Psychological experiences of secondary school students who use social networking sites by hiding their identities (ananymously)

It is noteworthy that through internet, which has become an indispensable part of modern life, adolescents have established an alternative psychosocial life on social networking sites. Many social and psychological factors that occur during adolescence can cause adolescents to use the internet not only in an explicit way but also by hiding their identities (using anonymous internet). In this study, it is aimed to investigate the psychological experiences of secondary school students related to these forms of use, to ask questions, to make comments, to respond by hiding their identities on social networking sites and to examine the personal and social factors that direct students to these sites. Twenty students studying in five public schools in Eskişehir province, who were identified as using internet by hiding their identity, participated in the study, which was conducted according to the phenomenological qualitative research design. In the analysis, four categories including "the purpose of anonymous internet usage", "structuring of the anonymous internet usage process", "factors leading to anonymous communication, experiences" in the anonymous internet process and content have emerged". The contents of these categories reveal the negative effects of using anonymous internet, such as cyber bullying, as well as positive gains such as providing free experiences of adolescents in anonymous internet usage, and making identity experiments.