being the leading visual-centric social media platform in the world, Instagram facilitates its users sharing and capture of photos (Yang, 2021). The platform has mediated several key trends throughout its operation, from the rise of selfies (Rettberg, 2014), the aesthetic staging of content production (Manovich, 2017), to the disclosure of a distinct form of traveler called a "digital nomad” (Bozzi, 2020). From a production perspective, Instagram allows users to capture images, edit photos, and like and comment on pictures. This editing feature also enables users to apply filters, alternate tones, colours, and content to their photography (Murthy et al., 2016). The application is also designed to be compatible with numerous mobile devices, allowing more comprehensive access for people globally. Furthermore, despite the purity of Instagram as a spontaneous visual-centred communication platform (Manovich, 2017; Zappavigna, 2016), many Instagram users anticipate the existence of staged content (Rogers, 2021). This act of conscientiously arranging the scene before capturing a photo contradicts the more casual approach of shooting, pointing, and sharing on the application. As Burgess and Baym (2020) asserted, this staging behaviour is primarily purposed to maintain “ambient intimacy”, which is the feeling of closeness or proximity towards others developed due to following their updates on social media platforms. In addition, from the image perspective itself, Instagram offers its audience the accessibility edit their pictures according to specific style or aesthetic, and this enables the application to become a widely-used picture sharing service (Murthy et al., 2016) with the top three categories of images identified: selfies, friends or family snapshots, and images related to daily activities of Instagram’s users (Hu et al., 2014). With wide variety of image genres, Instagram provides more comprehensive opportunity for wider audience to contribute, whether these pictures are private or public. Furthermore, studies have shown the efficacy of Instagram advertising for tourism as a result of intriguing image framing and found an increase of the likelihood of visitation (Acuti et al. 2018; Kim et al. 2017; Neuhofer, et al. 2012). From these studies, the methodical investigation of images in Instagram allows stakeholders to receive comprehensive information regarding the identity of the destination images that are being shared and variety of user engagement levels in creating the image framing or formation (Wegerer & Volo, 2021). Consequently, from the production and image itself perspective, Instagram allows its users to contribute better in the application, with numerous useful editing features and the use of images for social media advertising to increase consumers’ or audience’s interest.


Furthermore, Instagram’s power as one of the leading social media platforms globally enables wider circulation and comprehensive audiencing. From the lens of distribution, with easy-to-use features (e.g., evident profile button, clear signs of symbols for liking and commenting) that the application has allows facilitation of the rapid understanding skills of Instagram’s functionality by all kinds of users (Yang, 2021). In addition, the one-click sharing and advanced algoritm features permit the users to share pictures from Instagram to other social media platforms (e.g., FaceBook, Twitter, WhatsApp). Not only does this help to broaden the users’ social connection range, but also empower Instagram’s publicity within a larger social clusters with zero cost. Furthermore, as pictures posted on Instagram typically are embedded with numerous hashtags, this transform the image into what Lister (2013) called as a “network image”, accentuating the interconnectivity of visual contents that are posted on the application. Correlating with interconnectivity of circulation, countless images on Instagram are embedded with location tags, and this could presents useful insights into one’s activity within the specific locations and times in which they occur (Murthy et al., 2016). In terms of audiencing, users who are involved in photo sharing activities are mostly aware of their followers, which consist of a wide range of individuals, mainly strangers who also have the common interest of photography (Serafinelli & Villi, 2017). According to Manovich (2017), the demographic of individual users who use Instagram and are involved in the photography process revolves primarily around younger audiences in their teenage years, twenties, and thirties. This finding contradicts the relatively larger representation of older photographers during the 20th century. As the site of audiencing revolves heavily around how different users interpret Instagram, studies have shown the primary motivations of reciprocity (Granieri, 2012) and personal gratification (Lakhani & Wolf, 2005) behind Instagram’s circulation and audiencing. The act of sharing pictures, along with mutual feedback from one’s followers, drives a sense of gratification, which is reflected in the form of comments, likes, and additional followings (Serafinelli & Villi, 2017). As Couldry (2004) posited, the act of sharing photos on social media is regarded as a form of mutual recognition and concession. Consequently, Instagram has an automated ecosystem where content circulation and audiencing parts are completely user-centric, and technological developments make algorithms and audience feedback more accessible to a larger population.


Based on prior analysis, Instagram’s visual communication culture, along with advancements in technology, evidently affect numerous aspects of humans' lives. The use of mobile phones influences the way people use Instagram visually, which reflects the changing power that these devices have over people’s behaviours and how, as Couldry (2004) asserted, these changes make people incorporate more smart devices and phone applications into their daily habits. In a study done by Serafinelli and Villi (2017), participants' daily use of smart phones and social media sites like Instagram had an impact on how they perceived their surroundings and increased their visual attention.l media applications such as Instagram in daily lives affected how participants perceived their surroundings and increased their visual attention. This behaviour then shapes people’s experiences of their environments as technological advancements mediate them through the screens of mobile devices. Nowadays, people are no longer willing to purchase a phone without a built-in camera, which reflects how advancements in technology create new insights for contemporary society. Even the use of the specific term ‘to Instagram’ aligns with the notion that people’s digital consumption behaviour is now embedded within the fabric of everyday life, prompting consideration of Instagram’s apparent transformation. Furthermore, smart device technologies urge the separation of visuality’s characteristics (i.e., connection, memory, and representation), emphasising the sharing process via the Internet’s connectivity and visibility (Serafinelli, 2018). This allows the visual hyper-representation to integrate with the current contemporary trend of providing visual representation and justification for everything. The prevalent act of creating contents or photographing increases visuality to an evident position in the digital contemporary era, shifting people’s daily visual experiences through the mediation of mobile phones’ screens instead of experiencing their surroundings genuinely. This makes the object of photography less significant than the actual process of taking pictures itself. Furthermore, implementing the theoretical concept of new materialism to Instagram, as Parikka (2012) argued, is useful to examine the photo sharing practice within the context of digital visual communication. From their point of view, Instagram highlights the significance of material technologies such as processors, screens, and data storage to facilitate Instagram’s immaterial visuals. Indeed, the integration of smart phones and Instagram’s usage demonstrate not only how people can communicate and interact in a non-physical way (Sheller & Urry, 2006), but also how the practice of photo sharing is now implanted in a transient world (Parikka, 2012). Consequently, technological advancements play a significant role in accentuating the use of Instagram as a visual-centered platform, resulting in the utilisation of visual communication culture as a part of contemporary everyday life.


Not only from the lens of technological changes, Instagram culture affects socioeconomic interactions, representation, and media usage habits. The cultural dynamic that Instagram has created demonstrates numerous mediated practices (e.g., daily posting) and social interactions (e.g., instructing others what to do) that have become embedded into people’s routines. According to Van Dijck (2011), this behaviour stimulates people to preserve their online presence. In a study done by Murthy et al. (2016), users’ photo sharing behaviour also represents more organic narratives different from those portrayed by institutional bodies and professional journalists. During the occurrence of Hurricane Sandy in the United States in 2012, Instagram users were actively posting to convey real-time visual narrations. The distribution of images with drink and food, as well as comical depictions of the affected pets, demonstrates the humanity side of the disaster, and how individuals preserve their daily activities despite devastation. As it is worth noting that disasters are often analysed from a hierarchical viewpoint, the emergence of visual communication has the possibility to modify and change the dynamics of disaster representation. As Lister (2013) asserted, the visuality of social media can serve to exhibit a comprehensive interpretation of an event. Furthermore, aspects such as subcultures, fashion preferences, and dietary habits serve as mechanisms for individuals to express and construct their cultural identities. Adding this to the layer of hyper-representation behaviours from Instagram users, trends such as #foodporn, #mukbang, #GRWM, and many more, are eventually dominating the visual communication practices in everyday life on social media. According to Manovich (2017), individuals use visual communication nowadays to employ particular visual styles and aesthetics to build their connection with subcultures, express their identities, and incorporate themselves into a certain way of life. Similar to the cultural dimensions, the choice to associate with certain Instagram lifestyles or aesthetic inclinations also serves to emphasise individuals’ economic and social standing (Manovich, 2017). For instance, users who create luxurious travel reels on Instagram are most likely to follow other users who also create similar types of content. With the notions of reciprocity and personal gratification mentioned earlier, more travel content is being created due to the fact that these contents are being received by the type of audience that also resonates with this type of lifestyle. This phenomenon also influences social interactions, as visual contents being shared on the app are commonly metadata tagged (Hand, 2018), enabling more users to discover similar contents according to their interests and allowing wider social communication within a larger community. However, research has shown that people often fail to took notice the radical nature of Instagram phenomenon. For instance, the prevalence of taking pictures prior to consuming meals reveals the requirements and desires of society. Align with Barthes’ (1981) theory, the significance of visuals lies not on its accordance with reality, but how their effective urgency to influence people’s behaviours.


In conclusion, visual communication has indeed changed aspects of life as it has become engrained in humans’ daily habits. Using the case study of Instagram as one of the global leaders of visual-centered social media platforms, it is evident that technological advancements play a significant role in accentuating social media usage in the contemporary period. Furthermore, visual communication also affected people culturally through its role in disaster representation, socioeconomic interaction, and cultural identity construction. While these changes are affecting people's ability to incorporate visual communications into their daily lives, future research could benefit more from exploring both the negative and positive sides of the phenomenon.





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